Chris Paul suffered an early injury scare, Deandre Ayton dominated the boards, and Devin Booker poured in 34 points to see off the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 1
Monday 24 May 2021 07:38, UK
The atmosphere at the Phoenix Suns Arena was electric. Right up until tip-off, chants of 'Beat LA' boomed around the stadium, so loud they drowned out the PA.
The fervent crowd got even more raucous as the Suns players went to the bench at the end of the first quarter, 32-25 to the good.
Then all of a sudden, those 12,000 fans went deathly quiet. Chris Paul was down underneath his own basket after taking some contact from LeBron James, a lifelong friend of the Suns point guard, who had crashed the glass for an offensive board and bucket.
As Paul left the court holding his right shoulder, a grim new reality set in. What if that was it? Paul's playoffs over, just like that. A flash. Championship hopes down the pan. Here and then gone again.
Thankfully, Paul returned to the court, even if he didn't look every bit his typically hypnotic self. There was clearly some loss of feeling in his right hand as the player who never loses his dribble did so on multiple occasions, as well as seeming reluctant to shoot. One gorgeous midrange right out of the Point God textbook notwithstanding.
For Phoenix though, this was the night for their two burgeoning young stars to rise from their franchise's bygone ashes. On their playoff debuts, both Devin Booker and Deandre Ayton were superb and looked every bit as though they belonged on this grand stage. It's important to note that this wasn't any old playoff game, either. This was a Conference Finals match-up disguised as a first-round series opener.
Booker had 34 points (the most on a playoff debut in franchise history), eight assists and seven rebounds on the night. The 24-year-old was a slinking, scoring menace on the offensive end for the Suns, crashing to the basket at every opportunity, pulling up for three or smartly dishing to a teammate whenever that avenue was denied. The Lakers simply had no answer.
And then there was Ayton, who ruled over the boards to such an extent that he made it seem as though he was the future Hall of Fame forward and Anthony Davis the still wet behind the ears debutant. The 22-year-old former first overall pick is so often a 'quiet' big man in that he puts up double doubles with consistent ease without ever really appearing to dominate. This was no such occasion. The paint belonged to him and him alone as he scored 21 points on 10-of-11 shooting, while also gobbling up 16 rebounds.
He had eight on the offensive end alone, creating a number of crucial second-chance points for Phoenix. Andre Drummond and Davis had nine and seven rebounds in total (!) respectively.
In truth, AD didn't look at all himself with just 13 points on 31% shooting. He was -18 on the court, the worst of any player. Ayton was +16 in comparison and by far the best big man on the floor.
Only LeBron James (18/7/10) put up any fight of the Lakers starters, with Montrezl Harrell and Alex Caruso their typical lively selves off the bench. The rest of the team simply could not get going, proven by the fact that it took until five minutes into the second half for someone other than James to hit a three-pointer.
By that point, however, the Suns were getting to the line with impunity after being awarded no free throws during the first two quarters (as the Lakers went 11-17 over ). That was all they needed to cruise the rest of the way. No Los Angeles comeback materialised and in the end, Monty Williams' team looked remarkable comfortable holding the reigning NBA champions at arm's length.
This series is by no means over, but for Phoenix, this was something close to the perfect start. The 99-90 final score doesn't do their performance justice; the fact they led from midway through the first quarter, continued leading with Paul off the floor, and then extended it to as many as 16 once he was back, does. It was double digits most of the way.
They've gone a long time without playoff basketball in the Valley. So long you could hear it. Thanks to Devin Booker and Deandre Ayton, that wait was well worth it heading into Game 2.
