BBNBA: Devin Booker and the Phoenix Suns are going to the Finals!

(Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

Devin Booker, Chris Paul and the Phoenix Suns took care of business in Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals to defeat the Clippers 4-2 and secure a spot in the NBA Finals.

As they’ve been throughout the postseason, Devin Booker and Chris Paul were phenomenal. Booker finished with 22 points and 7 rebounds while Chris Paul put on a masterclass showing. He scored 41 (31 in the second half) on 16-24 shooting, including 7-8 from three, while also adding 8 assists.

On the other side of the court, DeMarcus Cousins had another solid performance in his limited minutes. He scored 12 in 14 minutes and combined for 27 points in 25 minutes over the last two games. Shame his season had to end right when he was making a difference in important games.

Down the stretch of a closeout game in the Western Conference Finals, old man Chris Paul finally came out victorious. He willed the Suns and their young core to a place the 36-year-old veteran had never been.

Congrats to Chris Paul, congrats to Devin Booker and congrats to the Suns, who hadn’t made the playoffs since I was in fourth grade prior to this unexpected season and run to the NBA Finals.

The Suns have made the Finals only two other times in their 53-year history: in 1976 with a team that went just 42-40 in the regular season and was led by Paul Westphal, and again in 1993 with Westphal as coach and Charles Barkley as the star.

The 1976 group lost to the Celtics and Michael Jordan’s Bulls stormed through the Barkley squad, but this 2021 team has a better shot than either of the previous contenders because they’re (1) healthy in a year when nobody else is, and (2) they’re loaded with talent.

Devin Booker’s team is now the most likely team to win the NBA Championship, given they are the only team to lock up a spot. Think about that. Just a year ago Booker’s team had never finished with a winning record. Now, they’re four wins away from a title.