NBA: Suns take early lead in West final vs Clippers thanks to Brooker triple-double

After being rocked by the injury to Kwahi Leonard, Los Angeles Clippers have lost the first game of the West Conference Finals 120-114 to Phoenix Suns, who will have Devin Brooker to thank for his match-winning triple-double, on Sunday.

The Phoenix shooting guard top-scored with 40 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists and he found the perfect tonight to score the first triple-double in NBA.

In the Phoenix Suns Arena, in front of 18,000 spectators, Suns will happily take the start and hope to build on it. But even without Leonard, Clippers went down fighting as Paul George top-scored for the Los Angeles side with 34 points, four rebounds and five assists. 

To add insult to injury, early in the game Clippers had to take off DeMarcus Cousins, who was later seen rubbing ice packs on his knee. If they end up losing Cousins, it could be the killing blow for the Los Angeles side.

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Meanwhile, the Suns had worries of their own, as shooting guard Chris Paul was out of the first game due to COVID-19 protocols. But Brooker’s near-perfect performance didn’t allow the Suns fanatics to feel his absence.

Meanwhile, Suns coach Monty Willians will be hoping for a lot more contribution from Mikal Bridges, Cameron Johnson and Jae Crowder given it was Brooker and Deandre Ayton who did the major chunk of scoring.

Suns reached the finals after downing Nikola Jokic-led Denver Nuggets, while Clippers trumped Utah Jazz in the semis.

The second game of the best-of-seven series will unfold on June 22 at the Phoenix Suns Arena.