Phoenix Suns point guard Chris Paul has been ruled out of Friday’s Game 3 against the Denver Nuggets at Footprint Center with a left groin strain suffered in the third quarter of Monday’s Game 2 loss.
The fourth-seeded Suns are down 2-0 in their Western Conference semifinal series.
A person with knowledge of the situation told The Arizona Republic on Tuesday that Paul would be out a week with the injury, which would essentially rule him out for Sunday’s Game 4 in Phoenix, as well.
If necessary, Game 5 will be Tuesday in Denver.
Averaging 9.5 points and 5.5 assists in this series, the veteran point guard has a history of postseason injuries. Cameron Payne is expected to get the start for Paul.
Payne started Game 1 and Game 2 of the 2021 conference finals, which Phoenix won in six to advance to the NBA Finals. The Suns took a 2-0 series lead with Payne scoring a playoff career-high 29 points in Game 2 to go along with nine assists to match a playoff career high he set in Game 1 versus the Clippers.
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Suns’ Chris Paul will miss Game 3 against Nuggets