Phoenix Suns roll to Game 1 win in Giannis Antetokounmpo’s return from knee injury

Giannis Antetokounmpo is back, but the Phoenix Suns keep rolling toward winning an NBA championship.

Led by their All-Star backcourt of Chris Paul and Devin Booker, the second-seeded Suns took a 1-0 series lead in the 2021 NBA Finals after Tuesday’s 118-105 Game 1 win over the third-seeded Milwaukee Bucks before a sellout crowd of 16,557 at Phoenix Suns Arena.

Paul scored a game-high 32 points, constantly taking advantage of Milwaukee 7-footer Brook Lopez on switches. Hitting 4-of-7 shots from 3 and adding nine assists, Paul showed no signs of rust — the Suns hadn’t played since eliminating the Los Angeles Clippers in Game 6 last Wednesday at STAPLES Center.

Booker churned out 27 points and Deandre Ayton posted his 12h double-double of the playoffs, 22 points and 19 rebounds, as the Suns are now three wins away from winning the franchise’s first NBA title in their 53-year history. The team that has won Game 1 of the championship round has won the finals 71.6% of the time (53-21).

Game 2 is 6 p.m. Thursday at Phoenix Suns Arena. 

The Bucks went into Game 1 with questions about whether Antetokounmpo was going to play. He missed Game 5 and 6 of the Eastern Conference finals against the Hawks after hyperextending his left knee in Game 4 in Atlanta.

He was listed as doubtful Monday, upgraded to questionable Tuesday afternoon and Bucks coach Mike Budenholzer called the two-time NBA MVP a game-time decision 90 minutes before Game 1 of the finals.

Antetokounmpo finished with 17 points, showed explosiveness, but seemed to tweak the knee a couple of times. The Bucks trailed by as many as 20 points before cutting Phoenix’s lead to seven, 101-94, with 7:16 left in the fourth quarter.

Phoenix answered with a Booker 3 off an assist from Paul, who added a jumper.

Then Cam Johnson answered Khris Middleton’s jumper with one of his own in giving the Suns an 108-96 advantage that led to Budenholzer calling a timeout with 5:14 left in the game. 

During Monday’s Media Day, Brook Lopez said the Bucks have been looking forward to being on this stage and playing on the road before a raucous crowd.

“We want to enjoy being on the road, playing against all of those fans going crazy, cheering against us,” Lopez said. “That’s all part of the enjoyment of being in this situation. So I think we’re all very excited.”

The fans made their presence felt in booing when Lopez missed two free throws, and had their countdown going when Antetokounmpo went to the line.

Known for taking longer than NBA 10-second rule to shoot a free throw, Antetokounmpo heard the fans reach a deafening volume each time he attempted one, as they counted up to 10 and beyond if he still had the ball in his hands.

Antetokounmpo finished 7-of-12 from the line. 

Middleton led the Bucks with 29 points. 

Have opinion about current state of the Suns? Reach Suns Insider Duane Rankin at dmrankin@gannett.com or contact him at 480-787-1240. Follow him on Twitter at @DuaneRankin.

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