11 HRS AGO - Photo by Jordan Johnson/NBAE via Getty Images The community has spoken. Suns in 6 is where they’ve landed. We’ve entered the 11th hour. The pending First Round matchup against the Minnesota Timberwolves will be the first time that the two teams have ever met in a postseason series. It has been one season since the Phoenix Suns have won a series. It’s been since 2004 for the Wolves. We’ve looked at the matchups, we’ve talked about the history, we’ve identified the X-factors, we’ve given our takes and provided our analysis. What happens now is game time. What happens now goes into the history books. The playoffs are a unique experience and one that carries with it stress and unbridled joy. Possession to possession, game to game, the ups and downs are felt instantaneously. If a possession occurs and does not work out, you feel it will never work again. Conversely, when you run a certain set and it is successful, you feel like it will never fail. A loss ruins the next two days. A Collapse

22 HRS AGO - Bruce Kluckhohn-USA TODAY Sports Jack Borman of SB Nation’s Canis Hoops discusses his series prediction, the state of the Minnesota Timberwolves, and his X Factors ahead of Phoenix and Minnesota’s first-round clash.  We are now just a day away from the No. 3-seeded Minnesota Timberwolves and No. 6-seeded Phoenix Suns squaring off for their first-round series. Bright Side reached out to one of our SB Nation brother sites Canis Hoops to get an alternative view on the team’s upcoming tango. Thank you to Canis Hoops Site Manager and Editor-In-Chief Jack Borman for giving us his great insight! We asked Jack a myriad of questions about the upcoming series that should help Suns fans better understand what this first-round matchup looks like from someone who covers Phoenix’s opponent. (The following answers have been lightly edited for brevity and clarity.) 1. Who do you think is winning the series and why? Jack Borman: I have the Wolves winning the series in 7. The Suns’ offense Collapse

1 DAY AGO - Photo by David Berding/Getty Images Your weekly Inside the Suns analysis straight from the BSotS community who live and breathe the team. Welcome to ‘Inside the Suns’, your weekly deep down analysis of the current Phoenix Suns team. Each week the Fantable - a round table of Bright Siders - give their takes on the Suns’ latest issues and news. Fantable Questions of the Week Q1 - What are your thoughts/feelings about how the regular season ended on Sunday and the Suns moving up to the 6th seed? GuarGuar: I am very, very pleased with the way our season ended on Sunday. A dominant performance from start to finish and we avoided the play-in. I was super scared of this team having to play in the play-in games. Anything can happen in such a small sample size. It was a rocky road but we seem to be trending in the right direction heading into the most important time of the season. OldAz: I added the meme from Godfather 3 to a Post Monday morning. You know the one. “Just when I thought Collapse

2 DAYS AGO - Photo by Lachlan Cunningham/Getty Images A new installment in the Nurk/Draymond beef arrives. The Golden State Warriors and Draymond Green were eliminated in the 9-10 game in the Play-In Tournament on Tuesday and Phoenix Suns center Jusuf Nurkic liked what he saw. pic.twitter.com/Z12t2MePQj— Jusuf Nurkić (@bosnianbeast27) April 17, 2024 — Jusuf Nurkić (@bosnianbeast27) April 17, 2024 Nurkic and Green have gone at each other both on and off the court, with the conflict peaking as Green swung at Nurkic during a game in December, prompting an indefinite suspension (ended up being 12 games). The two have gone at each other in other matchups since as well and through the media; Green with his podcast and Nurkic in “that brother needs help” viral postgame moments. On Tuesday, the Kings ensured there would be no chance of a seven-game series between the fiery big men with a 118-94 dominant showing over the declining dynasty. The Kings will match up against the Collapse

3 DAYS AGO - Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images The Suns stars will try to repeat as Olympic gold medalists. Phoenix Suns stars and likely All-NBA selections Devin Booker and Kevin Durant are part of USA’s 12-man squad for this summer’s Paris Olympics, as reported by The Athletic’s Shams Charania. Among the 10 NBA standouts joining the Phoenix stars is Anthony Edwards, whose Minnesota Timberwolves will host the Suns in the playoffs beginning Saturday. Team USA has selected its 12-player roster for the 2024 Paris Olympics, sources tell me and @joevardon:LeBron JamesStephen CurryKevin DurantJoel EmbiidJayson TatumKawhi Leonard Devin BookerJrue HolidayAnthony DavisAnthony EdwardsBam AdebayoTyrese Haliburton— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 16, 2024 Booker and Durant won gold together in the (delayed to 2021 due to the pandemic) 2020 Tokyo Olympics after the Suns lost in the 2021 NBA Finals to the Milwaukee Bucks. In Tokyo, Durant led USA with 20.7 points per game and added a Collapse

3 DAYS AGO - Photo by Chris Coduto/Getty Images Phoenix finds themselves in an interesting slot for the postaseason. Mission accomplished. Well, kind of. The Phoenix Suns avoided the Play-In Tournament following their convincing win against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday (as well as three other games going their way). In doing so, they clinched the sixth seed in the Western Conference, which means they will play the Wolves in the First Round. This was the ideal matchup for numerous reasons. But the most important reason that this matchup is desirable is the sheer fact that the Suns landed with the sixth seed. The fact that they swept Minnesota in their season series? A bonus, although we know that the postseason is a different animal. How have teams that are seeded sixth in the postseason performed in the past? How have teams that we know and recognize in Suns history performed slotted in that position? Let’s start with our local history. Prior to this season, Phoenix finished with Collapse

4 DAYS AGO - Bruce Kluckhohn-USA TODAY Sports Defense led the way for Phoenix to close their regular season slate. The Phoenix Suns stamped their 2023-24 regular season with a near-wire-to-wire win over the Minnesota Timberwolves. It was a must-win in a high-leverage situation, for them to make the most of their situation standings-wise, and they delivered in a convincing fashion — stamping a season series sweep in the process. This one took on an eerily similar feel to that of their matchup in Phoenix just nine days ago, all of which bode well for the Suns in the first-round matchup to come Here are a few of my quick-hitting takeaways from their regular season finale, in Minnesota. 1.) Tone Setting When playing against this scrappy, connected, and versatile Minnesota bunch, a lot of natural attention goes to how a team will perform against their staunch and stingy defense — one that finished first both generally (109.0 rating) and in the halfcourt (92.5), two of the best marks over the Collapse

5 DAYS AGO - Photo by Harry How/Getty Images Simmons has been passive on Nurk all season, so when he had his chance, he responded accordingly. Sorry, Bill. I know you hate it when the SB Nation sites “aggregate” things that you say on your podcast or Tweet out, but this one is just a little too funny for this avid Bill Simmons Podcast listener and Phoenix Suns fan to pass up. I hope you can forgive me, and I hope you can see the humor in the interaction. Regardless of either, I’ll continue to listen. If you listen to The Ringer’s flagship podcast, the Bill Simmons Podcast (see Bill, I come in peace! I’m linking to your page!), and you are a Suns fan, there is one narrative I am sure you are aware of: the Phoenix Suns are not one of Bill’s NBA League Pass teams. How do I know this? His analysis of the team is broad and regurgitated, he is passive on any success they’ve had, and he doubts the players who are rostered on the team. Nearly any time they are brought up, his sedentary response Collapse

5 DAYS AGO - The original Phoenix Suns post game podcast. Pop a teeth-cracking cold beverage with us and listen to a not too-serious-podcast dedicated to the Phoenix Suns, hosted by John (@DarthVoita) and Matthew (@MatthewLissy). Everything needed to go right for the Suns, and for once, everything did. Suns easily win behind another Real Deal Beal performance. We’re talking about the game and the pending matchup against this Wolves team in the First Round. Click the Subscribe button. Click the bell to turn on notifications. Watch right here! Not much of a video person? Like to listen to your podcasts? Here it is in audio form: .redcircle-link:link { color: #ea404d; text-decoration: none; } .redcircle-link:hover { color: #ea404d; } .redcircle-link:active { color: #ea404d; } .redcircle-link:visited { color: #ea404d; } Powered by RedCircle Follow John (@DarthVoita), Matthew (@MatthewLissy), and the podcast Collapse