The level of intensity playoff basketball provides cannot be replicated in practice or simulated during regular season games. For the Phoenix Suns, they are learning on the fly how to handle those weighted moments, growing with each possession, and navigating how to curb their emotions in real-time. It’s been a journey through the first 3 games of the postseason.
Entering the 2021 NBA Playoffs, Phoenix head coach Monty Williams had a 2-8 playoff record whereas Los Angeles head coach Frank Vogel was 47-35. The Suns roster had a combined 284 games of postseason experience, with Chris Paul (109) and Jae Crowder (72) accounting for 63% of those games played.