This season’s NBA playoffs seem to come as a disappointment for the Phoenix Suns. In the playoffs, Kevin Durant (34‧208cm), the league’s best offense and defense swingman, Kevin Durant (34‧208cm), added to the existing power enough to cause an accident in the playoffs. It can be said that I chose ‘win-now’, but it was actually a season worth aiming for the championship.
Phoenix has outstanding players for each position, such as No. 1 Chris Paul (37‧183cm), No. 2 Devin Booker (26‧196cm), and No. 5 Deandre Ayton (24‧211cm). It was a strong team. In such a situation, the fact that Durant joined at position 3 was like the finish line. This is the reason why many people’s wary eyes were poured into Durant’s trip to Phoenix.
Of course, there was a lot of bleeding in the process of bringing Durant. He gave away a total of seven draft picks in the first and second rounds, including swap rights with key players in the team, Mikal Bridges, Cameron Johnson, and Jay Crowder. In a word, they gave the future and chose the present. However, his first season was doomed to failure as he lost to the Denver Nuggets 2-4 in the second round of the playoffs.
The unranked Phoenix needs to go all-in for the championship while Paul, who is the team’s present and future, is in his prime and Paul is maintaining his skills. In that situation, Durant seemed like the best reinforcement. As expected, Phoenix with Durant was strong. The ‘sweet gun’ with Booker, who is called ‘Kobe Kid’, drew attention as one of the most powerful one-two punches in the league, and at least it was worth trying against any team in terms of firepower.
Phoenix, who finished the regular season in 4th place in the Western Conference, completely defeated the Los Angeles Clippers 4-1 in the first round. I gave up the first game, but took all four games after that. Kawhi Leonard’s injury variable had a big impact, but the firepower of Phoenix, which dug into the opponent’s gap without missing it, was also scary. The Denver Nuggets, which I met in the second round, were a strong opponent.
As can be seen from the fact that the words ‘the winners competed against each other’ came out, it was a burdensome matchup. In particular, it is analyzed that the existence of ‘Joker’ Nicola Jokic (28‧211cm) was the biggest reason for the decisive defeat of Phoenix. Jokic was reborn as the best center in the league, averaging 24.8 points, 11.8 rebounds and 9.8 assists this season, including winning the regular season MVP last season and last season in a row.
Although he was unfortunately canceled, it is evaluated that there was nothing strange even if he received 3 consecutive MVPs. Even in the playoffs, Jokic with improved skills is showing off an upward trend over the regular season and is dominating every game. In addition, Jemal Murray, Michael Porter Jr., Bruce Brown, Kentavius Caldwell-Pope, etc. are well supported, and the power of the team itself has become extremely strong.
Of course, if it was a strength-to-power battle, Phoenix would not be pushed back. In particular, Booker showed off his presence as a scoring machine by achieving a high success rate while marching high scores every day. It was even said that ‘Durant, the 1st option in the district, became the 2nd option within the team’. Unfortunately, however, Phoenix was unable to face Denver with full force. This is because from the beginning of the series, the bad news of the injury of the main point guard, Paul, overlapped.
In Paul’s absence, Booker and Durant bombarded Denver’s defense without stopping, but eventually the limit was revealed. Booker and Durant’s greatest weapon is their shooting ability. That type of player inevitably has ups and downs, no matter how good his fingertips are. It doesn’t matter if one player slows down as long as the other player is in crazy mode, but basketball is not a game. If they explode together, they may stagnate together.
At such moments, the type most needed is a seasoned field commander like Paul. Paul is a great scorer himself, but he’s also a good technician at saving his teammates’ plays. However, there was no pole at the critical moment, and Booker and Durant’s twin guns collapsed without regaining their lost firepower. Ayton, who was expected to harass Jokichi in defense and show height in offense, repeated injuries and sluggishness and even harmed teamwork, causing Phoenix fans to sigh.
The current Phoenix needs a change. Paul is constantly coming down from the peak, and Ayton is unbelievable in terms of mindset apart from his skills. At best, it goes like the Los Angeles Lakers, with LeBron James and Anthony Davis at the center, with a variety of role players coming together to suit the situation.
Unfortunately, it is not easy for the current Phoenix. As mentioned earlier, due to the severe bleeding during the process of bringing in Durant, the player base has become very thin. It is difficult to make a proper change without an unconventional decision in a state where many players with high names are in the starting lineup. This is the reason why opinions are emerging that a major lineup reorganization is needed, except for the Ssangpo.
Founded in 1968, the Phoenix is a team with a considerable history in the NBA. There are many devoted fans and the value of the team name is not bad, but they have a grudge that is left deep in their hearts. That’s why I’ve never won a finals before. He challenged the finals three times, but was unable to overcome the critical hurdles and repeatedly cried at the pain of the runner-up.
Charles Barkley, Steve Nash, Chris Paul, etc. were brought in and expected to play the role of a winning bidder, but so far there has been no successful case. Maybe for Phoenix, the current era has a better chance of winning than ever. No matter how outstanding a player is recruited from another team, in order to achieve good results, you must have an existing franchise-level player in your team. External blood transfusion alone is not a solution.토토사이트
The current phoenix becomes that. It is not known how long they will be together, but Booker, who can become a legend in the team depending on the period of activity, is holding out as a symbol of Phoenix, and small forward Durant, who represents the league, is with him. Whether it is reorganization or reinforcement, it has no choice but to throw a win or lose. This is why Phoenix’s next season is more anticipated.