Phoenix Takes Game One of the NBA Finals
By Michael Simon
NEW YORK, NY_. For the first time since 1993, the Phoenix Suns have won a game in the NBA Finals. With a 118-105 win over the Milwaukee Bucks on Tuesday night, the Suns are now one game closer to bringing home their first ever NBA championship. Now that Phoenix is off with a comfortable lead after a home win, what can NBA fans expect for the rest of the series?
Throughout game one, spectators could see a well-rounded performance from the entire Suns roster. Phoenix’s three stars, Chris Paul, Devin Booker, and Deandre Ayton, all accumulated over 20 points. Ayton collected 19 rebounds and became only the sixth player in NBA history to collect 15+ points and 15+ rebounds at the age of 22 or younger, according to NBA Stats on Twitter. He joined elite company, including Magic Johnson and Kawhi Leonard, throughout his historic playoff run.
The Suns best performance from game one came from future Hall of Famer, and the player I predicted would win NBA Finals MVP, Chris Paul. Paul was the leading scorer for either team with 32 points, and nearly collected a double-double, falling one assist shy with 9. In Paul’s first ever NBA Finals game at age 36, NBA fans can see that Paul is still elite.
The Bucks were the less fortunate team of game one. Only one of the Bucks’ starters finished with a positive +/-, and that was their two-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo (with only a +1 plus/minus). While the Suns seemed to be clicking on all cylinders, the Bucks struggled to find open shots, often settling for contested jumpers. Throughout the game, they even struggled to get to the free-throw line.
With Phoenix now leading 1-0 in the series, expect Bucks’ head coach Mike Budenholzer to make necessary adjustments as they look to even up the series. Game two is set to be played Thursday night at 9 p.m. EST in Phoenix.
Michael Simon
Journalism Intern