DENVER — The third quarter was where it all unraveled, as the Phoenix Suns lost track of Game 5 and maybe this Western Conference semifinal series overall.
Phoenix quashed a 9-0 opening shot from Denver in the first frame of the contest Tuesday night as the combination of Devin Bookers efficient sniper and Kevin Durant overcoming a 1-of-9 shot start put the Suns to three points at the break . Only one team was ready for the second half, however, as the Nuggets started that fateful third third on a 17-4 run from which Phoenix never recovered. Denver built a 21 lead and dug a hole so deep that the Suns sent a five-man reserve team to the scoring table in the fourth quarter with almost five minutes left in the game. The Nuggets would finish with a 118-102 win and claim a crucial 3-2 series advantage.
“When we got down there you could see the faces weren’t as strong as they usually are,” Phoenix head coach Monty Williams said. Veteran point guard Chris Paul, who was sidelined for the third straight game with a strained groin, attempted to bring about a change of mood in several groups, but Williams saw a lack of composure his squad maintained and exercised throughout their back-to-back home wins in Desert. “You have to have a certain level of mental stamina in the playoffs,” Williams said. “You have to keep your balance at a productive level so that no matter what’s happening on the floor, you can always carry your stuff or rely on your defense.”
Jamal Murray (27) of the Denver Nuggets drives past Devin Booker (1) of the Phoenix Suns during the fourth quarter of the Nuggets’ 118-102 victory at the Ball Arena in Denver Tuesday, May 9, 2023. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz /The Denver Post)
After his own sluggish start when he shot just 1 of 6 from the field in the first half, Jamal Murray set the tone for the Nuggets in the second half that shattered the Suns’ resolve. Ramming his butt against a tougher defender, Landry Shamet, he found his way to two layups – the second was a bloody finish past Shamet, with Murray spurting a series of trash in his opponent’s direction, resulting in a technical foul by one nearby officials. “I’m just trying to get myself going sometimes,” Murray said. “You know, sometimes I just need a little boost of energy for myself. Once I’m in attack mode, the game kind of changes.”
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Attack Denver did. Two minutes after Durant was called for a moving screen attempting to free Booker, Murray hit the Suns’ interminable rim goalscorer at 6:48 in the third and drew a fourth foul on Durant that resulted in Williams earning the 13th -fold suspended All-Star, which Phoenix emptied its war chest to acquire at the February close.
That’s when Denver’s lead rose to 20 for the first time, with a 77-57 lead. The Nuggets eventually nullified Booker’s offensive outburst throughout the playoffs during that stretch. He’d opened the game with a sizzling 5-of-8 from the field en route to 19 points in the first half, but Booker only fired 1-of-8 in the third quarter. He saw wave after wave of defenders and seemed to drown without a life raft or any sort of added offense with Durant on the bench. Nikola Jokić beat his layup attempt. Booker threw a 3-point look from the left wing. He missed a pull-up in the lane. “I thought they were trying to make things difficult for us,” Williams said. “They attacked two or three people at Kevin’s and Book’s tonight. They tried to bottle them.”
“We were the aggressors,” said Jokić, a two-time Denver MVP center who overtook Wilt Chamberlain with his 10th postseason triple-double for the fifth-highest total in NBA history. Jokić finished the loss with 29 points, 13 rebounds and 12 assists. “The two games in Phoenix were the ones that pushed us out of our seats and dug into us everywhere.”
The Nuggets managed to ground Phoenix’s buzzing offense from Games 3 and 4. After Nuggets head coach Michael Malone spoke before the game about limiting the Suns’ opportunities in the transition, Denver surpassed their competition 31-25 on the open floor. Malone learned long ago the value of learning from players during film sessions from his father, Brendan Malone, who spent over 40 seasons on the sidelines of the NCAA and NBA cards. And feedback from his squad after back-to-back losses showed the Nuggets’ players wanted to pressure Booker from the moment he touched the ball, more than 90 feet from the basket on every inbound pass.
“We [were] Devin Booker just bounces the ball every time, does a double drag, gets in his seat and hits us,” Malone said. “So let’s be a nuisance.”
The Nuggets made the most of this game plan. They got the supplemental contributions the Suns so desperately lacked – Bruce Brown delivered 25 points off the bench, Michael Porter lost four three-pointers in the opening period, rookie winger Christian Bruan ripped a steal and flushed a two-handed jam over Durant. Next to Murray’s locker, taped to a black wall, is a Bruce Lee printout and the quote: “Knowledge is not enough, we must apply.” Wanting isn’t enough, we have to do.” The Nuggets got the job done and honestly got the job done all night.
Denver is 6-0 at home in this playoff. The Nuggets may not return to this hardwood floor 5,280 feet above sea level until the Western Conference Finals when the Nuggets can settle down in Game 6 in Phoenix on Thursday.
Paul’s status for this potential elimination game remains in question. He was on the court, shooting with assistant coach and close friend Jarret Jack during the pre-game activity, and didn’t seem particularly comfortable as he attempted to score at different points along the 3-point arc five times in a row convert. The Suns are familiar with the difficulty of returning from this affliction. Booker came back early from his own groin injury at Christmas. And after playing just four minutes, he compounded the problem again, leaving him inactive for Phoenix’s next 21 games.
Even with Phoenix’s season in limbo, Paul is still 38, and the risk of losing him for a deeper stretch of the postseason – which Suns staff certainly still think is achievable – will certainly factor into the calculus flow that will lead his rehab over the next 48 hours.
“We have to win when we go home,” Williams said, “so we can come back and play here.”
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