WC | Rd. 2| (2) Suns vs (3) Nuggets [4-0 Suns]

[Inspektor1312]

Fans arguing stats and quarters. Just play the darn game and find out.

I mean, that's kinda the point of a forum

[Mick Dundee]

I think this one series could come down to experience more than anything else.

The Nuggets went through almost everything already ... They came back consecutively from being 1:3 down in the Playoffs last year ... They played the WCFs and they have the more experienced and clutch players overall.

It's not just Joker ... Austin Rivers is older and more experienced than most Suns Players ... Campazzo ist 30 Years old and a multiple champion ... Even Aaron Gordon proved to be ice in crunchtime.

Players like Millsap or McGee who are coming off the bench .. have either far more experience as well or they are multiple champions already.

I do see a clear advantage for the Nuggets here.

Especially if the series goes down to the wire.

[BelgradeNugget]

I can answer the Suns part. They got tired and/or complacent. They stopped trying as hard. But once the playoffs started that changed quickly. They have been playing a consistent brand of defense now with stretches of complete lock down. But the Lakers were a weak offensive team without AD.

My impression of this series is that people are underestimating the Suns defense. However, Denver has one big advantage if they can get Ayton into foul trouble.

Thanks for the answer. I'm not underestimating Suns defense but there is not much defense can do against some superstar players. LA had great defense but couldn't do a **** against Booker. Just watch Dame in games 2,3 and especially in crazy game 5. Hitting from the logo, with hand in his face. Can't stop that. BTW we won all three of those games. We can survive that.
Denver has 2 players that can't be stopped in Jokic and MPJ. MPJ averaged 23/6 on 56/49/86 since Murray went down. Had one bad game in the series against Portland, other than that unstoppable. Averaged 19/7 on 54/41/91 and for Nuggets fans he was like ok. Can play better. Scary thing is 60% of his shots are bad shots. And he has one of the best % in the league when tightly contested. Than you have Jokic. No defense for him.
What Austin River did for us is unsustainable, but we will get Will Barton back and he can do more than Rivers. Morris can play on the level he played against Portland. PJ Dozier was our best guard defender we will get him back too.
Can Payne play on the same level? And of course CP3 is on 70 %. That is why I feel pretty optimistic about our chances. Anyway it is going to be good series.

The Jokic and MPJ argument sounds just like Lakers fans last series saying "AD!!! LEBRON!!! NUFF SAID"...

I don't think a lot of people watched the Suns at all during the regular season.

The analysis of the Suns is REALLY lazy from everyone, both fans and media.

Of course, I don't know much about Suns, that is the reason why we are here to share information about our teams. I know a lot about Nuggets. Learning about the Suns from you Phoenix's fans. BTW media doesn't know a **** about any of our teams they follow LA teams, Dallas, 76ers, Nets and few others.

[Saberestar]

I think this one series could come down to experience more than anything else.

The Nuggets went through almost everything already ... They came back consecutively from being 1:3 down in the Playoffs last year ... They played the WCFs and they have the more experienced and clutch players overall.

It's not just Joker ... Austin Rivers is older and more experienced than most Suns Players ... Campazzo ist 30 Years old and a multiple champion ... Even Aaron Gordon proved to be ice in crunchtime.

Players like Millsap or McGee who are coming off the bench .. have either far more experience as well or they are multiple champions already.

I do see a clear advantage for the Nuggets here.

Especially if the series goes down to the wire.

The Suns have enough experienced players.

CP3 and Crowder have been multiple times in the playoffs with different teams and they play a big role for the Suns.

McGee plays the same type of role as Moore for the Suns. Basically nothing.

Millsap is OK but he plays an small backup role, and Campazzo is old but he is just a rookie in the league...IDK, I do not see any advantage for the Nuggets because of their experience.

The most important thing is that Jamal Murray is out. It is huge and it makes this series completely different.

[No-more-rings]

Nuggets in 7.

[Cubbies2120]

Suns to win game 1 but lose series (+550 for my fellow degens)

[IamBBAnalysis]

I can answer the Suns part. They got tired and/or complacent. They stopped trying as hard. But once the playoffs started that changed quickly. They have been playing a consistent brand of defense now with stretches of complete lock down. But the Lakers were a weak offensive team without AD.

My impression of this series is that people are underestimating the Suns defense. However, Denver has one big advantage if they can get Ayton into foul trouble.

Thanks for the answer. I'm not underestimating Suns defense but there is not much defense can do against some superstar players. LA had great defense but couldn't do a **** against Booker. Just watch Dame in games 2,3 and especially in crazy game 5. Hitting from the logo, with hand in his face. Can't stop that. BTW we won all three of those games. We can survive that.
Denver has 2 players that can't be stopped in Jokic and MPJ. MPJ averaged 23/6 on 56/49/86 since Murray went down. Had one bad game in the series against Portland, other than that unstoppable. Averaged 19/7 on 54/41/91 and for Nuggets fans he was like ok. Can play better. Scary thing is 60% of his shots are bad shots. And he has one of the best % in the league when tightly contested. Than you have Jokic. No defense for him.
What Austin River did for us is unsustainable, but we will get Will Barton back and he can do more than Rivers. Morris can play on the level he played against Portland. PJ Dozier was our best guard defender we will get him back too.
Can Payne play on the same level? And of course CP3 is on 70 %. That is why I feel pretty optimistic about our chances. Anyway it is going to be good series.

The Jokic and MPJ argument sounds just like Lakers fans last series saying "AD!!! LEBRON!!! NUFF SAID"...

I don't think a lot of people watched the Suns at all during the regular season.

The analysis of the Suns is REALLY lazy from everyone, both fans and media.

Right. A real analysis of the Suns might be:

1. MVP player in Paul who makes all the right decisions down the stretch. If you need a clutch basket or if Booker is not feeling it he does it. Many games won this way. How bad is the injury? If it is okay Denver fans should be worried. I'm saying that sincerely as a Suns fan. The Suns really should have a strong advantage as a team if Paul is 100%. He's that good with Booker. That's two stars close to Denver's best player level but then they have a better rest of team. And better defense.
2. Booker star player on a superstar track that just earned the confidence to be "the unstoppable guy" after beating the champs. Hot head sometimes...will this be a problem?
3. Ayton...the Suns BEST player now? He was in the first series. Very smart defensively now and controls the boards to allow the rest of the team to play defense or get out on the break. Can't be underestimated. Plays within himself.
4. Crowder. Tough, physical, and versatile. Guards multiple positions (big thing with the Suns...they can throw 3-4 different defenders at people). Playoff/clutch type performer. Streaky shooter though.
5. Bridges. Best player available to guard Porter, JR? 7 foot wingspan. Elite defender. Does not play like a young player either.
6. Payne. Fearless bench player to initiate offense. Huge asset. Can make some bad decisions.
7. Backup bigs. Suns major weakness. It might be the one thing Denver can really exploit that can be the difference between winning or losing the series (besides just players playing well or not). If Ayton is in foul trouble or he gets tired big advantage Denver.
8. Cam Johnson. Elite shooter off the bench. Not physical enough defensively.
9. Tory Craig. Another wing or big that has shown he can play physical and make big plays. Valuable bench player.
10. Rest of bench questionable.
11. Defense. Elite. Booker is the weakest defender and can be exploited by a guard who attacks relentlessly. Denver does not have someone like this.

Denver has a great player and a very good team. I don't know everything about them and don't claim to. I have not watched them all year long. But I know the Suns strengths and weaknesses. Everything to me comes down to the center position. If Denver doesn't dominate that in every way possible I don't see Denver having a very good chance. Phoenix seems to have all the advantages and not only that they are ready to win...to excel in the playoffs. Booker and Paul HATE to lose and have a lot to prove. And they just got past the first round to kind of get rid of any butterflies. You never know what might happen but I think Suns fans are very confident...they just have a bad history and don't act Cocky typically. Its like a sense of fear but underneath thinking, "we should win this".

Good luck Nuggets! It should be fun. I'm sure your team will have some surprises for the Suns.

[Sharkboy242]

I can answer the Suns part. They got tired and/or complacent. They stopped trying as hard. But once the playoffs started that changed quickly. They have been playing a consistent brand of defense now with stretches of complete lock down. But the Lakers were a weak offensive team without AD.

My impression of this series is that people are underestimating the Suns defense. However, Denver has one big advantage if they can get Ayton into foul trouble.

Thanks for the answer. I'm not underestimating Suns defense but there is not much defense can do against some superstar players. LA had great defense but couldn't do a **** against Booker. Just watch Dame in games 2,3 and especially in crazy game 5. Hitting from the logo, with hand in his face. Can't stop that. BTW we won all three of those games. We can survive that.
Denver has 2 players that can't be stopped in Jokic and MPJ. MPJ averaged 23/6 on 56/49/86 since Murray went down. Had one bad game in the series against Portland, other than that unstoppable. Averaged 19/7 on 54/41/91 and for Nuggets fans he was like ok. Can play better. Scary thing is 60% of his shots are bad shots. And he has one of the best % in the league when tightly contested. Than you have Jokic. No defense for him.
What Austin River did for us is unsustainable, but we will get Will Barton back and he can do more than Rivers. Morris can play on the level he played against Portland. PJ Dozier was our best guard defender we will get him back too.
Can Payne play on the same level? And of course CP3 is on 70 %. That is why I feel pretty optimistic about our chances. Anyway it is going to be good series.

The Jokic and MPJ argument sounds just like Lakers fans last series saying "AD!!! LEBRON!!! NUFF SAID"...

I don't think a lot of people watched the Suns at all during the regular season.

The analysis of the Suns is REALLY lazy from everyone, both fans and media.

Well its not like Laker's fans were wrong lol. AD and Lebron were literally hurt.

[vcdplaya3007]

The BIGGEST factor in this series is the Suns big man rotation. Quietly in the first round I don't think anyone noticed, but Kaminsky and Saric were literally God Awful. This is the easily the weakest frontcourt rotation of any playoff team remaining, and its much worse than the Nets. The Suns got very lucky that Ayton could absorb all of the frontcourt minutes without any serious foul trouble or fatigue. That is not likely to be sustainable or happen again this time around. Once Monty has to rely on Kaminsky or Saric for an extended stretch the Suns defensive flaws will be greatly magnified. If not in this round, it will defniitely be exposed in the WCF. This is the achilles heel of the Suns without a doubt.

[youngthegiant]

Three things I'm going to key in on tonight..that I think can decide the series.

1.) Jokic vs Ayton
2.) Can Aaron Gordon defend Devin Booker(my money is on yes)
3.) Norman Powell legitimately bothered MPJ...can anyone on Phoenix take him out of this series?

[vcdplaya3007]

Three things I'm going to key in on tonight..that I think can decide the series.

1.) Jokic vs Ayton
2.) Can Aaron Gordon defend Devin Booker(my money is on yes)
3.) Norman Powell legitimately bothered MPJ...can anyone on Phoenix take him out of this series?

I expect the Suns to pack the hell out of the paint anytime Jokic gets position down low. They swarm the heck out of any post touches, literally 5 guys in the paint. This strategy worked vs LAL, and it might work to some degree with the Nuggets. I don't trust any of the Nuggets outside shooters other than MPJ and maybe a little of Monte Morris. The Nuggets are not equipped enough offensively to beat a paint packing team like the Suns. The clippers and Jazz have much better personnel to beat their scheme.

[Crives]

Three things I'm going to key in on tonight..that I think can decide the series.

1.) Jokic vs Ayton
2.) Can Aaron Gordon defend Devin Booker(my money is on yes)
3.) Norman Powell legitimately bothered MPJ...can anyone on Phoenix take him out of this series?

I think it comes down to Ayton vs Jokic. If Jokic doesn’t dominate Ayton, phx should take this.

AG might be able to slow down Booker 1-1.... but Booker will absolutely torch the other 4 Denver starters. We shouldn’t expect a lot of Booker 1-1 vs AG. Booker is going to be hunting for switches onto Campazo/Rivers/Jokic/MPJ.

[darmani]

Read on Twitter

[Sharkboy242]

Read on Twitter

Wow, the Denver Nuggets are finished.

[DaFan334]

Three things I'm going to key in on tonight..that I think can decide the series.

1.) Jokic vs Ayton
2.) Can Aaron Gordon defend Devin Booker(my money is on yes)
3.) Norman Powell legitimately bothered MPJ...can anyone on Phoenix take him out of this series?

I expect the Suns to pack the hell out of the paint anytime Jokic gets position down low. They swarm the heck out of any post touches, literally 5 guys in the paint. This strategy worked vs LAL, and it might work to some degree with the Nuggets. I don't trust any of the Nuggets outside shooters other than MPJ and maybe a little of Monte Morris. The Nuggets are not equipped enough offensively to beat a paint packing team like the Suns. The clippers and Jazz have much better personnel to beat their scheme.

The Nuggets shot 40% from distance in the first round. I'm not sure that doubling Joker or packing the paint is the best strategy as he is known to be a decent passer. There is a good chance he would just pick that apart.

You're definitely correct about the biggest matchup in the series probably being Ayton vs Jokic. If Ayton can somewhat slow him down, the Suns have a good shot. If he gets in foul trouble, I don't know that the Suns have a chance with Frank and Saric are going to try to guard Jokic.

The Suns frontcourt might struggle to deal with what is probably the best remaining frontcourt in the playoffs but the Nuggets have to deal with the opposite in the backcourt. Should be a good series.

[FinnTheHuman]

Three things I'm going to key in on tonight..that I think can decide the series.

1.) Jokic vs Ayton
2.) Can Aaron Gordon defend Devin Booker(my money is on yes)
3.) Norman Powell legitimately bothered MPJ...can anyone on Phoenix take him out of this series?

I expect the Suns to pack the hell out of the paint anytime Jokic gets position down low. They swarm the heck out of any post touches, literally 5 guys in the paint. This strategy worked vs LAL, and it might work to some degree with the Nuggets. I don't trust any of the Nuggets outside shooters other than MPJ and maybe a little of Monte Morris. The Nuggets are not equipped enough offensively to beat a paint packing team like the Suns. The clippers and Jazz have much better personnel to beat their scheme.

Ah, an informed man I see. Maybe you should check Nuggets' 3pt% from the last series and overall in the season, and that's without Portland packing the paint and without doubling Jokic. Nuggets players are perfectly capable of making 3pt shots at great efficiency.

[lilfishi22]

Yeah Suns aren't packing the paint. It worked against the Lakers because we were trying to shut down the driving lane for Lebron (his only way to create reliable offense) and because LA have terrible shooters so it was worth the gamble. It won't work against the Nuggets who have high level shooters and it plays right into Jokic's strength of drawing the help and send the ball to an open player.

[Seattlesun]

Read on Twitter

Wow! CP3 looks just fine to me.

[Crives]

Yeah Suns aren't packing the paint. It worked against the Lakers because we were trying to shut down the driving lane for Lebron (his only way to create reliable offense) and because LA have terrible shooters so it was worth the gamble. It won't work against the Nuggets who have high level shooters and it plays right into Jokic's strength of drawing the help and send the ball to an open player.

Time for Ayton to earn his extension

[HotRocks34]

Should be fun. Think Booker will explode as the larger DEN perimeter defenders are hurt. They may have to try Gordon on him, as they did with Dame.