Clippers vs Suns game 1 injury report: Will Kevin Durant and Paul George play?
While both teams come into the series with just one player completely ruled out, it’s got to be said the Clippers are the ones missing an absolutely key figure.
Though the Suns are heavily favored in this first round series, the absence of the Clippers’ star definitely makes for a situation where they could potentially have an easier time. How will Los Angeles respond is the only question that matters now.
Paul George set to miss first round of NBA playoffs
According to reports, LA Clippers star, Paul George, will likely miss the entire first round series of the 2023 NBA playoffs against the Phoenix Suns. It’s worth noting that George is the only player ruled out for Game 1 against the Suns, but it goes without saying that his absence is a massive loss for the Clippers. At risk of stating the obvious, the Clippers’ chances against the star-studded Suns just went from bad to worse now that George has been ruled out. It’s true that there is still five-time All-Star, Kawhi Leonard, in the lineup but he will now be facing an already stacked Suns team that hasn’t lost since former MVP, Kevin Durant, joined them. That’s not to say Leonard shouldn’t be confident that he can go toe-for-toe with the likes of KD, but this is about not having help. Ultimately, whatever the Clippers hope to achieve against the Suns will come down to Leonard.
The Suns are doing just fine
Though there were doubts about the above mentioned Kevin Durant, the Suns’ newest star is set to play. That means it’s just backup guard, Cameron Payne, who is listed as questionable due to low back soreness i.e., the Phoenix Suns are as right as rain coming into their opening playoff game against the Clippers. That’s even before we get to the fact, that they are heavy favorites to advance from this first round series. Like last season, the Suns came into the post season as one of the best teams in the league. It’s interesting to note that they faced the Clippers minus Leonard in 2021. Now they will square-off against LA minus their other star. Ultimately, were Phoenix to be eliminated by the Clippers it would go down as one of the major upsets in recent memory. That being said, keep an eye on this one.