Phoenix Suns point guard Chris Paul is no stranger to hand injuries. So when Paul went down and held his hand in the fourth quarter of Thursday's 113-86 loss to the Dallas Mavericks, it was only natural to assume the worst.

A trainer could be spotted attending to Paul on the bench after the play, but he downplayed the apparent injury while speaking to reporters after the game with a simple response.

“Yeah, I'm good,” Paul said.

Of course, he said the same thing during last year's NBA Finals. Paul went on to have wrist surgery in the off-season after struggling in the last few games against the Bucks.

Even if Paul is 100% healthy right now, there's still something going on with the 12-time NBA All-Star in this series. The 37-year old has struggled mightily in the series with two games under 10 points, and two games with more turnovers than assists. It's uncharacteristic regardless of injury status. The Suns veteran finished with 13 points, 4 assists and 5 turnovers in the Game 6 loss.

Still, Paul's answer seems to leave no question in his status for Sunday's Game 7 in Phoenix. Barring unforeseen circumstances, Paul's going to play with a trip to the Western Conference Finals on the line. Sunday will be his eighth Game 7 of his career.

“Best thing about all these playoff games is that you don't carry a 20-point lead into the next game,” Paul told reporters after the game. “Each game is a personality of its own and now it's down to one game. Game 7.”