BBNBA: Ball Don't Lie

On3 imageby:Wynn McDonald•06/23/21•

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Photo: Michael Gonzales/NBAE via Getty Images

It’s among the most sacred rules in basketball, though its enforcer is nothing more than karma. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t — but you’re no hooper if you haven’t tried it. And when it does work, no matter how skeptical you may be, it makes you feel just a little better inside. That’s the magic of ball don’t lie.

In a game full of slaps to the face of old-school basketball principles (see: near-constant replay reviews, stupid technicalities and those baffling reversed jersey colors), one thing worked outright. Paul George missed the free throws that he shouldn’t have had to begin with, and the Phoenix Suns won. We may not have much, but at least we have that.

RECAP

Suns outlast Clippers in tip-in thriller, take 2-0 lead

After Sunday’s 40-point performance, all eyes were on Devin Booker going into Tuesday’s Game 2. The Suns were still without Chris Paul due to Covid procedures, and the Clippers were getting used to life without Kawhi Leonard. It was looking more and more like the series would be the Booker vs. George show, as the two of them combined for 74 points in Game 1.

Neither star had the game they would’ve liked — Booker finished with 20 on just 5-16 shooting, while George’s 26 was marred by a 1-8 mark from deep — but at end of the day, they were still the two biggest actors on the NBA’s biggest stage.

Phoenix led for most of the night, though they were unable to stretch it any higher than nine. Late in the third quarter, Booker was forced to go to the locker room after butting noses with Patrick Beverley on this play:

His absence was brief, as he came right back on the court with a taped-up schnoz and got right back to getting buckets. For many it called to mind memories of Suns legend Steve Nash, who famously broke his nose against the Spurs in 2007 and came back to score 31 points.

The game went on, and the Clippers did not quit. They cut it to three with 1:23 remaining, then got the ball back when Booker was charged with a controversial offensive foul for a stray forearm on Beverley. George would hit two free throws on the other end to pull within one, then some quick thinking in transition after a missed shot gave him a layup on the other end. Suddenly the Clippers led, 101-100, with just 30 seconds left in the game — but the action was just getting started.

Booker responded with a pull-up dagger to give the Suns the lead back:

On the other end, the Clippers ran a play for George that resulted in a tough pull-up J and a 103-102 lead for L.A. With nine seconds still on the clock, Phoenix got the ball back. However, Beverly poked the ball out of Booker’s hands on the inbound, and after review, the refs ruled it touched Booker’s hand last. In no other form of basketball would it be Clippers ball on that play, but in the NBA, where you *must* replay everything under two minutes, that was the case.

Still, the basketball gods would not sit by idly for this travesty. In all their divine wisdom, they stepped in to intervene on George’s ensuing free throws — and wouldn’t you know it, he missed them both. An 87% shooter on the year, he went 0-2 at the biggest moment of the season. That gave the Suns another chance, and they cashed it in with this absolute beauty of a play:

A perfect screen by Booker, a perfect pass by Jae Crowder, and just like that the Suns went up 2-0 in the series. That’s what I call serendipity.

After the buzzer, there was a bit of a kerfuffle between Booker and DeMarcus Cousins, who was on the floor to guard the inbounds pass. What they were arguing about I don’t know, but I have a feeling it wasn’t Mrs. Cal’s brownies.

Cousins finished with just two points in four minutes after scoring 11 on Sunday. Rajon Rondo had eight points, three rebounds and four assists. The unlikely star for Phoenix was Murray State legend Cameron Payne, who scored a career-high 29 points in the win.

Game 3 is set for Thursday night in Staples Center. Masked Book, anyone??

STATISTICS

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TODAY IN THE NBA:

8:30 (TNT): #5 Hawks @ #3 Bucks (ECF) – Series tied 0-0

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2024-04-22