The Phoenix Suns and the Milwaukee Bucks are the last two teams standing as the NBA playoffs set to begin tonight. Making their last finals appearance in 1993, the Suns look to capture the franchise’s first championship. The Bucks end the franchise’s 47-year drought from the finals (1974) in hope to take home the Larry O’Brien trophy for the first time since 1971.
Both teams have played some of their best basketball during these playoffs and have been tested. Let’s take a quick overview of their playoff run:
Phoenix Suns
The no. 2 Phoenix Suns entered the playoffs with the second-best record in the association of 51-21 and were matched up with the no. 7 Los Angeles Lakers, the defending champs. Many people picked the Lakers to take this series but the Suns were too tough to handle on both sides of the ball. Phoenix packed the paint and forced LeBron James to settle for outside shots or pass out to open shooters, which led to a lot of misses. In the end, Phoenix blew the Lakers out of the gym in games 5 and 6 to advance into the next round to face the no. 3 Denver Nuggets.
The Denver Nuggets were without their star point guard Jamal Murray but the team still had the league-MVP in Nikola Jokic. Unfortunately, defense isn’t a part of the Nuggets DNA as they let the scorching Suns shoot 51.6% from the field and 42.5% from deep for the series. Phoenix’s hot shooting sent Denver home in four games.
In the Western Conference Finals, the Suns squared off against the Los Angeles Clippers. Chris Paul missed Game 1 and 2 of the series due to Health and Safety protocols, and Kawhi Leonard missed the entire series because of a knee injury. Both teams were missing their most important player for at least the first two games. Despite the absences, the Suns pulled out the first two games to take a 2-0 lead in the series. This would be the third time the Clippers went down 0-2 in the series during these playoffs, hoping for another comeback. Phoenix would end up winning the series in six games in convincing fashion.
Milwaukee Bucks
The no. 3 Milwaukee Bucks were overshadowed by the Philadelphia 76ers and the Brooklyn Nets in the regular season but they still had a strong year. The Bucks ended the regular season with a record of 46-26 to face the no. 6 Miami Heat, the team that eliminated the Bucks in the Orlando bubble last year. Milwaukee swept Miami and the only game that was competitive was Game 1 where it went to overtime. The Heat had no answer for Giannis this time around and the Bucks shut them down on offense.
In the semifinals, the Bucks would face Brooklyn’s three-headed dragon of Kevin Durant, James Harden, and Kyrie Irving. Injuries caught up with the Nets as Harden suffered a hamstring injury within the first minute of Game 1. Harden would return in Game 5 but he was never the same after the injury. Irving injured his ankle in Game 4 and never returned for the series. Despite the injuries, Brooklyn was up 3-2 in the series but Milwaukee was able to close out games 6 and 7 to move on.
In the Eastern Conference Finals, the Bucks would face a young and talented team in the Atlanta Hawks. The Hawks took Game 1 with an impressive performance from Trae Young dropping 48 points and 11 assists. However, the series shifted once Trae Young accidentally stepped on a referee’s foot in Game 3. Young returned to play in Game 6 while his team was down 3-2. Unfortunately, the Bucks proceeded to win Game 6 as the Hawks desperately needed Trae Young in crunch time but he wasn’t 100%.
My Prediction
SUNS IN 6!
The biggest factor right now is Giannis Antetokounmpo listed as doubtful for Game 1 tonight as he’s still recovering from his hyperextended knee from the Hawks series. My guess would be that Giannis might not return until Game 3 when the series shifts to Milwaukee.
The Bucks will have to rely on Jrue Holiday and Khris Middleton just like they did in the last couple games of the Hawks series. I have trouble trusting them carrying that load. Both players are good on the defensive end, especially Jrue Holiday with his strength and his defensive reads. Offensively, Middleton and Holiday are either hot or cold. There’s no middle ground for these two and the Bucks are going to need them to step up before the series gets out of hand.
Phoenix just needs to stick their strengths which is ball movement, pushing the pace, and bringing energy on the defensive side of things.
I expect Deandre Ayton to continue to be consistent throughout this series. He’s dealt with a lot of talented centers during this run battling with Anthony Davis before he was hurt, the MVP Nikola Jokic, and Ante Žižić who was relentless at grabbing offensive rebounds. In this series, he’ll have Brook Lopez defending him and Ayton will be effective in the post, under the rim, and in the pick n’ roll. The pick n’ roll will be dangerous for the Bucks because we saw how Lopez would always drop back whenever the Hawks ran it, so expect some easy points for Ayton.
I’m not sure if Jrue Holiday will be guarding Chris Paul or Devin Booker but I expect Holiday to apply a ton of ball pressure to his matchup. Whoever doesn’t have Holiday guarding them, will be effective from the field running most of the offense.
I got the Suns winning in 6. I see Phoenix taking the first two games at home. I expect Giannis to return for Game 3 but he’ll be rusty. The Bucks get their team back in order and win games 4 and 5. Then, the Suns will win game 6 to bring home the franchise’s first championship. Chris Paul will finally get his gold and people will say he’s a top five point guard of all time (I already think he’s top five without a championship).
Photo credits: Arizona Sports, Brew Hoop, USA Today Sportsbook Wire