Keep track of the latest news and notes for the Phoenix Suns vs. Denver Nuggets semifinal NBA Playoffs series.
Suns vs. Nuggets Game 4 information
The Phoenix Suns and Denver Nuggets will face off in Game 4 of their Western Conference semifinal NBA Playoff series Sunday at 5 pm, at the Footprint Center in Phoenix.
The game will be televised on TNT.
The no. 4-seeded Suns are coming off a 121-114 win in Game 3 Friday. The no. 1-seeded Nuggets will lead the series, 2-1, with Game 5 set for Tuesday back in Denver.
.The winner of this series will advance to the Western Conference finals to play the winner of the other semifinal series, between the No. 6-seed Golden State Warriors and No. 7 Los Angeles Lakers. The Lakers lead that series 2-1.
The winner of the Suns-Nuggets series will have homecourt advantage in the Western Conference finals.
More: Phoenix Suns update: Chris Paul out Game 4 vs. Denver Nuggets with left groin strain
Republic’s writers: What Suns must do to win Game 4
Now that the Suns have secured their first win of the season, Republic writers look ahead to a critical Game 4 Sunday night in Phoenix. The Suns will either square the season at two wins apiece in the best-of-seven series, or they will be facing elimination Tuesday night in Denver down 3-1.
Breaking it down: Republic writers’ thoughts on what the Suns need to do in Game 4
Suns vs. Nuggets Game 3 information
The Phoenix Suns and Denver Nuggets will face off in Game 3 of their Western Conference semifinal NBA Playoff series on Friday at 7 pm, at the Footprint Center in Phoenix.
The game will be televised on ESPN.
The no. 4-seeded Suns are trailing the No. 1-seeded Nuggets 2-0 and find themselves in a must-win situation. No team has come back from being down 3-0 to win an NBA playoff series. Game 4 is at 5 pm Sunday in Phoenix.
The winner of this series will advance to the Western Conference finals to play the winner of the other semifinal series, between the No. 6-seed Golden State Warriors and No. 7 Los Angeles Lakers. That series is tied 1-1.
The winner of the Suns-Nuggets series will have homecourt advantage in the Western Conference finals.
More: Phoenix Suns ‘desperate’ going into Game 3 down 2-0 to Denver Nuggets in NBA Playoffs
Adjusting without Chris Paul
The Denver Nuggets and Phoenix Suns have this postseason’s third and fourth offensive ratings, respectively.
One of the reasons why both team offenses have gained that efficiency is through pick-and-roll plays.
Denver’s offense runs through Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic, and much of Phoenix’s offense has its plays involving Chris Paul and Deandre Ayton.
However, with Paul ruled out of Game 3 with a left groin strain suffered in Game 2, and likely out for Game 4 Sunday, it will likely fall on backup point guard Cameron Payne and star shooting guard Devin Booker to execute those plays. Read more about what they said about that in the link below:
More: ‘No way to really just stop it’: Suns’ Booker on Nuggets’ Jokic, Murray in pick and roll plays
Kevin Durant: ‘One possession at a time’
The Suns’ Kevin Durant is taking a steady approach to Game 3, even though he has not found himself down 2-0 in the playoffs during his storied NBA career.
“Just try to take of business on every possession at home,” Durant said after Thursday’s practice. “One possession at a time. You can’t get everything back at once. Just having that focus and that togetherness on every possession, that’ll lead to something solid. Just got to take it literally one possession at a time and see what happens.”
Durant stands 1-3 in the playoff series when his team trailed 2-0. Last season, Boston swept Brooklyn in the first round with Durant averaging 26.3 points in the four games. Read a detailed breakdown of his playoff history in similar situations in the link below.
More: Kevin Durant is in a rare 2-0 series hole as the Phoenix Suns enter Game 3 against the Denver Nuggets
Suns vs. Nuggets Game 2 information
The Phoenix Suns and Denver Nuggets will face off in Game 2 of their Western Conference semifinal NBA Playoff series on Monday at 7 pm, at the Ball Arena in Denver.
The game will be televised on TNT.
The no. 1 seeded Nuggets won Game 1 on Saturday, 125-07, in a game that really didn’t seem that close. The no. The 4-seeded Suns will try to steal homecourt advantage in the series before heading back to Phoenix for Game 3 on Friday.
The winner of this series will advance to the Western Conference finals to play the winner of the other semifinal series, between the No. 6-seed Golden State Warriors and No. 7 Los Angeles Lakers. The winner of the Suns-Nuggets series will have homecourt advantage in the Western Conference finals.
Click here for the complete series schedule.
— Chris Coppola
Devin Booker: Team will make fixes
The Suns took Sunday to work on adjustments going into Monday’s Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinals series against the Nuggets. Devin Booker said the team will be ready to bounce back.
“I always believe in us,” Booker said. “We’ve been a good team all year digesting the game and seeing what went on and learning from it and making those corrections.”
More: Devin Booker: ‘I always believe in us’; Suns looking to bounce back in Game 2 vs. Nuggets
Durant looks for more 3-point shots from the Suns
Phoenix shot just 7-of-23 from deep compared to Denver hitting more than double that amount, 16-of-37, in the West semifinals series opener.
The Phoenix starters combined for a meager 2-of-9, and both of those makes were from Kevin Durant (29 points) and Chris Paul (11 points).
“It looked like we had a lot of opportunities that we could have capitalized on. You always see that no matter (if) you win or lose games,” Durant said at Phoenix’s practice on Sunday. “We just gotta do a better job of finding those options and just playing out of that. I felt like we shot the ball pretty well yesterday.
More: Kevin Durant, Suns reflect on lack of 3s in Game 1 loss, how to shoot more in Game 2
Republic’s writers: What Suns must do to win Game 2
The Arizona Republic’s Duane Rankin, Dana Scott and Greg Moore have been covering the Suns in the playoffs. Here’s what they have to say about what Phoenix must do to win Monday’s Game 2 vs. the Denver Nuggets.
More: What must Suns do to win Game 2 vs. Nuggets? Arizona Republic sports writers break it down
Suns vs. Nuggets Game 1 information
The Phoenix Suns and Denver Nuggets will face off in Game 1 of their Western Conference semifinal NBA Playoff series on Saturday, April 29, at 5:30 pm, at the Ball Arena in Denver.
The game will be televised on TNT.
The no. 1 seeded Nuggets have the homecourt advantage in the series over the No. 4th-seeded Suns.
The winner of this series will advance to the Western Conference finals.
Click here for the complete series schedule.
— Chris Coppola
The Arizona Republic: What must Suns do to win Game 1 vs. Nuggets?
Greg Moore, Dana Scott and Duane Rankin break down what the Suns must do to win Game 1 of the series against the Nuggets with Greg Moore writing that Phoenix needs players besides Devin Booker and Kevin Durant to show up for the series against Denver. Click on the link above.
What to know about Suns, what to watch for in the series
If you’re fairly new to following the Phoenix Suns, we have a quick primer that will help you as you follow them in the series against the Denver Nuggets (teaser: Who is that orange guy that’s always in the stands at Footprint Center?)
We also have several storylines that are worth keeping an eye on in the series.
You can find it all by clicking here.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Suns vs. Nuggets NBA playoffs news, notes