The Phoenix Suns have brought themselves on level terms with the Denver Nuggets after going two down in the Western Conference Semi-finals, playing without Chris Paul. The 12x All-Star has been out with a groin injury since the Game 1 loss. Whether he’ll play Game 5 is the big question.
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Compared to the 1st round series against the Clippers, as well as Game 1 of this one, where the Point God dictated the backcourt, the Suns have looked much better defensively in their last 3 outings without him.
Is he going to be back in Game 5? Let’s look at the latest update in Phoenix.
Is Chris Paul playing tonight against the Denver Nuggets?
According to a ClutchPoints Tweet, the Suns’ point savant will still be out in Game 5 against Nikola Jokic and Co.
Suns star Chris Paul (groin) remains OUT for Game 5 of Suns-Nuggets, the team says. pic.twitter.com/l4lqlfnebc
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) May 8, 2023
Meaning, Kevin Durant and Devin Booker will again have to take care of both scoring and making plays for other teammates like they did in the last two wins in Phoenix.
While the Joker and crew look to take the lead back in the series, Paul and his groin injury have presented the Suns with a setback that will be solely considered the main reason for their failure, if they do not reach the Conference Finals.
The CP3 dilemma
If Paul doesn’t play in the series again and the team gets knocked out by Jokic’s side, he will get a lot of blame for his absence. He has a bad record of playing his past few Playoffs through injuries and also missing out multiple post-seasons due to an injury earlier in his career.
Suppose the Suns win Game 5 with the momentum they are in, then there is also a scare that if Paul comes back in Game 6 and the Suns lose the series there on, his bad rapport for losing in Playoffs after attaining leads would take over.
So, both Devin Booker and Kevin Durant would have to show up in at least two of the remaining 3 games to bail Paul out of this bizarre situation.
