Storylines to Watch in Clippers-Suns Game 3

The Phoenix Suns head back to Los Angeles to battle the Clippers after splitting their series 1-1 at the Footprint Center. After the Clippers took Game 1, the Suns were able to battle back and take Game 2 ahead of their two-game stay at Crypto.com Arena.

The winner of Game 3 will carry a 2-1 advantage in the series heading into the weekend. According to Land of Basketball, teams who take that advantage win the series nearly 80% of the time.

The Suns themselves know an early advantage doesn't always secure victory over the stretch of seven games. They held 2-0 leads in both the 2021 NBA Finals and 2022 Western Conference Semifinals before blowing both series leads.

However, a 2-1 advantage could go a long way in a matchup where not many gave the Clippers a strong chance of winning.

Storylines to Watch in Clippers-Suns Game 3:

Clippers Without Kawhi Leonard

The Los Angeles Clippers added a surprise name to their injury report when it was revealed that Kawhi Leonard would be out of action tonight with a knee sprain.

ESPN's Adrian Wojnarowski reported that Leonard aggravated his knee in Game 1 but eventually played through through the pain in Game 2. Leonard "is expected to be day-to-day ahead of Game 4 on Saturday," and this injury is not related to his previous ACL injury.

Such a tough blow for the Clippers - who already out one superstar with Paul George.

Leonard's defense and mere presence on the court did so much for LA, yet Los Angeles will now look to others to replace his scoring production. Leonard led the Clippers in points during both Game 1 with 38 and 31 points, respectively.

How will Los Angeles move forward without their best player? This absence certainly has the potential to shift momentum in the series. We'll see what Clippers coach Ty Lue can come up with.

Bench Blues

Suns backup point guard Cameron Payne remains questionable with a lower back injury tonight after missing both previous playoff games.

Phoenix's bench has been lackluster to say the least: They've poured in just 23 combined points over the course of Game 1 and Game 2.

After watching his rotation guys blow a seven-point lead in the late stages of the third quarter in Game 1, Suns coach Monty Williams opted to play his trio of Chris Paul, Kevin Durant and Devin Booker all over 38+ minutes. Deandre Ayton likely would have been in that same company had he not found himself in foul trouble before the fourth quarter.

Landry Shamet has gotten most of the run in Phoenix's backcourt but has failed to do anything notable. Perhaps Payne is more crucial to the overall team's success than once previously thought, as his ability to not only run the offense with Paul on the floor but knack to know when to push the tempo is missed.

Should Payne be healthy, we'll see if he really is the missing puzzle piece to Phoenix's bench.

Battle of the Brains

We're now two games into this series, and we've basically seen what both sides have to offer in terms of what their rotations might look like, schemes, plays, etc.

The majority of surprises are likely out of the way - now, it's time to see what Williams and Lue bring to the table as far as adjustments. Williams has often been criticized for not making the necessary changes over a seven-game series while Lue was recently praised by his players in being one step ahead:

“He is very in tune with what is going on. He is a step ahead always. He always finds a way to put us in a position to be successful," said Russell Westbrook after Game 2.

"I know he always has things going on in his mind and we talk a lot about adjusting things we see throughout the game. It has been great.”