On May 5, Beijing time, the 2021-22 NBA playoffs continued. In today's Battle of the Western Focus, the Suns host a challenge from the Lone Rangers. It was the second leg of the series between the two sides, and in the first leg, the Suns won at home to take a 1-0 lead!
In the first quarter, the veteran Paul's personal offensive desire is not strong, he only has one shot and no hits, only 2 assists in a single quarter, and the Suns lead the Lone Rangers 30:28. After entering the second quarter, Paul began to strengthen his personal offense, first causing the Lone Rangers Green to make two free throws for fouls, then shooting from mid-range, and in the last minute of the quarter, Paul first caused Bullock to foul two free throws, and then hit another shot. In the first half, the Suns trailed the Lone Rangers 58-60, and Paul had eight points, three rebounds and three assists.
As the third quarter began, Paul hit a mid-range shot quickly. In the second half of the quarter, the Lone Rangers erased the deficit, with Paul hitting a back-up jumper from the bottom corner and then Hitting Doncic again from mid-range. In this quarter, Paul scored 6 points and 3 assists on 3-of-3 shooting, and in the face of Ayton's foul trouble, Paul led the team back to regain the lead and lead the Lone Rangers 89-83.
After the final quarter began, Paul stepped up his individual attack. He first hit a three-point shot from a defender at 45 degrees on the right, then used his foot to shake off Doncic's layup, before Paul singled out a shot near Kléber's free throw line. After assisting on Bridges' shot, Paul clicked on the defense and shot again! After the timeout, Paul faced Doncic with another jump shot, then continued to single Doncic to throw and cause a foul to score 2+1, after which Paul assisted than Yongbo dunked, and the Suns led by 17 points. Paul's seventh shot of the quarter was finally deflected, and then he returned to the bench to rest, and the game lost suspense.
In the end, the Suns beat the Lone Rangers at home to take a 2-0 lead in the series. Paul played a total of 36 minutes today, shooting 11-of-15, including 1-of-2 from three-point range and 5-of-5 from the free throw line, for a total of 28 points, 6 rebounds and 8 assists, plus-minus +19. In the crucial final quarter, Paul scored 14 points, 2 rebounds, 2 assists and 1 steal on 6-of-7 shooting. After playing a terrifying performance in the final quarter, Paul was rushed to the number one position in the national hot search by the fans!
According to the schedule, the two teams will meet in the third leg of the series on May 7, when the Suns will travel to the road to challenge the Lone Rangers.