Despite not being Game 7, this felt like it.
At the same Footprint Center where Dallas thrashed the Phoenix Suns by 33 points to prematurely end their historic season last May, the Boston Celtics completely demolished the Phoenix Suns, 125-98, on Wednesday night.
The Celtics (21-5) easily defeated the Suns (16-9), who are 1-3 in their past four games, in what was expected to be a matchup of the best teams in the Eastern and Western Conferences.
With 25 points, Jayson Tatum appeared to be the league’s top player, while Devin Booker put forth another forgettable outing marked by fouls and missed 3-point attempts (1 of 6).
With 25 points, Jaylen Brown got all he wanted, but Deandre Ayton kept squandering opportunities with four turnovers.
All of this occurred the night Chris Paul made his comeback from missing 14 straight games due to a painful right heel. He finished with the same number of points and turnovers, four (four).
Jayson Tatum of the Boston Celtics drives past Devin Booker of the Phoenix Suns at Footprint Center on December 7, 2022 in Phoenix, Arizona, the United States.
Credit required: Joe Rondone of the Arizona Republic with 4:57 remaining in the third quarter and his team trailing by 43 points, 95-52, Williams pulled all five starters and didn’t try to get them back in the game.
With 25 points, Jaylen Brown got all he wanted, but Deandre Ayton kept squandering opportunities with four turnovers.
Luka Doncic scored 33 points in a 130-111 loss for the Suns in Dallas, and the Mavericks made 20 of their 41 three-point attempts.
Phoenix was planning to perform upon returning home in front of a sellout crowd of 17,071 and a national televised audience.
Instead, the Suns were humiliated for a second consecutive game and had to put up with Celtics supporters shouting louder and louder as the game went on.
Phoenix was 45 points behind at one time.
As Brown urged the Celtics supporters to applaud late in the game, they stood to their feet.
Josh Okogie scored, and Booker finished with 17 points on 6-of-17 shooting.
Phoenix’s situation doesn’t get any simpler. The Suns play their first of four away games on Friday in New Orleans. Before facing Houston, who just defeated them last week, and finishing the trip against the Los Angeles Clippers, they play them twice in three days.
With the Cardinals, Harbaugh would be “a match made in heaven.”
ASU player calls the All-Pac-12 first team omission a “absolute joke” Chris Paul could play for the Suns against the Celtics at home.
source: azcentral
