The Phoenix Suns had to accept a loss of 20 points this postseason until the third game of the NBA Finals against the Milwaukee Bucks. It is questionable that this was also the worst game the Suns played in all playoffs. It probably won’t happen again considering how well this team reacts after a loss, but what exactly went wrong in this game?
Here are three things that went wrong from my point of view.
Wrong for the Phoenix Suns: The Fiserv Forum’s Playoff Curse
Blaming Milwaukee’s Arena may seem a little strange, but each of the four teams the Bucks have played against this postseason have underperformed every time they visited the Fiserv Forum. The youngest victim was the suns in game 3.
These types of performances go back to Game 2 of the Miami Heat vs Bucks series, in which Miami lost 132-98 and shot just 40.0 percent out of the field, while only going 8-23 from beyond the arc. In the next series, we saw the Brooklyn Nets offensive powerhouse drop a season low of 83 points on its first trip to the Fiserv Forum. Even in their other away games in this series, the Nets could not even crack 100 points.
There is something about the Fiserv Forum that, more than anywhere else, makes its visitors play terribly offensive. The Suns had their curse in Game 3. Suns fans must hope that they will improve in Game 4 in Milwaukee too.
Wrong for the Phoenix Suns: Deandre Ayton missing
Deandre Ayton only played 24 minutes last night – a playoff low for him. The Bucks’ plan to attack Ayton and get him into bad trouble actually worked during game 3. Although some calls were questionable, it still resulted in Ayton sitting on the bench for most of the game. This showed how important Ayton is to the suns on both sides of the ball. When Ayton wasn’t playing, the Bucks looked too comfortable and figured out ways to extend their lead.
Ayton conceded his third personal foul just before half-time, which meant he had to play cautiously in the second half. Unfortunately, his fourth personal foul was whistled in the third quarter as the Suns tried to ignite their own barrel and get back into the game. They never succeeded, however, as Ayton only played about two minutes before he had to go back to the bench. When he re-entered the deficit was too great.
Wrong for the Phoenix Suns: Booker’s Game 3 Woes
The suns rely on Devin Booker’s offense … like a lot. Last night Booker finished with a playoff low of 10 points in a 4-13 shootout from the field. Phoenix is 12-2 if Booker drops 20 or more this postseason. This is not a coincidence.
Booker was one of the few three players to hit a 3-pointer outside of the six triples made by Jae Crowder. Suns fans have seen Booker struggle in some games during these playoffs, but Game 3 was different. He had a losing streak on the offensive that he apparently couldn’t get out of – no matter what he tried. This was a big reason for the game 3 loss.
However, Booker has shown a small pattern of underperformance in game-3 situations. He shot 6-19, scored 19 points in Game 3 against the Los Angeles Lakers, and also shot 5-21 in Game 3 against the Los Angeles Clippers.
Fortunately, Booker recovered in the following game in each series. Make sure he does it again because the suns desperately need him.
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