The Phoenix Suns will face the Denver Nuggets in the Western Conference Semifinals for the second time in three seasons.

The Suns defeated the Los Angeles Clippers in their first-round matchup but will have a much tougher test against the Nuggets, the third-best half-court offensive team in the NBA. Denver had the best record in the West (53-29) and was dominant through the regular season, with only a slight hiccup at the end. The Nuggets are led by MVP candidate Nikola Jokic and guard Jamal Murray. 

The team has not been healthy since the 2020 Western Conference Finals, when it lost to the NBA champion that season, the Los Angeles Lakers. But Denver has a chance to win the West now that it has returned Murray, who missed extensive time in the recent past with an ACL tear suffered in April 2021.

Phoenix is favored to win the Western Conference by FanDuel and has -136 odds to win its series against Denver. The Suns’ trade for Kevin Durant in February has made them serious title contenders even though they are the No. 4 seed in their conference. 

While Durant and Murray being a part of this series changes the calculus quite a bit, there are still some things Phoenix can use from the 2021 sweep of the Nuggets in this upcoming series. 

Drop pick-and-roll coverage 

The Suns defeated the Nuggets in four games, which was largely due to Denver’s hesitance to switch out of the same defensive scheme. 

The mid-range shot is considered to be a lost art in today’s NBA, where 3-point shooting and transition buckets are king. The Suns have arguably the three best mid-range shooters in the NBA today and maybe of all time.

Two years ago, Chris Paul (25.5 points per game in the four contests) and Devin Booker (25.3 points) scorched the Nuggets’ drop pick-and-roll coverage defensively. They shot 62.7 and 48.6 percent, respectively, and had 37 and 34 points in the Suns’ closeout 125-118 win in Game 4.

Denver’s coverage mistakes did it in. Now, Phoenix has Durant, who can get to his own spots and make shot after shot.

Deandre Ayton’s defense on Jokic 

Deandre Ayton is criticized for how he plays, which is not enough for some who want to see him play with the aggression of David Robinson, among other NBA greats. But Ayton insists he does enough in his role.

Jokic is impossible to stop because he can pass out of double teams and use his offensive playmaking skills.

But the Suns slowed him two years ago enough to halt Denver’s offense. The Nuggets had 105 points or less in each of the first three games after they averaged 115.0 during the regular season.

Ayton was forceful against a complimentary Jokic after the series. He needs to do the same for the Suns to advance to the Western Conference Finals.

Coaching adjustments 

Suns coach Monty Williams had the Nuggets’ Michael Malone on his staff during the 2010-11 season with the then-named New Orleans Hornets, an experience Phoenix’s leader has recalled fondly. 

Malone is recognized as one of the NBA’s best coaches. His Nuggets team in 2019-20 overcame two 3-1 deficits in the 2020 NBA Playoffs for the first time in league history in the Disney Bubble. 

Malone will always rally his players, something Williams has been unable to do with his bench. The Suns had the second-fewest bench points (72) in the first round of the playoffs and have questionably relied on backup guard Landry Shamet, who has struggled, over Terrence Ross and T.J. Warren, who contributed late in the season.

The Suns returned backup guard Cameron Payne, who played three minutes in the Suns’ wild 136-130 win over the Clippers in Game 5 Tuesday, to the rotation for scoring. Can he find enough to match Denver’s bench in this series? 

Game 1 between the Nuggets and Suns will be Saturday in Denver.