The Phoenix Suns are taking on the Los Angeles Clippers in the first round of the 2023 playoffs. Burn City Sports Insider stated in a podcast that the Suns are lucky that Paul George will miss the first couple of games in the series and possibly the whole series due to an injury.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Paul George injured his right knee on March 21, a little under a month ago. The hopes is that George can come back around Game 3 or 4. However Clippers coach Ty Lue stated they will not rush anything.
"I think the #Suns got lucky with George being out" Burn City Writer @RowanDonaghey is on the fence going into the first round matchup series against the Clippers.#WeAreTheValley #NBAPlayoffs #NBA#ClipperNation
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— Burn City Sports (@BurnCitySports) April 14, 2023
Mirror Images: Suns/Clippers
With a totally healthy roster for both teams, on paper these teams are mirror images of each other. Devin Booker and Kevin Durant versus Kawhi Leonard and Paul George.
Both teams have solid big men, veteran point guards and a heaping amount of talent in the role players. The Clippers in my opinion with George healthy have a slight upper hand due to having better defense.
Also the Clippers have more playoff experience in their role players, a lot of veterans over there ready to make plays and shoot.
With Paul George out, I believe that gives the Suns the a huge opportunity to go up early and protect home court advantage.
With or without Paul George, the Suns have the firepower and coaching to win. Yet, I do believe they are lucky George is out. If I had to put numbers on it, I would say the chances of winning for the Suns with George playing are around 55%. Without George on the floor, the numbers jumps to 65-68%.
I have simulated the numbers for game 1 with and without George, both give the Suns a slight edge. However with George the Suns win 113-111. Without him on the floor the Suns win by a bigger margin, 122-107.
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Rowan Donaghey is a Sports and Betting insider, and breaking news reporter for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on twitter via @RowanDonaghey
