LOS ANGELES — Just one win away from the NBA Finals, Phoenix Suns point guard Chris Paul said he will not allow himself to consider what it will be like to compete on basketball’s biggest stage for the first time in his 16-year career quite yet.
“Not until the job is done. Not until the job is done,” Paul said after the Suns’ gritty 84-80 win over the LA Clippers on Saturday to go up 3-1 in the Western Conference finals. “We can talk about all that then, but right now, it’s just laser focus.
“Three wins don’t win the series, so right now, we did what we came here to do. We wanted to get one of these, and now we got to stay focused and be ready to go back to our crowd.”
Paul, of course, has been here before. In 2018, his Houston Rockets were up 3-2 in the conference finals against the Golden State Warriors, before the defending champions stormed back to win the final two games, with Paul hobbled by a hamstring injury.
“Everything happens for a reason,” Paul said, looking back on the disappointment from three years ago. “Don’t dwell on things, you always remember, but I’m here now, excited about this opportunity, and all I can worry about right now is Game 5.”
Paul guided Phoenix to the win in Game 4, playing all 12 minutes of the fourth quarter, when he scored seven of his 18 points and dished out two of his seven assists, despite struggling to shoot the ball.
Paul was 1-for-7 from the field in the fourth and just 6-for-22 for the game, though he did go 5-for-6 from the free throw line in the closing period.
“I was mad I missed them [midrange shots] that could have put us up by five or seven, but it’s so crazy when I went to the free throw line I thought about my son,” Paul said of his trip to the stripe with 3.9 seconds remaining, and the Suns up by two, when he split the pair of attempts. “I talk to my son all the time about the importance of shooting free throws.
“I seriously went to the free throw line and I was like, ‘How the hell I’m going to tell him to stay poised if I don’t do it my damn self?'”
It would appear Paul’s son is learning from his dad just fine, judging by how Paul’s younger teammates rave about the example he is setting for them.
Deandre Ayton, who lived up to his “DominAyton” nickname with 19 points, 22 rebounds, four blocks and three assists in Game 4, exuded praise for the man who is 14 years his senior.
“I love CP, man,” said Ayton, 22. “That’s really the only teammate that really pushed me. Like big bro-type push.
“I think he was the best thing that happened to my career. I can say that every day.”
Ayton said he would like to repay Paul’s investment in him by helping Phoenix to at least one more win this postseason so Paul can finally get a taste of the finals.
“I’m going to try my best,” Ayton said. “I’m going to try my best. … I know how it is as an older player and being in the league and stuff like that. So when you have an opportunity like this, you can’t take it for granted. And he let us know. He let us know, and we know the task at hand.”
Devin Booker, who ditched the protective facemask protecting his broken nose to score a team-high 25 points before fouling out, said that he grew up watching Paul.
“I’ve been a fan of his for a long time, and I’ve learned so much from him this year, and I always talk about off the court how he carries himself, and he’s just a true professional at every level at all times,” Booker, 24, said. “I have a lot of respect for him as a man, not even as a basketball player, just understanding how bad he wants this and how much time he’s put into it … 16 years, that’s a long time.
Booker added: “We know how bad he wants it. … We definitely have his back.”
Suns coach Monty Williams, who coached Paul in the playoffs when they were both with New Orleans a decade ago, gave him a compliment of the highest order when asked how he feels about Paul controlling the action down the stretch.
“He’s not afraid of those moments,” Williams said. “It’s all about winning for Chris.”
One more win. One more win, and Paul will experience winning in a way he never has before.
“We just have to have a great deal of balance with our emotions and handle this the right way, not get too far ahead,” Williams said. “Yes, we are one win away from where we want to go, but we got to look at the film, prepare even better and, step by step, pound the rock over the next couple of days so that we can be better when we play this team again because we know we’re going to see a desperate team.”