Bucks @ Suns Tuesday Finals game thread 7-6-2021 - Game 1

[Mainstreet]

No injury reports have been submitted by either team. Maybe the rules are different in the Finals.

 

[Chaplin]

Giannis Antetokounmpo is listed as doubtful for Game 1.

xc_hide_links_from_guests_guests_error_hide_media

This is Kawhi all over again.

 

[Mainstreet]

Giannis Antetokounmpo is listed as doubtful for Game 1.

xc_hide_links_from_guests_guests_error_hide_media

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

I haven't seen a lot of rooting from Charles for the Suns other than a video clip.

In virtually every TNT show he’s praised the suns and openly admitted he’s rooting for them.

 

[Finito]

Giannis doubtful for game 1

 

[Mainstreet]

This is Kawhi all over again.

I wouldn't mind this scenario but not wishing bad on anyone.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

He's called them "my Suns" over and again and he claims to be a Suns fan but he's also picked us to lose every round and he's gone through at least 3 or 4 different "will win it all" picks and it's never us. Not that it's a problem, he has a right to his opinion but his "love for the Suns" doesn't ring true to me.

I disagree. I think he genuinely hopes the suns win. I think he’s a fan of suns fans. But I also think he’s trying to appear nonpartisan but picking against them. He’s not the sharpest tool in the shed.

 

[Mainstreet]

In virtually every TNT show he’s praised the suns and openly admitted he’s rooting for them.

I place more value on behavior than words.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

Giannis Antetokounmpo knee injury: Bucks star cleared to play in Game 1 of NBA Finals vs. Suns

Antetokounmpo, who was upgraded to questionable, will return after hyperextending his left knee in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals

www.cbssports.com

If he is, you switch him into our guards and make him move laterally and stop and start as much as possible. If he’s going to Anthony Davis, make him prove he’s healthy.

 

[Chaplin]

I disagree. I think he genuinely hopes the suns win. I think he’s a fan of suns fans. But I also think he’s trying to appear nonpartisan but picking against them. He’s not the sharpest tool in the shed.

100% this.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

It's just speculation on my part but I think he'll always be a Philadelphia fan first and a Suns fan a distant second. His feud with JC ended years ago but I don't know that he ever forgave the franchise.

I suspect he's conflicted too given that he's still held in high regard by local fans but a championship would probably re-start the conversation about him failing to win it all here. But more than anything, I doubt he's much of a Suns fan because he's shown even greater levels of ignorance about the team and players than he does about the NBA in general.

And with you mentioning the Lakers and Clippers I just want to make the point that most of us were worried about the healthy Lakers team that was never seen again since early in the season.

Personally, by the time we started our first game I never had any doubts we'd win against the Lakers or the Clippers. At least not until I saw how the refs were allowing LAC to play against us. Then I had flashbacks of Derek Fisher getting rewarded for the same kind of blind refereeing that was supposed to be cleaned up in the modern postseason.

I can’t recall him saying “my sixers” and if he has not nearly as frequently as “my suns.” He hit his apex in the league with the suns. He was MVP of the league with the suns. Is he a genius? No. But his knowledge about the suns is par for his knowledge about most teams. Maybe it’s less than the top teams in the league but that’s likely bc he’s watched the top teams more frequently as they’re on TNT more frequently. I don’t think anyone believes chuck does research on ANY team.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

I place more value on behavior than words.

And picking against them is “behavior?” He’s paid to be an analyst not a fanboy.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

You're right it isn't but I'm curious, did you just skim the thread? I don't care who he cheers for. My point (and I'm not alone on this) is that he claims to be a Suns fan but all evidence through the years points to the contrary. Not a big deal but his ignorance about the team shows up regularly and it shines brighter than his overall NBA ignorance.

I don't really think it's a big deal though. I don't watch that show to hear his expertise, I'm there because I find the show entertaining. And that's all because of Chuck.

Anyway, I've known a lot of locals that considered themselves to be huge fans of the Suns that have never watched a game on TV and couldn't name more than a couple players on the team. But on a site like this, when we talk fandom we usually mean someone that does more than just live within driving distance of the arena.

I think Kenny is the brightest analyst on that show. Before this year he also showed a shocking lack of knowledge about the suns and regularly disparaged them - oftentimes inaccurately. I wonder why? Because these guys are game analysts. They watch the game and comment on it. Suns haven’t been on tnt a lot in recent years. So NONE of them know much about the suns. In fact, Charles always showed much more knowledge about the suns than did Kenny. I chalk that up directly to his being connected to the team.

 

[SirStefan32]

This is Kawhi all over again.

I agree. There is no way he plays the first couple of games. He might trey to give it it a go later, but that injury was awful, and it would really not be smart for him to come back early.

 

[Mainstreet]

And picking against them is “behavior?” He’s paid to be an analyst not a fanboy.

Charles' history with the Suns goes beyond this but I'm not going to rehash the past on a game thread. Besides it's already been discussed.

 

[AzStevenCal]

I can’t recall him saying “my sixers” and if he has not nearly as frequently as “my suns.” He hit his apex in the league with the suns. He was MVP of the league with the suns. Is he a genius? No. But his knowledge about the suns is par for his knowledge about most teams. Maybe it’s less than the top teams in the league but that’s likely bc he’s watched the top teams more frequently as they’re on TNT more frequently. I don’t think anyone believes chuck does research on ANY team.

I haven't been counting but yeah, I have often heard him say "my Sixers". And I've heard him talk about his love for Philadelphia and the team in words I've never heard him use about Phoenix. And it's understandable, MVP aside and Conference finals aside, he had the best years of his career there. Maybe he'll say the same about us in this series but I also remember him saying just a few days ago that he thought the Hawks would win and that it broke his heart to say it.

As for being a genius, I think he's a very bright guy but IMO he does not do any real homework. It's just a job to him, basketball is no longer his passion IMO. He knows a little about the teams that are meaningful to TNT which until quite recently did not include the Suns.

I'm okay with him not knowing much about us, that's true of most of those guys. But he almost always picks against us, claims to be a Suns fan, lives in Phoenix but seems to only know the occasional hot take making the rounds about us. Each to their own but none of that screams fan to me.

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

Charles' history with the Suns goes beyond this but I'm not going to rehash the past on a game thread. Besides it's already been discussed.

The ancient history that was put to bed years ago?

 

[Ouchie-Z-Clown]

I haven't been counting but yeah, I have often heard him say "my Sixers". And I've heard him talk about his love for Philadelphia and the team in words I've never heard him use about Phoenix. And it's understandable, MVP aside and Conference finals aside, he had the best years of his career there. Maybe he'll say the same about us in this series but I also remember him saying just a few days ago that he thought the Hawks would win and that it broke his heart to say it.

As for being a genius, I think he's a very bright guy but IMO he does not do any real homework. It's just a job to him, basketball is no longer his passion IMO. He knows a little about the teams that are meaningful to TNT which until quite recently did not include the Suns.

I'm okay with him not knowing much about us, that's true of most of those guys. But he almost always picks against us, claims to be a Suns fan, lives in Phoenix but seems to only know the occasional hot take making the rounds about us. Each to their own but none of that screams fan to me.

Man I think you need to go back and watch Kenny smiths suns takes in prior years. He knew ZERO about the suns. And chuck still regularly states the suns have the best fans in the nba. He’s said it throughout the playoffs. He’s a fan.

 

[AzStevenCal]

Man I think you need to go back and watch Kenny smiths suns takes in prior years. He knew ZERO about the suns. And chuck still regularly states the suns have the best fans in the nba. He’s said it throughout the playoffs. He’s a fan.

How is that relevant to what I said? I've acknowledged frequently that none of them know much about the Suns. Including Charles. And again, I'm fine with that. I just don't see anything in his words that makes me believe he's a Suns fan. After listening to him badmouth the Suns, JC, Sarver, Booker and others over the past 20 plus years, having him once again repeat "I love Phoenix" rings hollow to me. Clearly it doesn't ring hollow to you.

 

[Germz249]

If he is, you switch him into our guards and make him move laterally and stop and start as much as possible. If he’s going to Anthony Davis, make him prove he’s healthy.

I agree.. People may say its cheap but my whole deal is if you’re not 100% then don’t climb in the ring. You made yourself the weak link.. not our fault..

 

[Mainstreet]

The ancient history that was put to bed years ago?

It's still a part of Suns history.

 

[Dr. Jones]

I agree. There is no way he plays the first couple of games. He might trey to give it it a go later, but that injury was awful, and it would really not be smart for him to come back early.

Agreed. This is a “game 3 at best” type of time frame imo.

xc_hide_links_from_guests_guests_error_hide_media

 

[Mainstreet]

Look at the referee assignment for the Finals. What was that number anyway... 11, 12?

xc_hide_links_from_guests_guests_error_hide_media

 

[Mainstreet]

By Kent Somers Arizona Republic:


Suns guard Chris Paul wasn't asked about the officiating in a brief press conference after Thursday night's loss to the Lakers in Game 3 of their playoff series.

But he commented anyway, at least in a roundabout way.

"If I was a betting man, 11 games in a row," Paul said. "Eleven games in a row."

Betting men, and others who follow the NBA intently, know that was a reference to Paul's losing streak in the playoffs when referee Scott Foster is working. The loss to the Lakers extended that streak to 11.

An 11th chapter was added Thursday to Chris Paul's uneasy history with NBA referee Scott Foster

Chris Paul's uneasy history with referee Scott Foster adds another chapter.

www.azcentral.com

 

[Cheesebeef]

I agree. There is no way he plays the first couple of games. He might trey to give it it a go later, but that injury was awful, and it would really not be smart for him to come back early.

Yeah... I think the earliest he’s back is Game 2, but likely Game 3 which is still six days away.