The Suns have waited 28 years since their last NBA Finals berth, and now they’ll have to wait two more days — at least.
Phoenix was thoroughly outplayed in Game 5 of the Western Conference finals on Monday, losing to the LA Clippers 116-102 to cut the Suns’ series lead to 3-2.
In a game that felt like a complete reversal from Game 4 — when the Suns went into Staples Center, jumped out to an early lead and never trailed — Phoenix found itself playing from behind virtually all night. The Clippers jumped out to a 20-5 advantage in the first five minutes, as Marcus Morris Sr. couldn’t miss, starting things off 6-for-6 from the field.
“It’s just unacceptable the way we started the game,” Suns coach Monty Williams said. “It was a big hole for us. It’s pretty obvious that we can’t play with a show-up mentality. We showed up in the first quarter, and they played with desperation — simple and plain.”
