Nuggets vs. Suns injury report: Lineup for Game 4 Western Conference Semifinals (May 7, 2023)
The Suns were able to get the edge over the Nuggets to protect their homecourt in a pivotal Game 3 as they were previously down 0-2.
With the Suns now back in the series at 1-2 against the Nuggets, Game 4 looks to come down to the wire as both teams will want to head back to Denver with the momentum on their respective sides.
For Game 4, Chris Paul remains out with a left groin strain injury that he sustained in Game 2. For the Nuggets however, they are in full strength with Nikola Jokic available to play.
However, Chris Paul's absence didn't seem to bother the Suns in Game 3 due to the incredible combined efforts of Kevin Durant and Devin Booker to propel the team to a much-needed victory.
With Paul remaining sidelined on the bench, Cameron Payne will continue where he left off as the starting point guard in his absence. During Game 3, the Suns' guard dropped 7 points on 3-9 shooting, while also having 6 assists and 1 steal.
The rest of the starters for Phoenix remain the same with Booker at the shooting guard spot, Kevin Durant and Josh Okogie at the forwards position along with Deandre Ayton in the center position.
While for the Denver Nuggets, their starting 5 remains unchanged with Jamal Murray and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope at the backcourt positions. Michael Porter Jr. and Aaron Gordon will play at the forward spots with Nikola Jokic playing center down low.
Suns coach Monty Williams on Devin Booker's lights-out 45-point outing against the Nuggets
Following the Game 3 victory, Suns coach Monty Williams talked about Booker's competitive nature with his 45-point explosion against the Nuggets and said:
"He doesn't run from the tough stuff. I just think it's his makeup. He understands not having Chris puts more on his plate, but I don't think he forced it the way that you would think. I think he allowed the game to happen naturally and then when there were opportunities for him to push the issue. He was pretty efficient."
Devin Booker delivered on his end with his 45 points on 20-25 shooting, including 5-8 shooting from three-point range. What made his 45 points all the more impressive was how he only got to the free-throw line twice during the game and still managed to rack up that many points on the scoreboard.