The NBA playoffs for 2023 are finally upon us and we start with an absolute banger between the Phoenix Suns and Los Angeles Clippers in round 1.
The number four and number five seeds from the Western Conference will go head-to-head just a week after they ended the regular season against each other, with both teams confident of being able to progress to the semi-finals.
We'll take a look at the season so far and provide you with our best free picks for the upcoming series to see if we can earn you some extra cash.
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NBA Playoffs: Phoenix Suns v Los Angeles Clippers information
- Game 1: Sunday April 16th, 2023
- Footprint Center, Phoenix, Arizona
- Games 2-7 - TBC
Phoenix Suns season so far
The Suns have had a fine season in the West so far, and managed to put together a regular season record of 45-37.
They started in October 2022 with a 5-1 run, beating Dallas Mavericks, LA Clippers, Golden State Warriors, New Orleans Pelicans and Houston Rockets, with their only loss coming to Portland Trailblazers.
November wasn't quite as successful as they went 10-5, but they only lost back-to-back games once in that run and ended the month with an impressive six-game winning streak in the space of 10 days.
December and January were awful though, with a combined record of 12-19 over those months which included a five-game losing streak and a six-game losing streak at different points, although they did beat the Clippers.
Phoenix managed to recover some form in February with a 6-4 run, but they suffered a home loss to the Clippers in that period too. March saw two four-game winning runs separated by a run of six losses in seven, before ending the season with a 3-2 run in April including a season-ending game against the Clippers which they lost.
Los Angeles Clippers season so far
The Clippers had an almost identical season to the Suns, going 44-38 in the regular season to claim a spot in the playoffs.
The season didn't start too well for them back in October as they went 3-4, losing all four of those in a row. November followed closely behind with a winning 10-6 record, with some great performances including a 122-106 win over Houston in Texas.
December saw them get another winning record as they claimed a record of 8-7, earning seven wins in a nine-game stretch over the festive period too. January wasn't so friendly though as they went 8-8, losing seven of their first nine games of the month.
Los Angeles then went 4-6 in February and had their playoff spot beginning to look shaky, but they woke up in March and turned in an 8-6 month where they went 6-3 at home.
They ended the season with a 3-1 run in April, beating the LA Lakers, Portland and Phoenix in the final three games to seal their spot in the post-season.
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NBA Playoffs Series preview
After their meeting in the final game of the regular season, both teams will have a week off before they clash at the Footprint Center in Arizona on Sunday.
During the regular season both teams earned two wins each in their four clashes, with the Clippers winning the two most recent outings.
Neither of those outings saw Kevin Durant in the lineup though, with the new signing rested in the final game with their playoff spot already secured. His participation on the court will be something brand new for LA to deal with, and could be the biggest difference in this series.
Crazily both of these teams are averaging exactly the same amount of points in the regular season, with 113.6 points scored per game but defensively the Suns have the edge with 111.6 points against per game compared to 113.1 points per game against for the Clippers.
NBA picks: Phoenix Suns in 5
Paul George is all but sure to miss Game 1 through injury, but possibly could miss the whole season and that gives us great confidence in backing Phoenix to make quick work of this series.
The Clippers and Suns finished just a single game apart, but these sides seem to be trending in different directions. Phoenix is still less than two years removed from playing in the Finals and has since bolstered its roster with more firepower.
Naturally, since Durant has arrived the Suns have seemed quite unbeatable—Phoenix is 8-0 in games that Durant has played He is a huge game-changing option, and his collaboration with Chris Paul and Devin Booker has them as the favorites to win this conference.
Without George, we saw the Clips struggle against a Suns team last Sunday that played none of its starters.
Take Phoenix in five games as our NBA pick. Even against Kawhi Leonard and LA’s solid supporting cast, they should have too much for them and be able to claim victory.
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