For the third straight series in this postseason, the Los Angeles Clippers find themselves down 2-0. That didn’t stop them from beating Dallas in seven games in the first round; it also didn’t stop them from beating Utah four times in a row to win the next round. Now, though, the Clippers find themselves in a similar hole against the Phoenix Suns — without Kawhi Leonard, whose knee injury appears to be quite serious. The Suns should get Chris Paul back for Game 3, at least at this writing, and after the Suns won Game 2 on a last-second alley-oop to Deandre Ayton after Paul George bricked two free throws for the Clippers, you have to wonder how many more revivals the Clippers have inside them. In the Eastern Conference, the Atlanta Hawks have won Game 1 on the road in three straight series, most recently beating the Bucks on Wednesday night behind 48 points from Trae Young.
Let’s look at the next game in each of these exciting conference final series, including our NBA betting picks.
NBA News: Conference Finals (June 24-25)
Thursday, June 24
Phoenix Suns at L.A. Clippers
Game 3 (8:00 pm ET, ESPN) | Suns lead, 2-0
Jae Crowder lofted a pass from the baseline on an out-of-bounds play with 0.9 seconds left. Deandre Ayton flew through the air and flushed it over Ivica Zubac of the Clippers. Ayton was sprung by a screen from Devin Booker, whose nose was stitched up after running into Patrick Beverley early in the game. The clock was set to 0.7 seconds, but the Clippers could not get off a shot. This dunk washed away a rally by the Clippers that Paul George had led, thanks to his 26 points on the night, including a layup with 31 seconds remaining in regulation to put the Clippers ahead, 101-100. On their next possession, he drained a 22-footer to restore the lead at 103-102. However, with 8.2 seconds, left, he clanked two free throws despite an 85 percent career free throw percentage, and the Suns got the rebound and called a quick time out.
After the inbound, Mikal Bridges missed a three from the corner, and the ball went out of bounds off the Clippers. Then came Crowder’s glorious pass to Ayton, giving the Suns nine consecutive postseason wins, a franchise high. Cameron Payne started for Chris Paul once again, and he was transcendent, with a career best 29 points. Ayton had 24 points and 14 boards, and Booker chipped in 20. It was Payne, though, who kept attacking the rim. With the series shifting to Los Angeles, it will be interesting to see if the Suns can find an answer for George the next time he leads the team on a huge run.
Final Prediction:
Clippers 111, Suns 107
Friday, June 25
Atlanta Hawks at Milwaukee Bucks
Game 2 (8:30 pm ET, TNT) | Hawks lead, 1-0
Another series as the underdog, another win in the opener. In addition to Trae Young’s 48 points, Clint Capela was huge inside, with 19 rebounds, including the offensive board on his putback with 29.8 seconds remaining to give the Hawks the lead they would not surrender. On the road, Atlanta is 6-2 in these playoffs; the Bucks had not lost yet at Fiserv Forum in the postseason, but now they are just the Hawks’ latest victim. Giannis Antetokounmpo had 34 points, a dozen boards and nine assists, and Jrue Holiday scored 33 points and dished out 10 assists. Khris Middleton struggled, going just 6 of 23, including missing all nine of his three-pointers — most crucially a possible game-tying shot from downtown in the game’s waning seconds.
Atlanta has not won a game in an Eastern Conference final since they moved to Atlanta in 1968. They got to the East finals six years ago, but Cleveland swept them out. The Hawks do have one NBA title, when they were the St. Louis Hawks, all the way back in 1958. If they can do it again, it won’t just be Young — John Collins had 23 points and 15 rebounds, and Capela had a dozen points to go with all those boards. Can they keep this energy going for the whole series?
Final Prediction:
Bucks 121, Hawks 118
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