Who will win this series?
If there was one team you could point to and say that they match up well with the Phoenix Suns, it would be the Denver Nuggets. On the other side of things, the one team that matches up really well with Denver are the Phoenix Suns, so this series is definitely going to feature a lot of back-and-forth play and momentum shifts.
Assuming Chris Paul’s shoulder has not magically healed since last week, the Suns are going to have to find production from some of their role players in Cam Payne, Cam Johnson and Torrey Craig off-the-bench. This series has a chance to go the distance, but I see the Suns being able to win against Denver and I truly do not see this series going past six games.
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In their series against the Lakers, the Suns faced some challenges, but the one thing about this team that stands out compared to anybody else in the playoffs is that they do not back down from anyone and they do not look afraid of the moment. This team always looks locked in and whether they are up 20 or down 10, they are always sticking to their game-plan and find a way to battle until the final buzzer.
From being locked-in defensively to being able to knock down three-point shots at a high-percentage, this Suns team can find ways to win games multiple ways, which is why they will shine against the Nuggets in this series.
Deandre Ayton is the perfect mold of center, both strong and athletic, to be able to contain Nikola Jokic and if the Suns can force the ball out of Jokic’s hands, then Denver will have a lot of problems on offense. Both of Denver’s wins over the Suns in Phoenix during the regular season came in overtime and Jamal Murray was a big part of both wins.
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Murray is done for the season with a torn ACL, as mentioned before, and will not be playing in this series, so it should be very interesting to see who will step up for the Nuggets, especially if Will Barton is unable to go early on in this series.
Denver is a great team and they truly do have a chance to beat the Suns, especially if Chris Paul’s shoulder injury gets re-aggravated, but at the end of the day, the Suns look like the most locked-in team in this postseason and they look like the team that is going to win the Western Conference.
