The two teams in last year’s NBA Finals will have to do battle in a Game 7 to reach this season’s conference finals.
The top-seeded Phoenix Suns will take on Luka Doncic and the upstart Dallas Mavericks, while the defending champion Milwaukee Bucks will have to beat the Boston Celtics away from home.
The Celtics could have centre Robert Williams back for the big game, while the Bucks will officially be without All-Star forward Khris Middleton.
Read on below as SBOTOP runs down the latest and updates on the NBA conference semi-finals.
Devin Booker, Suns ‘locked in’ for first Game 7
Devin Booker will be playing in his first Game 7 as the West’s No. 1 seed, the Phoenix Suns, face the Dallas Mavericks.
The Mavs have put up a tough fight, with young superstar Luka Doncic leading the way. However, Booker is looking forward to his first Game 7 experience despite the pressure that will be on him and his team.
“I like coming in here with everybody locked in, top to bottom from the front office looking through the windows — you can feel their demeanor,” Booker said. “That’s why we play the sport. We thought we had something going there [in terms of pressure] during the regular season, trying to break the franchise record, and this is a whole different beast.”
The home team has won all six games thus far in the series. The Suns have won three games at Footprint Center by an average of 19 points. But in the three games in Dallas, the Mavericks have come out on top by an average of 15.3 points.
Booker believes that having home court will be a real advantage to him and the Suns in the decisive Game 7.
“If you just look at the history of the league, home-court advantage, it’s a real saying,” Booker said. “It’s always tough to win on the road. I think just the comfortability of playing [41] games here rather than two on the road and just playing in front of our fans. I’m sure it’s going to be rowdy in there. It’s going to be exciting, it’s going to be a lot of energy. So, I’m looking forward to it.”
Celtics’ Robert Williams upgraded to questionable for Game 7
Over in the East, the Boston Celtics have a chance to knock out the defending champion Milwaukee Bucks as they play Game 7 in Boston.
The NBA 2022 betting odds have the Celtics favoured at home, and they could get another boost with centre Robert Williams upgraded to questionable to play in Game 7.
The big man has missed the last few games after experiencing issues with his surgically repaired knee, but he might play a part in their decisive game.
Daniel Theis has stepped up into the backup big man role in Williams’ absence. He had 11 points on a perfect 5-of-5 shooting in 11 minutes in Game 5.
Williams’ presence will give the Celtics another big body to match up against Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo, who is averaging 40 points and 13 rebounds over his last four games.
Bucks’ Khris Middleton listed as out for Game 7
As for the Bucks, the Bucks will officially be without Khris Middleton for Game 7 against the Celtics.
Middleton has missed the entire series due to an MCL sprain. There had been some NBA 2022 updates that suggested he could make a surprise comeback, but that has unfortunately not happened as Middleton has been officially ruled out.
The Bucks have put up a valiant fight in the series against the Celtics even without Middleton, who is their second-leading scorer with 20.1 points, 5.4 rebounds and 5.4 assists per game this season.
Grayson Allen has started the last few games, but he has struggled on both ends of the court, which could lead head coach Mike Budenholzer to make a change in his starting lineup.
Sixers plan to keep James Harden
The Philadelphia 76ers suffered a six-game conference semi-final loss to the Miami Heat, with key midseason acquisition James Harden having a disappointing series overall. However, Sixers GM Daryl Morey says the team is planning to bring Harden back next season.
“That’s the plan is to have him back. That’s been the plan since the trade,” Morey said of Harden. “Obviously, we have to work with his representation and that’ll be between us to figure out how that works… He’s an incredibly talented player just like Joel [Embiid], just like Tobias [Harris], and I’m excited for Doc [Rivers] and his staff to have a whole offseason, work with the players, and come up with the best plan for the roster.”
Harden, 32, averaged just 18 points on 40 per cent shooting with 6.3 rebounds and 7.0 over six games in the series. He has a $47 million player option he can opt in to. But he can also decline his option to seek a long-term contract extension.
Sixers superstar Joel Embiid was critical of Harden, who he says is no longer capable of playing at an MVP level, for lacking aggressiveness.
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