Suns are a national story
ESPN’s Burke: Team’s tale fascinating for fans
ESPN commentator Doris Burke breaks down what makes the Phoenix Suns special as they reach the NBA Finals for the first time since 1993. “This is the kind of story ... that captures the imagination of sports fans,” Burke said.
People just can’t get enough of these Phoenix Suns right now.
“This is the kind of story, to me, that captures the imagination of sports fans,” ESPN NBA commentator Doris Burke said Thursday afternoon.
“Think about it. Within a four-year stretch, they were the worst team in the NBA in terms of number of wins, a 11-year playoff drought and in one year, with three pivotal pieces going through this for the first time, they find their way all the way through to the NBA Finals.”
Burke did ESPN’s radio broadcast of Phoenix’s 130-103 Game 6 win Wednesday over the Los Angeles Clippers at STAPLES Center to capture the Western Conference finals, took a red-eye flight back east and was in need of a good nap, but found a jolt of energy to talk about the nearly unexplainable, but truly remarkable journey of these Suns.
“I am neutral, but it is for us, just like the casual sports fan, a captivating sports story in my estimation,” Burke said.
The second-seeded Suns will play either the third-seeded Milwaukee Bucks or fifth-seeded Atlanta Hawks. The Bucks have a 3-2 series lead going into Game 6 Saturday in Atlanta as two-time NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo missed Game 5 with a hyperextended left knee injury he suffered in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals.
Trae Young sat Game 4 and 5 with a bone bruise on his right foot for the Hawks. He’s listed as questionable for Game 6 while Antetokounmpo is doubtful.
So both teams have missed their best player, but Burke likes Phoenix’s chance against either Milwaukee or Atlanta even if Antetokounmpo or Young is healthy for the finals.
“I think this is a complete basketball team who is in no way shape or form awed by the stage that they are on,” Burke said about the Suns, who are 12-5 in this year’s playoffs. “Their young pieces are playing with a maturity beyond their years. They do not lean into the 3-point revolution as heavy as most teams, but what they do is they make enough of them and they seem to make timely ones.”
Game 1 will be either
Thursday in Phoenix.
“I like their chances against either (Milwaukee or Atlanta),” Burke added. “They’re complete and they’re formidable.”
Burke understands the Suns faithful felt their squad wasn’t getting the respect they deserved during a 51-win regular season in an NBA shortened 72-game regular season. Suns center Deandre Ayton echoed their sentiments, but winning in the postseason is the only way true respect has ever been earned in the NBA.
That’s why the Suns are being celebrated right now.
Tuesday
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They’ve won big in the playoffs.
“Any longtime follower of the NBA knows that the regular season is different than the postseason and until a team proves itself in the most important time of the year, then there are skeptics, including us,” Burke said.
Burke pointed out the Bucks having the NBA’s best record two seasons in a row (2018-19, 2019-20) only to fall short of reaching the finals.
The Suns posted the league’s secondbest record to the Utah Jazz by only one game as they finished 3-0 against the top overall seed going into the postseason.
However, the Suns hadn’t made the playoff since 2010.
So as strong of a regular season they had, it was still a wait-and-see for the Suns.
‘Competitive edge’ goes beyond Chris Paul
Phoenix went out and took down the defending NBA champion Los Angeles Lakers in six games, swept the thirdseeded Denver Nuggets and eliminated the fourth-seeded Clippers to reach the NBA Finals for the first time since 1993.
“The thing I found most appealing about this group, beyond the fact that I think they are a complete basketball team, that there is this competitive edge about it,” Burke said.
That “competitive edge” starts with Chris Paul, but it doesn’t end there.
“We all know what a fanatic he is for the details,” Burke said. “How he prides himself in preparation, taking care of his body, eating all the right things and taking all the necessary steps to put himself in the best position, but I’m almost thinking as majestic as Devin Booker’s offensive arsenal is, what I observed this season was a commitment to the defensive end.”
Burke saw the latest example of that in the conference finals when Booker got matched up against Clippers All-Star Paul George.
“If it were my turn to guard Paul George, I may not win that battle on every single possession, but he is going to feel me on every single possession,” Burke said. “That’s my point about D-Book. Yes, his offensive arsenal is majestic, but it’s the competitive edge that he brings.”
Paul and Booker are throwbacks in the sense that they maximize midrange shots, a quality Burke sees will benefit the Suns in the finals.
As important as Paul and Booker are, having Monty Williams hoist the Western Conference championship trophy in the air with his players all smiles around him was so appropriate because the turnaround began when the Suns hired him after winning just 19 games in 201819 in having their second-worst season in franchise history.
“You have to navigate commanding respect with cooperating with the entirety of the group,” said Burke in describing what is required of any NBA head coach. “I can’t say enough about the job he’s done because I think NBA coaching is hard. I think it’s different than it was 10 years ago and I think Monty, both in temperament, and experience and in flexibility and basketball IQ. You name it, he’s got every attribute you would want in the modern NBA.”
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