Suns

Ja Morant sent out a tweet about the Phoenix Suns during Game 7 on Sunday night. The Suns are losing to the Dallas Mavericks. Morant and the Memphis ...

- SHOULD THE BUCKS MAKE A TRADE? On Sunday afternoon, the Milwaukee Bucks lost Game 7 to the Boston Celtics, which officially ends their 2021-22 NBA season in the second-round. As for the Mavs, they are in the second-round of the playoffs for the first time since the 2011 season. The Grizzlies lost their second-round series to the Golden State Warriors in Game 6, and the winner between the Suns and Mavs will face off with the Warriors in the Western Conference Finals.

The Phoenix Suns built off their success last season with internal improvements from their core players. They further fortified their bench and had a deep ...

Additional notes: Shamet’s $11 million salary for 2024-25 is non-guaranteed and becomes fully guaranteed if not waived by June 29, 2024. His $30 million salary for 2024-25 is non-guaranteed and becomes fully guaranteed if not waived by June 28, 2024. As long the Suns keep their core together, they are going to be taxpayers every year from here on out. Utilizing the MLE would increase that $16 million tax payment to $32 million. This doesn’t include a new contract for Ayton whose first-year salary will likely take them over the tax by itself. Dario Saric will also be extension-eligible but the Suns may want to see how he looks coming back from an ACL injury first. Earlier in the season, we looked at his value and viewed Kevin Huerter’s four-year, $65 million contract as a potential baseline for Johnson. It’s possible that he may have surpassed that valuation with his recent play. Look for the Suns to lock up their franchise player. The full maximum salary could be a sticking point in negotiations. He is also eligible for up to four years, $131.2 million either through an offer sheet or sign-and-trade to another team. They’ll be limited to using the taxpayer mid-level exception to make an addition and they’ll finally enter the luxury tax for the first season of many. Phoenix’s main goals this offseason are similar to last year’s where they mainly needed to re-sign or extend their players.

The Suns had the best record in the N.B.A. in the regular season, and went to the finals last year. This time, they couldn't make it out of the second round ...

Last season marked the first time Paul had ever been to the N.B.A. finals. The Suns had beaten the Mavericks by an average of 19 points per game in the previous three games in Phoenix. Right from the start their path was rockier than expected. The results of the investigation have not been announced. They were nearly unbeatable, going 64-18 during the regular season. Devin Booker and Chris Paul, their offensive leaders, had made none of their 11 field goal attempts. This time, they couldn’t make it out of the second round of the playoffs. Center Deandre Ayton played only 17 minutes 27 seconds, and scored 5 points. Their entire team had scored 27 points — just as many as Doncic had during the first half. I know how bad they wanted it.” “I know they didn’t want to play that way,” Suns Coach Monty Williams said. The Suns had the best record in the N.B.A. in the regular season, and went to the finals last year.

The Phoenix Suns were down 57-27 at half, the largest deficit in any Game 7 EVER.

Bridges finally makes a shot, but then the Suns are still down 27-17 after one, and the fans actually were starting to boo on their final possession of the quarter. Suns are shooting 17% from the field at this point, 10 minutes into the game. After EIGHT MINUTES the Suns still only had 7 points. Luka Doncic and Spencer Dinwiddie are the first pair of teammates to have 20+ in a single half of a Game 7 in 45 years. They’re just lucky the Mavs are only 3-11 on threes. Luka started off quite hot, making 8 quick points on four shots on their first four possessions and the Mavs had a 8-3 lead. Luka iso’d Ayton and made a turnaround fadeaway while Chris Paul got a pick-and-roll on the move to get an open middy. The Suns shot less than 30% in those three quarters. followed quickly by Ayton swishing a half-court granny shot from the same spot on the first try. All-Star Devin Booker made one shot in the first three quarters. They weren’t the guys we cheered in the NBA Finals just last year. Oh there were players in the Suns uniforms, but they weren’t the guys we were watching these last two years.

Mavericks star Luka Doncic authored a dominant performance on Sunday night, in leading Dallas to a Game 7 victory over the defending Western ...

Booker's first basket didn't come until a bit later in the quarter. He sat out the entire fourth quarter, as the game was well in hand by that point. After falling in an 0-2 hole with a pair of road losses, Dallas won four out of five games, putting the finishing touches on the series by humiliating the Phoenix home court.

Doncic scored 35 points, Spencer Dinwiddie added 30 and Dallas stunned top-seeded Phoenix to advance to the Western Conference finals.

The other was the Mavericks in 2007. Suns: Phoenix shot just 6 of 23 (26.1%) from the field in the first quarter. They won the first two games against the Bucks in the NBA Finals last season before losing four straight games. Simply put, the Suns looked overwhelmed by the pressure of a Game 7. He also got some help: Dinwiddie was fantastic in the first half with 21 points on 7-of-10 shooting, including 4 of 5 from 3-point range. Conversely, it was an embarrassing no-show for the playoff-tested Suns — who advanced to the NBA Finals last season with a very similar roster.

Chris Paul says he's not retiring and hopes the Suns will be "right back next year" after their season ended in a stunning blowout loss in Game 7 to the ...

The 60 combined points the Suns lost Games 6 and 7 by represented the second-largest score difference over Games 6 and 7 of a playoff series, going all the way back to 1962 when the Warriors beat the St. Louis Bombers by 62 over the final two games, per ESPN Stats & Information research. "We basically played our worst game of the season tonight," Williams said. "The season just ended. Mavs star Luka Doncic singlehandedly kept pace with the Suns, scoring 27 points of his own in the first half to match Phoenix's 27 as a team. "It was a good, old-fashioned ass-whooping," Booker said. To come out and make sure you're getting the right shots and all that." Well, tonight you've got to take it [too]. That's a part of manhood." Devin Booker, who was Phoenix's other All-Star this season besides Paul, scored 11 points on 3-for-14 shooting, far below his 26.5 points per game average over the last two postseasons coming into Sunday. But in the last five games, all of which came after his 37th birthday on May 6, he averaged 9.4 points and 3.6 turnovers. Suns big man Deandre Ayton finished with just five points and four rebounds. He literally limped to the finish line, playing through a left quad issue that limited his mobility, sources told ESPN. "I think Mont said that's on him, but I think that's on me, as the point guard, the leader of the team.

A win would have sent the Valley's oldest professional sports franchise to its second consecutive Western Conference Finals appearance, but the Suns may have ...

Just an absolutely unbelievable demolition in the close out game. — Patrick Beverley (@patbev21)May 16, 2022 — Patrick Beverley (@patbev21)May 16, 2022 — SportsCenter (@SportsCenter)May 16, 2022 — Action Network (@ActionNetworkHQ)May 16, 2022 — Action Network (@ActionNetworkHQ)May 16, 2022

The home team has won in the previous six games of the series, and the Mavericks have lost seven straight games on the Suns' home floor since a victory early in ...

The other was the Mavericks in 2007. Suns: Phoenix shot just 6 of 23 (26.1%) from the field in the first quarter. They won the first two games against the Bucks in the NBA Finals last season before losing four straight games. Simply put, the Suns looked overwhelmed by the pressure of a Game 7. He also got some help: Dinwiddie was fantastic in the first half with 21 points on 7-of-10 shooting, including 4 of 5 from 3-point range. Conversely, it was an embarrassing no-show for the playoff-tested Suns - who advanced to the NBA Finals last season with a very similar roster.

The Phoenix Suns and Dallas Mavericks have finalized their injury reports for Game 7 on Sunday night in Arizona.

- SHOULD THE BUCKS MAKE A TRADE? On Sunday afternoon, the Milwaukee Bucks lost Game 7 to the Boston Celtics, which officially ends their 2021-22 NBA season in the second-round. Neither player has played a single game in the series so far, so both teams are coming in fully healthy for the decisive game. The winner of the game gets to advance to the Western Conference Finals, and the series has had a lot of volatility so far.

Fourth-seeded Dallas Mavericks stun top-seeded Phoenix Suns in Game 7 to advance to Western Conference finals to face third-seeded Golden State.

The Suns then opened the conference semifinals with a 2-0 lead on the Mavericks after winning Game 2 by 20. Follow him on Twitter at @DuaneRankin. The Suns entered this season on a mission to return to the NBA Finals and finish what they started after losing to the Milwaukee Bucks in six games

The Valley is not devastated. We are disgusted. We are humiliated. We just witnessed one of the greatest collapses in the history of the NBA.

This team has earned the right to run it back again in 2022-23. “We have more fuel added to the fire. Their pedigree and their ability in the clutch is up for debate. And the way the Pelicans and Mavericks deconstructed and derailed the Suns with adjustments and physicality, it’s hard to find faith in the future. You hope something is wrong with him physically because the alternative is that age has caught up with a 37-year-old point guard, and that’s much worse. But I think that’s on me, as the point guard, the leader of the team, to come out and make sure we get the right shots and all that.” They were inexplicably foul hunting from the very beginning of the game, falling down after shots and looking for whistles. He attempted to minimize their failure, lamenting how the Suns just ran into a bad night at the worst possible time. This pathetic display happened in Game 7, when great players are supposed to be legendary and great teams always rise to the moment. We basically played the worst game of the season tonight.” Gifted with the greatest stage in basketball, the Suns trailed by 30 points at halftime. They nearly incited a mutiny among their fan base, most of whom began streaming for the exits after three quarters.

PHOENIX — The odds were stacked extremely heavily against the Dallas Mavericks. In fact, 76.8 percent of Game 7s in Luka the history of the NBA have been ...

“To come on the road and find a way to win — everyone had something to do with it. But the Mavs went home and regrouped and won four of the last five games in this series, including Sunday’s head-turner that rocked the NBA. This contest was so lopsided that the Mavs led by as much as 46 points (111-65) after Dinwiddie nailed a three-pointer with 6:22 remaining in the game. Asked to explain how they were able to easily handle the Suns, Brunson said: “I can’t really explain that at all. And that’s not a good thing for the opponents, which was the case with the Suns. We were playing hard the whole series – maybe a couple of games here we were not ourselves. At the end of the first quarter, Doncic already had 12 points and eight rebounds. And the Suns’ 30-point halftime deficit is the largest halftime deficit in a Game 7 in NBA playoff history. And Doncic didn’t play in the fourth quarter. The Mavs surprisingly led by as many as 46 points (111-65) after Spencer Dinwiddie tossed in a three-pointer midway through the fourth quarter. All night long against the Suns, the Mavs were the aggressors and played with a huge chip on their shoulders. “I know we were the underdogs,” point guard Luka Doncic said.

Phoenix scores just 27 points in the first half and Dallas upsets the No. 1 seed to reach the Western Conference finals.

They won the first two games against the Bucks in the NBA finals last season before losing four straight games. He also got some help: Dinwiddie was fantastic in the first half with 21 points on 7-of-10 shooting, including 4 of 5 from 3-point range. Simply put, the Suns looked overwhelmed by the pressure of a Game 7. The series might have been close but the individual games usually were not. Conversely, it was an embarrassing no-show for the playoff-tested Suns – who advanced to the NBA finals last season with a very similar roster. Doncic earned the Mavs an early lead, making his first three shots, including two 3-pointers.

Phoenix's season—which before the playoffs had been the best in franchise history—ended in shocking, confusing, humiliating fashion on Sunday night.

From Paul’s legacy to Luka’s chance to become the guy to beat, the fallout of this game is significant. For the second straight summer, the Suns will have to dig deep to respond. The loss was a record-scratch moment for the Suns. You play all year to get homecourt in a Game 7 only to be run off the floor anyway. Instead, they come abruptly, like all the lights being switched on in the middle of the night. the Warriors. The 2–0 lead in the Finals. And now, one of the most unexpected blowouts ever. Bridges went 0-for-3 from beyond the arc, which means he finished the series with five made threes, or as many as Spencer Dinwiddie hit in Game 7 alone. He said his only message to the team was it’s time to get back to work. Phoenix’s starters had 37.) It was as thorough of a whooping as you will ever see in professional sports, and that’s with some great players on the other side of the floor. He even out-manipulated Luka earlier in the series. Didn’t Dončić still need more playoff seasoning before he could make the Finals? Wasn’t this supposed to be the storybook finish that had long eluded Chris Paul? Weren’t the Suns far and away the best team in the NBA? Dallas put all those questions to bed mercilessly and with brutality in what was a landscape-changing win for the league. Almost immediately, you could sense a slight murmur in the crowd. At that point, Dallas held what was an insignificant 5–3 lead when Luka Dončić dribbled the ball up the middle of the floor across halfcourt.

PHOENIX — More than two hours before tip-off of Game 7 of the Western Conference semifinals, injured Dallas Mavericks wing Tim Hardaway Jr. noticed a little ...

For months, the Suns looked like their “revenge tour” mentality was real and it was championship or bust. He then abruptly became a different player; turnover-prone, hesitant to shoot, unable to get to his “happy place” at the right elbow. It was the Suns who took pride in responding to perceived disrespect all season long. In Games 1 through 6, the Mavericks rained down threes on the Suns — many of them open looks. The Mavericks came back from an 0-2 hole to win the series. PHOENIX — More than two hours before tip-off of Game 7 of the Western Conference semifinals, injured Dallas Mavericks wing Tim Hardaway Jr. noticed a little moisture on the court.

Anthony Edwards, the budding superstar 20-year-old guard for the Minnesota Timberwolves, called the Phoenix Suns a "disgrace" after they were obliterated by ...

But Edwards' comment could backfire considering he's part of a Timberwolves team that lost its best-of-seven series to the Grizzlies by blowing double-digit leads in five of the six games, losing three of them. Y'all got 36 points in the third quarter, this is terrible," said Edwards. Anthony Edwards, the budding superstar 20-year-old guard for the Minnesota Timberwolves, called the Phoenix Suns a "disgrace" after they were obliterated by the Dallas Mavericks in Game 7 of of their Western Conference Semifinal series.

Takeaway 1. Devin Booker, Chris Paul and Deandre Ayton came up small in the biggest game of the season and arguably their lives. Booker said after he wasn't ...

Granted the 22 turnovers ruined Game 6, but Phoenix only had 12 in Game 7. Williams chose to rest starters and the Suns lost four of their last six. The offense not only lacked rhythm, but was so stagnant. He clearly wasn't himself, but he didn't have the look of someone ready to battle. Follow him on Twitter at @DuaneRankin. As for Ayton, he not only played 17 minutes, but didn't return after coming out with 8:26 left in the third quarter. If his teammates ride with him, that series will likely reach a Game 7, too. That would explain Williams' "it's internal" response to a question about Ayton's 17 minutes. The Suns are still one of the league's best teams, but didn't play like it in the ultimate Game 7. The Suns pride themselves on assists, but only had 18 in Game 6 and 22 in Game 7. The Suns went from shooting at least 50% from the field in a franchise-record eight straight postseason games to ending their season going 39.7% from the field in Game 6 and 37.9% in Game 7. ESPN's Marc Spears reported Paul was playing through a quad injury.

Marjanovic was trying to dribble out the clock when Aaron Holiday stole the ball and hit a 3.

The TV broadcast had already cut to the Mavericks bench, so it didn't even catch the moment, but Marjanovic was steamed. As Holiday was speaking to Davis Bertans and Spencer Dinwiddie -- his former teammates with the Washington Wizards -- Marjanovic came charging in. In fact, there was a bit of a fracas after the final buzzer, and Boban Marjanovic had to be held back by his teammates.

Chris Paul struggled on the defensive end against Dallas. Christian Petersen / Getty Images. The Phoenix Suns finished the regular season with the NBA's best ...

Ayton played only 17 minutes in the Game 7 defeat, which Williams cryptically called an “internal” decision in his postgame press conference. Even when Booker handled the pressure well and created a look for a teammate, things went awry. He found his way to a decent amount of points anyway (22.2 per contest across the final five games of the series), but he shot only 42 percent from the field and averaged 4.8 turnovers compared with only four assists a night. During the regular season, Paul saw drop coverage more than any player in the league other than Trae Young, with opponents employing it on 1,208 of his pick and rolls, according to Second Spectrum. Among the 39 players who saw drop coverage at least 500 times, Paul had the third-best effective field-goal percentage, and his possessions were third-most fruitful overall. Blown switches, missed assignments, over-aggressive help, late rotations … the kinds of things the Suns rarely did during their romp through the regular season. After scoring 47 points across the first two games of the series, Paul scored a combined 47 over the next five games, and his Game 7 plus-minus of -39 was the worst of his career. In terms of the number of times CP3’s man was used as the screener in pick-and-roll action, Games 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7 of this series rank third, fifth, second, fourth and first among those 702 games, representing five of the nine total games where he’s defended the screener double-digit times. However, Dallas set only six picks with Paul’s man as the screener in Game 1. One way the Mavs may be able to create more of an advantage in pick and rolls is by leveraging [Luka] Dončić’s size. As we noted in our post-Game 1 story on the different ways the Suns and Mavs were attacking in pick and rolls: After taking a 2-0 series lead, Phoenix lost four of the next five games and scored only 104.1 points per 100 possessions in that span, a rate that would have ranked 28th in the league during the regular season. And yet, their disastrous defeat Sunday at the hands of the Dallas Mavericks was the biggest home-court Game 7 loss in the shot-clock era.

A Fox Sports TV personality took a lot of flak for his prediction in the Suns vs. Mavericks series. He ended up being right.

Fox Sports TV personality Nick Wright took a lot of flak for his prediction in the Phoenix Suns vs. But Wright's prediction for the series was right. The Mavs are going to win in seven.

The road warriors — winners of a franchise-record 33 games away from Phoenix this season — mustered a meager 2-4 road record in the 2022 playoffs and went 0-3 ...

The Warriors are headed to the Western Conference Finals this week; the Suns are headed to parts unknown. The Suns did have a shortened break from their July Finals to the start of the season. Dallas earned its ticket to the conference finals fair and square. The Suns never ran from expectations; Booker even dubbed this playoff run the “revenge tour” after last year’s disappointment (fatefully christening it after Game 2 of the Western Conference Semifinals). But that doesn’t mean doubts don’t begin to creep once things get sideways. So blame whoever or whatever you want for the Suns washing out of the playoffs. But from the moment the playoffs started, even when this team won, they didn’t look quite right. Against a team the Suns hadn’t lost to since 2019 and swept this season? The Suns in the playoffs didn’t make anything look easy. By contrast, the Golden State Warriors, who were running neck-and-neck with the Suns through the first half of the season and who know a thing or two about a dominant regular season fizzling out (see: 2016), sent their own message, then spent the second half of the season getting right for the postseason while drifting back in the standings. Needing six games to beat a 36-46 New Orleans Pelicans team proved to be but a mere toilet water aperitif to the septic system bouillabaisse that was to come. Certainly, no team took the regular season more seriously than the Suns. They wanted to send a message after coming up short in the Finals: We’re back and better than ever. The Chuckster was riding the Phoenix Suns’ bandwagon hard this postseason, parking that ample derriere on the Conestoga alongside thousands of Suns fans hoping for a better ending than 2021.