Chris Paul scored a game-high 41 points with eight assists Wednesday to lead the visiting Phoenix Suns to a decisive 130-103 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers at Staples Center in Game 6 of the NBA Western Conference Finals.
The victory clinched the series for the Suns, 3 games to 2.
Phoenix advances to its first NBA Finals since the 1992-93 season when the Suns fell to the Michael Jordan-led Bulls. Paul got a measure of revenge against the Clippers, who traded him to the Houston Rockets after the 2016-17 season, after leading the Clippers to arguably their greatest period of sustained success from 2011-2017.
Marcus Morris, Sr. led the Clippers with 26 points and nine rebounds. The Clippers played their eighth-consecutive game without two-time Final MVP Kawhi Leonard, who sprained his right knee during Game 4 of the conference semifinals.
Phoenix took a nine-point lead at the half and extended it to 13 points midway through the third quarter. The closest the Clippers got was a seven-point deficit 89-82 with 1:43 left in the third quarter before the Suns pulled away.
Phoenix moves on to play the winner of the Eastern Conference Finals between Milwaukee-Atlanta. The Clippers, despite having reached their first appearance in the conference finals history, have questions about Leonard’s health and the possibility of him opting out of his contract, according to ESPN.