Regardless of Opponent, Suns' First-Round Matchup Will be Must-See TV
The Phoenix Suns don't have much wiggle room when it comes to their postseason positioning.
With just four games left in the regular season, the Suns (43-35) are out of reach for the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds. Phoenix will need the Sacramento Kings to lose all of their games on top of the Suns winning all of theirs to clinch the No. 3 seed, which is extremely unlikely.
Thus, the No. 4 seed appears to be the most likely spot Phoenix will land in once the postseason rolls around.
Sitting in the middle of a packed Western Conference, the Suns have three likely opponents with little games remaining: The Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Clippers and Los Angeles Lakers.
The Ringer went through the 29 most likely first-round matchups of the NBA playoffs and ranked them in tiers.
The top tier? Anything that has the Suns.
Tier 1: Suns Mania
3. Suns vs. Clippers (36 percent)
2. Suns vs. Warriors (24 percent)
1. Suns vs. Lakers (22 percent)
"Put these three in any order—no matter what, they’re the three most tantalizing first-round options for this spring," said Zach Kram.
The matchups are too tasty, which each bringing their own spice and drama to sell even the most casual of basketball viewers.
"The strangeness of the 2022-23 Western standings are perhaps best encapsulated by this section, all the way atop the list of compelling first-round matchups. The Suns are Vegas favorites to win the conference because they traded for Durant to win now. The Clippers are also in win-now mode, in Year 4 with Leonard and George. The Warriors, too, are trying to win now because they’re the defending champions, with a leading man still producing as if in his prime. And the Lakers, of course, are hoping to win now in an attempt to maximize LeBron’s window and seize another ring.
"And at least one of those teams’ hopes will in all likelihood be dashed in the first round; when two win-now teams meet, one is bound to, well, lose now. All three of these possible matchups could be the best series of the entire postseason, like Bucks-Nets in the second round in 2020-21—which, naturally, also involved Durant and various superstars’ legacies. With something of this stature to anticipate, next week in the NBA can’t come soon enough."
The Suns have four games left on their schedule, with the regular season coming to a close this Sunday when the Los Angeles Clippers visit town. They also play the San Antonio Spurs, Denver Nuggets and Lakers in that time as well.
