LOS ANGELES - With the building he called home for six seasons of his 16-year career, Phoenix Suns point guard Chris Paul put together an 8-0 run after a 10-0 run by the LA Clippers. Silence the crowd and start taking out the playoff monsters that have haunted his post-apocalyptic past.
Paul's third-quarter jump paved the way for a fourth-quarter coronation at Staples Center on Wednesday. The future Hall of Famer put up 19 more from his playoff career-high 41 points as the visiting Suns won 130–103 in Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals to advance to the NBA Finals.
Paul and the Sons found a way to beat the never-ending Clippers, giving Paul the first final berth of his career and the Phoenix for the first time in nearly three decades.
"I just kept thinking, if we do what we should be doing, I have the last laugh," Paul later said. "So you stay the course long enough, you break them, and that's what we did."
In many ways, Paul was the most accomplished player in NBA history to never make it to the Finals stage, as he earned the most All-Star appearances and All-NBA selections, started the most playoff games and scored the most career points. . Anyone without a final appearance on your resume.
After missing the first two games of the series being sidelined due to the league's health and safety protocols and then struggling in Games 3 and 4 - to shoot just 11-for-41 - he found his game on Wednesday. , 16-for-24 from the field (7-for-8 from 3) while eight assists were dismissed.
"There were questions about his production before tonight, and in my heart I thought it was just a matter of time," Suns coach Monty Williams said of Paul after the game. "I didn't know it would be like this, but Chris is the same. He was tired and he was still doing these kinds of plays — going to the basket, 3s, orchestrating everything."
Paul, in tears during the postgame trophy presentation ceremony at Center Court, revealed that he had received an MRI prior to Game 6 that revealed a partially torn ligament in his right arm. This happened after playing through a nerve problem in his shoulder during the first round and later contracting COVID-19 between the second round and the conference finals.
Paul said, "Hell, man, I experienced COVID. Just a week ago, I was at home [while quarantining in L.A.]. Can't be with my teammates." "It's been enough, and I want it not only for myself but for everyone in that locker room."
Led by young stars Devin Booker (22 points) and Deandre Ayton (16 points, 17 rebounds), Phoenix advanced eight points in the first quarter, shooting 14-for-22 from the field (63.6%).
The Suns' lead expanded to two points at the start of the second quarter, then was cut all the way by Phoenix before bringing it down to nine at halftime, with Jae Crowder scoring 13 of his 19 points in the period.
The Suns' advantage increased to 17 in the third as Phoenix - averaging 91 points in games 4 and 5 of the series - pushed the pace and put 97 points on the board by the start of the fourth.
The Clippers, led by Marcus Morris Sr.'s second strong game of the series, went 10–0 in the third and stayed within striking distance before Paul made 3 hits as part of a flurry when he scored eight straight runs. To give the Sun a 15-point cushion back.
"It was a shot that helped me loosen up in a certain area of my body, you know what I mean?" Williams chuckled.
Paul, 36, who scored 37 points in the Sun's series cleaner and 41 on Wednesday in Game 4 of the second round against the Denver Nuggets, became the oldest player in league history to score more than 35 points in consecutive closeouts. Sports within a postseason, according to research from ESPN Stats & Information. Previous Oldest? Michael Jordan, who did so in 1996 at the age of 33.
The Suns' rapid rise from a team that won only 19 games to the Finals three seasons ago can be attributed to three key characters: Paul, who finished fifth in MVP voting; General Manager James Jones, who was named NBA Executive of the Year; and Williams, who finished second for coach of the year.
But the Sons' young star in Booker - who averaged 25.5 points in the series through a broken nose - and Ayton - didn't bow down himself, averaging 17.8 points and 13.7 rebounds against the Clippers - netting that brainwashing talent. given together.
"I think he thought when we first played against each other, it was going to be a love affair, but, no, I started talking to him right away," Booker said of the game. Asked about his first memories. with Paul. "It's just the type of contestants, players you like, I don't like playing against that guy, but I love him on my team."
This is the third time in franchise history that Phoenix has reached the finals. Charles Barkley lost in six games to Jordan and the Chicago Bulls in 1993, and also lost six games to the Boston Celtics in 1976 – a series that included a 128–126 triple-overtime loss to the Phoenix in Game 5.
"You never know when you're going to be in these positions and you see people get there three, four, five times," said Williams, who said that longtime assistant Randy Ayers went there to share his thoughts. After the cry broke a few hours before tipoff. About that. "Some people get a lot more than that, and you're like, 'Man, I whacked my tail.' Then you just realize it's a blessing, because everyone works on it. So if you get a chance to be a part of it, you feel incredibly blessed."
To get there this time, he knocked out the defending champion Los Angeles Lakers in the first round in six games; Swept League MVP Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets in the second round; And the Clippers ended the season on their home court.
Crowder said, "Obviously you take out the champs, which definitely gets you a little bit ahead, with your team's morale, confidence-wise, our young players knowing that we've had a Defending a great team and defeated it." The Lakers entered the finals last year as a member of the Miami Heat.
The race has ignited a dormant fan base that has not seen their team in post-season runs since 2010. They would also be the fans behind the Sons in the Finals, as they would have a home-court advantage against whichever team comes out in the Eastern Conference based on a better regular-season record than either of them. The Atlanta Hawks and Milwaukee Bucks are tied 2-2 in the East Finals.
"I feel it when we go to the floor," Williams said earlier in the series. "That atmosphere, I don't know of any other environment that can touch it. Some may be as loud, but none are louder than our fans on game night."
It was kind of a full-circle night for Paul, who was asked about the conference championship t-shirt and recalled how he imagined wearing the festive outfit three years ago when his Houston Rockets went to the Golden State. But was up 3-2. Before the Warriors injured his hamstring and the Warriors returned to win the series.
“The equipment guy in Houston… [his] T-shirt and hat was there, and I never got a chance to get it,” Paul said. "I never forget it. Never forget it.
"Jay [Gasper], our equipment guy, texted me a few days ago and said, 'C, I've got a T-shirt and a hat. You just have to do your part.' So that's the only thing I was thinking about, is the process. It's getting us one step closer to where we're going."
Paul also looked at his time in LA beyond his Houston stint.
"To do it here in LA, with the Clippers, it's also my family," Paul told ESPN's Rachel Nichols during the trophy ceremony. "I gave the Clippers six tough years. We fought hard. A lot of these fans, Billy Crystal, this is my family. So to do it here, against a team that I had the utmost respect for, I've always been a Will be Clipper. I love these fans."
Crystal, the actor and comedian known for his Clippers allegiance, was impressed by Paul's approval.
"If it can't be us, I'm glad it's him," Crystal told ESPN. "It's so bitter that it happened in this building where he was so nice to us for so many years, and we just couldn't get past him. At this point in his career, he's playing as usual."
Paul's history with his coach goes well beyond his relationship with the Clippers. Williams' first season as NBA head coach came in 2010–11 when Paul was their point guard in New Orleans. Now the pair will go to the championship round together.
"I've known Chris for 11 years. ... We'll be here all day talking about our friendship," Williams said before Game 6. "It's bigger than basketball. There's a connection and kinship there from tough talks, coaching, texting, FaceTime, watching games. He probably sticks out for me, among a few other things."
And the Sons would need four more wins to win their first title in their 53 years of existence.