There is a dangerous factor lying in wait for the remaining contenders in these NBA playoffs, ready to creep up and strike and put the squeeze on whichever team is just starting to feel good about their prospects. Reality. Things have mostly unfolded like a dream so far for the Phoenix Suns, Milwaukee Bucks, Atlanta Hawks and LA Clippers, each organization within touching distance of clinching a championship for the first time ever – or in what feels like forever. To differing degrees, all have been able to operate without the overwhelming crush of pressure bearing down upon them due to somewhat tempered expectations. Yet the heat doesn’t dissipate into thin air, and it must eventually find someone to rest upon. Once the Los Angeles Lakers got bounced amid an injury mess in the opening round, then the heavily-favored Brooklyn Nets were seen off by the Bucks, then the top seeded Utah Jazz and Philadelphia 76ers also departed, things began to get serious for those remaining teams. If you’d offered any of them this kind of opportunity at the start of the season, they’d have snapped off your hand. But now that it is truly here, right in front of them, there comes the burden of needing to make the most of it, because who knows when such a chance will arrive again? The Suns, leading 3-2 against the Clippers in the Western Conference finals, were by no means considered certain to even qualify for the postseason at the beginning of the campaign, but now sit five wins away from winning it all. Spurred by Chris Paul’s experience and Devin Booker’s majestic emergence, Phoenix finds itself at +150 with FOX Bet to be the NBA’s newest champion. However, Monday night’s defeat to the Clippers, sparked by Paul George’s 41 points, felt like a little more than a blip. In truth, it seemed like the cold jolt of pressure had raised its head, adding weight to the minds and arms of the Suns players. “Here is my concern,” FS1’s Nick Wright said on “First Things First.” “How nervous do you think Chris Paul is? And how nervous are those young guys who all look up to him, who all know the story – the greatest player to never make the Finals. He knows not only is this his best chance to make the finals, it might be his last chance. The pressure scale is ratcheted all the way up on Phoenix.” Whoever ends up lifting the Larry O’Brien Championship Trophy, there will be plenty of special scenes that greet the occasion. The Suns and Clippers have never won a title, the Bucks did so just once, in 1971, and the only triumph for the Hawks was in 1958, when they were still situated in St Louis. This is not the Lakers or the Boston Celtics, where all those banners in the rafters serve as a reminder of the mass of success that has come before you. Rewarding your loyal fan base and trying to end a drought is not the same and the tension’s fiercest grip only fully hits when it comes near. The Bucks, 50 years removed from their solitary NBA title, were dismissed and derided as regular season specialists who couldn’t cut it when it mattered after falling in the bubble postseason against the Miami Heat last year. They are closer now than ever before, heading into Tuesday’s Game 4 with Giannis Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton surging, a 2-1 lead in their pocket and Hawks’ star Trae Young ailing physically. “I try to remind guys … one stop at a time, one possession at a time,” Antetokounmpo said. “It doesn’t mean we are going to win, but the mindset changed now.” The Hawks have ridden the wave of a playoff dream, having looked nothing like a playoff team as recently as three months ago. That was before head coach Nate McMillan came in and turned things around. Young and John Collins then went nuts en route to eliminating the heavily-favored 76ers in seven games. And even though the Clippers have been without Kawhi Leonard for the past seven games and are on the brink of elimination, they feel this is an opportunity like never before, with the field having opened up. When this postseason began, this was no one’s idea of a likely final four, which is both a testament to those still standing and a reminder to all of us that we don’t know quite as much as what we thought. And that having a big name doesn’t automatically equate to a winning result. In truth, it has been an outstanding postseason, filled with unexpected drama, big performances, nail-biting series and those unceasing twists and turns. It will ultimately produce a champion guaranteed to rejoice in the occasion and create a piece of franchise history while doing so. To get there, though, the biggest hurdle must be overcome. When the prospect of the dream beckons, who will have the poise to make it come true? Here’s what others have said … Trae Young, Atlanta Hawks: “When you have a group that really believes in each other and really is fighting on the court for each other, anything can happen. I think our team really believes that, and it’s been working.” Skip Bayless, Undisputed: “Just when you think it’s done, it ain’t done. Just when you want to write the Clippers off, you better not.” Chris Broussard, FOX Sports: “It can be argued strongly that the Clippers have actually outplayed the Suns this series. Paul George has been the best player in the series. … They have a really legitimate chance of winning this series.” |
