(1)Phoenix Suns vs. (4)Dallas Mavericks Game 1: Monday May 2 Mavs at Suns 9:00pm TNT Game 2: Wednesday, May 4 Mavs at Suns 9:00pm TNT Game 3: Friday, May 6 Suns at Mavs 8:30pm ESPN Game 4: Sunday, May 8 Suns at Mavs Game 5* Tuesday, May 10 Mavs at Suns TNT Game 6* Thursday, May 12 Suns at Mavs ESPN Game 7* Sunday, May 15 Mavs at Suns *All times Central
https://theathletic.com/3282167/202...k-heat-76ers-celtics-bucks-suns-mavs-winners/ No. 1 Phoenix Suns vs. No. 4 Dallas Mavericks Scout’s outlook: “I’m going with Phoenix. Devin Booker played Thursday night, and they’ve got a couple of days of rest. Dallas doesn’t have enough. Their two guys, Dončić and Jalen Brunson, are great. But after that, I’m not counting on (the rest of their) guys. Mikal Bridges can guard Dončić. Torrey Craig can guard Dončić. Chris Paul can match up with Brunson. Deandre Ayton was very good in the New Orleans series; with Dwight Powell, that’s not a good matchup for Dallas. “Is Maxi Kleber going to make shots? Is Reggie Bullock going to make shots? … I just don’t think Dallas has enough, and Phoenix does have good matchups against their key guys. Plus, the Suns are so determined. Chris Paul had a game for the ages Thursday night, obviously. … I mean, 14 (shots from the field made without a miss) in a row? Are you kidding me? Talk about coming through in the clutch. That’s one of the greatest performances of all time.” Coach’s outlook: “I look at matchups. Mikal Bridges will match up, and Jae Crowder will match up at times, with Dončić. And both teams play small, so it helps. I think where Dallas gets the advantage is when their small ball comes into a game, their scoring becomes a lot better with the 3-point line, and the Mavericks can match up. Jalen Brunson is playing so well right now, as well as Dončić. They’re all playing at a great clip, and I think Chris Paul is going to be able to get worn down like you saw a little bit in that New Orleans series with (Jose) Alvarado guarding him. I think Dallas has bigger defenders that can get into him, and the Mavericks can switch between Devin Booker and Paul and create that matchup problem for Phoenix.” Executive’s outlook: “Dallas was in a real challenging first-round series, and all of this, in the end, boils down to the combination of talent and health. What team is going to be effectively healthy enough to get all its talent utilized? We’ve seen some players emerge on Dallas, and Jalen Brunson having such an effective first-round series is a good sign for them. Maybe some of their injuries helped spur them going forward a little bit. So Dallas is going to put up a fight. “I think Phoenix has the defensive versatility to really challenge Dallas, especially in the frontcourt and dealing with those pick-and-rolls. Phoenix probably got a good wake-up call in the first round, and I would imagine that this series will be won by the Suns because of the home-court advantage. But it’s not going to be easy. I’ll even say it’s going to be Phoenix in seven, and the series will be that long because Dallas comes into the series with a lot of confidence, too. It’ll be a really good one.” Scout’s pick: Suns in five Coach’s pick: Mavericks in six Executive’s pick: Suns in seven
https://www.cbssports.com/nba/news/...-east-crown-suns-return-to-conference-finals/ Reiter's pick: Suns in 6 Quinn's pick: Suns in 7 Ward-Henninger's pick: Suns in 5 Maloney's pick: Suns in 7 Wimbish's pick: Suns in 7 Botkin's pick: Suns in 7 Herbert's pick: Suns in 6 Kaskey-Blomain's pick: Suns in 6
I think Phoenix is going to play with a lot of fire this series and Dallas just...I think they looked strong because of a weak and frankly broken Utah team. Suns in 5.
Doncic is far and away the best player in the series, he has a SOLID team around him, and the Mavericks are well coached. Suns just have the next 4 best players and they are also well coached, so Suns in 5 with the slim chance that Doncic makes another leap.
First few Mavs plays they tried to run the action through Brunson, maybe to see how he can work the Suns. They were scoreless at 0-9, then going back to Luka.
Well this looks like it's going to be a quick 4 games. I don't think Dallas have much to combat Phoenix's defense.
