12 May 2023 , 18:58
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Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant has labelled his side as "embarrassing" after losing their Play-Off series 4-2 against Denver Nuggets.
The Suns were one of the favourites to win the Western Conference finals before Durant was brought in from Brooklyn Nets, and many fans felt it was inevitable they'd make the NBA finals after his arrival. But they fell at the second hurdle after another Nikola Jokic masterclass, with the two-time MVP scoring a 32-point triple-double.
The Nuggets smashed the Suns 125-100 to close out the series, as the Phoenix crowd watched their team crash out in devastating fashion. Durant admitted that the defeat was "embarrassing", and his post-game comments suggest that he's not happy with their current roster.
The absence of Chris Paul was a huge miss for the Suns, but Devin Booker failed to deliver his best on a disappointing night in Phoenix. Durant posted 23 points on the night, but nothing was going to stop Jokic and his side from progressing to the next round.
The Suns trailed 3-2 heading into the game, but were hoping to force game seven due to their home advantage. However, they whimpered out of the Play-Offs after being humiliated, and Durant felt embarrassed after the game.
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"It sucked," said Durant following the loss. "It was a bad feeling. Embarrassing. We just got to be better next year. It’s hard right now to see what the future will hold for our team, but we got a good foundation, good infrastructure.
"We can build on and move on from this and learn from it and get better from it. I’m sure as the summer and offseason starts, we’ll figure that out a little bit more."
It wasn't the end to the season that Durant was hoping for, but that didn't stop him from congratulating Jokic and showing his respect for the Nuggets star man. "I always knew how great he was," Durant also told reporters after the game.
"I wasn't surprised at all, Jokic is an all-time great... he'll go down as one of the all-time great centres to ever touch a basketball. He went out there and did what he was supposed to do."
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Durant watched on as Jokic ended their Play-Off hopes (Christian Petersen/Getty Images)The Nuggets will now face either Golden State Warriors or Los Angeles Lakers, with the latter currently leading the series 3-2. On the other side of the draw Boston Celtics have forced a game seven clash with the Philadelphia Eagles, while the Miami Heat lead the New York Knicks 3-2.
The Suns are the latest big team to crash out after Milwaukee Bucks shockingly fell at the first hurdle against the Heat. The Nuggets are favourites to reach the NBA finals through the Western Conference, although the Lakers are currently on a mission.
In the Eastern Conference, whoever is victorious in game seven between the 76ers and Celtics will become the favourite to advance from to the finals beginning June 1, but both the Heat and Knicks have caused upsets so far.