there was another over-the-top, unbalanced, knee-jerk, "no excuses" reaction in the Covid thread today. i'm addressing it here because covid IS the missing piece -- the ultimate answer to the question, "What Ended Season 2022?"
"Why Did The Suns Collapse In The Playoffs?" COVID
and if they lost to the Pelicans a valid excuse would have been Devin Booker's hamstring!
did the Suns have other issues and weaknesses? PLENTY
Paul's age, lack of Ayton aggression and contributions from role players, Monty's strategical weaknesses, etc..
but every team has those kind of issues on and off.
the Warriors took our place in the Finals.
2 weeks ago, they were down 55 against the Morant-less Grizz.
the Suns won a record 64 wins this season with all their issues
and they got further last season with less because what they didn't have last playoffs
was a COVID outbreak
in the playoffs, you're playing the best athletes and coaches in the world, usually at the top of their game.
there IS wiggle room for dissension in the locker room.
there's NO wiggle room for stuff like hamstring injuries and pandemics!
as i already posted, even if physical symptoms were minimal there were significant physiological factors messing with their heads.
---a. is it ethical to play?
---b. how many others am i putting at risk? Especially if i play an aggressive, tight defense?
---c. if we win game 7, will we fall apart with players in protocol anyway in the Conference Finals.
and i'll add
-- d. the weight of wondering how severely they'll be judged or penalized for playing while infected
sorry if it conflicts with the narrative some fans need to sooth the wound
-- to say "screw them they're losers and would have lost anyway."
it's true they might have been eliminated by the Warriors anyway
-- but certainly NOT if Curry was out with a hamstring injury or the Warriors had a covid outbreak!
the harsh reality is that it's yet
another unlucky break for one of the few franchises in pro sports without a championship