The Phoenix Suns bought Kevin Durant to help them get over the hump in their quest for their first NBA title.
The fourth-seeded Phoenix Suns and fifth-seeded Los Angeles Clippers will begin their best-of-seven Western Conference first round series on Sunday night in Phoenix.
After losing in the 2021 NBA Finals to the Milwaukee Bucks, the Suns finished the regular season with a 64-18 record, which was the best in the NBA. However, Phoenix was humiliated by the Dallas Mavericks in the conference semifinals of last season, losing by an average of 30 points in the final two games.
When Devin Booker went down with a groin injury this season, Phoenix had a bad season, so the team came up with a solution: the Brooklyn Nets by acquiring Durant. They acquired the four-time scoring champion as part of a deal that also included five first-round draft picks and outstanding young forwards Cameron Johnson and Mikal Bridges.
Durant has only appeared in eight Suns games due to injuries, scoring an average of 26 points and helping Phoenix win all eight, but his presence gives the Suns hope that they can win a championship. Phoenix has never won a NBA Finals game.
Another flop in the playoffs would be a significant disappointment with Durant, Booker, and star point guard Chris Paul in the same lineup.
When star forward Kawhi Leonard tore the ACL in his right knee in the previous series against the Utah Jazz, the Clippers lost to the Suns in the Western Conference finals.
Since suffering the injury, Leonard hasn’t played in a playoff game in 22 months. During the second half of this season, the two-time NBA Finals MVP played solid basketball.
Paul George, who suffered a knee injury on March 21 and split four regular-season meetings with the Suns, will start the series for Los Angeles.
Concerning Leonard, he said he realizes the Suns are different with Durant on the program he sees it as an agreeable test.
Late in the season, Los Angeles brought in veteran point guard Russell Westbrook, who adds a tasty side dish to the series.
Before Durant left the Oklahoma City Thunder as a free agent in the summer of 2016, there were reports that Westbrook and Durant’s relationship had soured. They worked together for eight seasons with the Thunder.
Durant additionally got along when gotten some information about his previous running mate and said he hopes to see one of a kind Westbrook.
