Will Clippers Upset Suns? One NBA Analyst Says Yes

The Phoenix Suns are favorites to beat the Los Angeles Clippers in round one of the NBA Playoffs - at least in most people's eyes.

However not everyone thinks that highly of the Suns. ESPN NBA analyst Kendrick Perkins made a bold prediction about Phoenix’s chances against the Clippers.

“I got the Clippers beating the Suns,” Perkins said on ESPN. “It don’t get no spicier than that.”

"I got the Clippers beating the Suns. It don't get no spicier than that."

—@KendrickPerkins on his hot take for the first round 😳 🌶️ pic.twitter.com/b6Vszb4nq1
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) April 10, 2023

It's the Clippers depth and Kawhi Leonard’s superstar intangibles that has Perkins excited about their chances.

"Here's why, even without Paul George, when I look at the Clippers and I look at their depth at the wing position,” Perkins said. “When you look at Kawhi Leonard and Nicolas Batum and Covington and Norman Powell, and you see all those multiple guys that they could actually throw at KD and Devin Booker. I'm watching yesterday, and we saw Plumlee and Bones Hyland get in each other's faces, that's because they care.

"Over the last two months, we talked about Anthony Davis, and we talked about Joel Embiid, and Giannis, and Jokic, but we didn't talk about Kawhi Leonard. He has quietly been dominating the league without getting our praise."

Coaching plays a huge role in the playoffs and Perkins feels that the Clippers are well equipped in that department.

"When I look at this matchup, and when I look at Ty Lue, Ty Lue is one not to be underestimated when it comes to down to him game planning and looking forward to these challenges," Perkins said.

Throughout this season, Russell Westbrook has caught a lot of criticism from the media, which Perkins believes only will fuel him more come playoff time.

"So, when I look at this, and I look at Russell Westbrook who also has something to prove, I got the Clippers in six beating the Phoenix Suns," Perkins said

The Clippers certainly have the pieces to pull off an upset but without Paul George for at least the beginning of this first round series, it will be extremely difficult.

Leonard has proven in the past that he can carry his team to a championship so it will be interesting to see if he can spark up that same magic that he had during the Toronto Raptors 2019 playoffs run.

Despite being the favorite, this series will be a true test to see where the Suns are really at as a team. With only an eight-game sample size of Durant in Phoenix, it is tough to tell what this squad is really made of. They showed how potent they could be as they went undefeated with Durant in the lineup.

The Suns open this series at home on Sunday, April 16 at 5:00 PM PST.