Chris Paul and the Phoenix Suns pulled off a 122-105 home win in Game 1 of their series in the second round of the 2021 NBA Playoffs against the Denver Nuggets. It was a masterful display of terrific basketball in the second half that gave the Suns the win, one that likely gave Phoenix fans visions of the mid-2000s versions of the team with Steve Nash at the helm of the offense.
According to the Twitter account of NBA Stats, the Suns have managed to put together a particular effort not seen in a little over 15 years.
The @Suns had four 20+ point scorers in their Game 1 win. The last time PHX had four players score 20+ points in an #NBAPlayoffs game was on 05/04/2006. @EliasSports
32 points – Steve Nash
22 points – Leandro Barbosa
21 points – Tim Thomas
20 points – Shawn Marion pic.twitter.com/RgvcQPiZV4— NBA.com/Stats (@nbastats) June 8, 2021
That 2005-06 Suns team was a fun bunch to watch. That unit went 54-28 in the regular season and went deep in the playoffs, reaching the Western Conference finals, where they lost to the Dirk Nowitzki and the Dallas Mavericks in six games.
Fast forward to Tuesday night’s win against the Nuggets, Phoenix saw Paul record his first double-double of this postseason with 21 points and 11 assists. Devin Booker also had as many points, while Deandre Ayton and Mikal Bridges scored 20 and 23 points, respectively.
Scoring aside, the Suns are having success also on the strength of an impressive defense that is currently tops among all teams in the playoffs. They are giving up just 98.6 points per game and limiting opponents to only 42.2 percent shooting from the field.
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