Clippers @ Suns Monday WCF game thread 6-28-2021 - Game 5

[95pro]

101-114 Suns

close LOL

 

[JosiahLee]

No doubt. It likely spelled an 8-14 swing with cousins going ham on saric and saric’s inability to do much.

Monty killed us here. I can’t believe he kept Saric in the game when Cousins scored like 10 in a row on him. Such bad coaching.

 

[Cheesebeef]

Monty killed us here. I can’t believe he kept Saric in the game when Cousins scored like 10 in a row on him. Such bad coaching.

He can’t play Saric in this series again.

 

[Covert Rain]

He can’t play Saric in this series again.

I want to see more Cam and Kaminsky. Lue is making adjustments. I can accept if we try and make adjustments and they don't work. Doing seemingly nothing and waiting for the best to come to us is going to piss me off. Monty needs to do something.

 

[Cheesebeef]

I want to see more Cam and Kaminsky. Lue is making adjustments. I can accept if we try and make adjustments and they don't work. Doing seemingly nothing and waiting for the best to come to us is going to piss me off. Monty needs to do something.

agreed. And it’s not suddenly giving Abdel Nader Craig’s minutes out of nowhere.

 

[Bufalay]

I get the logic of not double teaming Morris in the first quarter when Booker kept (inexplicably) getting switched onto him. They didn't want to leave 3-pt shooters open. But last I checked the biggest flaw in Morris' offensive game is that he can't pass! After is 2nd dribble the could've sent a double and really thrown him off.

I'd love to see Bridges swat one of his fadeaways from behind.

Also, Van Gundy criticizing George for not showing a sense of urgency? It sounded like he thought George should have a panicked look on his face, maybe that's why Van Gundy never won a championship. George was really good. His shooting, his traveling, his pushoffs, all really good.

 

[Russ Smith]

Lots of things went wrong but one of the bigger ones on offense IMO was CP3 going 0-6 from 3. Again like last game he's trying too hard to draw fouls he's falling down instead of following through. Most of his misses were short. He's too good a shooter to let them back off and dare him to shoot but 0-6 won't make the Clips change that.

it's odd to say but him coming back has actually up until now hurt the Suns and last night was his best game since back, 22 and 8 but he still time and time again was given shots and couldn't knock them down.

Booker's defense has been a real issue too.

 

[Bufalay]

yup. Those were our years to win it all. We were favored in both series. We would have been favored for the rest of the playoffs had we gotten past the Rockets. And we just epically choked both chances away.

let’s hope this year doesn’t make the trifecta!

This is why I hate seeing the KJ dunk over Olajuwon. A neat highlight in garbage time as the Suns had choked away their advantage. It brings back bad memories.

 

[Finito]

First thing you did was run to troll me. How much rent do I owe for space I occupy in your head?

just because someone disagrees with you doesn’t mean they are trolling you.

I’ll just stop responding to your points if you feel you are being trolled. I apologize to you.

 

[Finito]

agreed. And it’s not suddenly giving Abdel Nader Craig’s minutes out of nowhere.

who on earth even thinks this is a good idea? I just can’t wrap my head around some of the stuff Monty is doing

Craig has been a great guy off the bench for us ever since we got him and now he’s been passed up for a guy who hasn’t played in 3 months

 

[Finito]

Here’s where I have faith in Ayton. He recognized in Game 3 that Zubac outplayed him and said as much in the paper. Then he told the team he would own the paint in Game 4. I think he’s gotten to the self awareness point where he knows when he didn’t bring it.

so I think he will Wednesday. The question is will Bridges and can Crowder break out of his slump? And even bigger, can CP3 not look like a total dog out there. Has Covid/rest knocked him that far off his game? If so for the duration, we’re pretty screwed.

there going to play that zone until we can hit a shot. Until then there going to crash down on Ayton in the paint.

The way to break a zone is to hit shots we desperately need to start hitting our 3s

 

[Mainstreet]

We just finished game 5. How can that be an issue at this point?

Why the Suns came out not ready to play is baffling and it showed as they quickly fell behind 20-5.

Once the Suns allowed the Clippers to gain confidence they are hard to beat. I saw that in the Jazz series.

 

[Zobaczcie suki]

 

[Dr. Jones]

Man...... that 7am wakeup on the east coast was a bruiser this morning.

What a disappointing night. Utterly demoralizing.

 

[FB94]

there going to play that zone until we can hit a shot. Until then there going to crash down on Ayton in the paint.

The way to break a zone is to hit shots we desperately need to start hitting our 3s

The way our three point shots have vanished ( Crowder,Bridges I’m looking at you) they will play zone rest of series because as a team our shooting has been dreadful

 

[leclerc]

Yeah that was disappointing. Defense and energy from bench has been a strength all season. Go to your strengths guys/Monty. Starters played slow and flat footed. And that dweeb who I won't even name shows us up (he who beats up old men in the parking lot). I'm just hurting right now.

 

[95pro]

I just dont get why we are playing at a slow pace, it plays right into zone and their defensive strengths at the same it gives them time to recover while expending way less energy.
You have a hurt Morris, and a slow Cousins.

We could have gassed them out, no way they have the bodies to keep playing like that if we did push the tempo.

Where was Payne? Why is Nader going in over Craig? Cam is outplaying Crowder and Bridges. Cam has the size to give Cousins or Morris a more challenging shot.


Monty was absolutely useless last night, maybe the players take control of the timeouts next game or so.

 

[Finito]

I just dont get why we are playing at a slow pace, it plays right into zone and their defensive strengths at the same it gives them time to recover while expending way less energy.
You have a hurt Morris, and a slow Cousins.

We could have gassed them out, no way they have the bodies to keep playing like that if we did push the tempo.

Where was Payne? Why is Nader going in over Craig? Cam is outplaying Crowder and Bridges. Cam has the size to give Cousins or Morris a more challenging shot.


Monty was absolutely useless last night, maybe the players take control of the timeouts next game or so.

he sprained his ankle last game you could tell it’s still bothering him

 

[95pro]

he sprained his ankle last game you could tell it’s still bothering him

2 games ago. but he still had cousins or morris on the swtiches.

 

[82CardsGrad]

NBA Playoffs are very similar to bigtime boxing matches. We had the Clippers on the ropes and we let them off. If the games are like rounds, the Suns have won 3 very, very close 10-9 rounds. The Clippers have now won two very dominant 10-8 (maybe even 10-7) rounds. So as I see it, after 5 rounds, the Clippers have a 47 to 46 lead in points heading into the 6th round.
Games 6 & 7 are the championship rounds of a fight. And just like all great fighters, the Clippers have been masterful at dragging the Suns into the deep, uncharted waters where, typically, only grizzled, seasoned veterans know how to perform. Young upstarts like the Suns, IF they even reach these deep waters, typically drown a few times before learning how to compete and win in these moments.

So, my prediction is... If the Suns can't score a dramatic knockout tomorrow night, the final and decisive round (Game 7), will prove to be the final straw, where the Clippers will fully expose the inexperience of the young turk Suns and likely score a very ugly and decisive knockout, leaving the Suns laid-out on the canvas, bloodied and bruised and wondering how it all went wrong.

The danger here is that the young guys lose trust in CP3. It would be one thing if Paul were playing great and the young guys simply couldn't step up to the challenge (which would be the expected outcome). But to have their leader blow a gasket and leak oil all over the court...it's disturbing. If he can convince the team that his poor play is solely due to his bout with Covid, that could save his image and retain the trust he has so well-earned from the team all season long. It will be interesting to see how that plays out for sure.

In the end, none of us ever could've imagined a season like the one this team has gifted us this year. It's been a helluva, unforgettable ride. But, unless the Suns find a way to pin the bully up against the ropes and pummel him until he finally succumbs to exhaustion tomorrow night, I believe the ride is effectively over. And while I will be filled with immense disappointment, I'll also possess a huge amount of gratitude for a team that provided us all with a most unlikely and hugely pleasing season...at a time (Covid, Trump, etc...), we sorely needed the reprieve!

 

[Covert Rain]

agreed. And it’s not suddenly giving Abdel Nader Craig’s minutes out of nowhere.

Agreed. Where did that come from? Is he tearing it up in practice or something? Strange.

 

[Cheesebeef]

This is why I hate seeing the KJ dunk over Olajuwon. A neat highlight in garbage time as the Suns had choked away their advantage. It brings back bad memories.

same. That play does nothing for me.

 

[puckhead]

I haven't read the whole thread, but it feels like we're starting to get out-coached. Clips went with a style of play that seemed to expose the Suns weaknesses and they just couldn't get a foothold to mount a sustained comeback. The pressure is mounting and we're seeing some cracks in the mental side of our game too.

 

[mjb21aztd]

Couldn't post last night that gm killed all my good vibes not feeling so confident even with paul now...

Really hope suns least keep gm close in la

Still feeling horrible on last night that was freaking embarrassing suns need to redeem themselves lol

Go suns!!

 

[mjb21aztd]

Man...... that 7am wakeup on the east coast was a bruiser this morning.

What a disappointing night. Utterly demoralizing.

Still have a bad suns loss headache crappy stomach feeling today isn't fun staying away from espn today lol just playin ps5 to chill