Chris Paul Trolls Giannis Antetokounmpo for Missing Free Throws after NBA Finals Game 5

Phoenix Suns lost to Giannis Antetokounmpo & co. at home, and they now see themselves down 2-3 in the NBA finals. After a strong start in the first quarter and taking a 16 point lead, they could not hold on. They fell 123-119 but kept the fight alive until the last second. Chris Paul and the Suns have no room for mistakes, and they will now travel to Milwaukee for a ‘make or break’ Game 6.

Post game, Chris Paul opined that Phoenix need to grab more rebounds. They need to control the ball more if they want to win the ball game. However, his way of putting this message out was not the best.

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Chris Paul throws shade at Giannis Antetokounmpo?

Following their loss in Game 5, a disappointed Chris Paul said that Phoenix need to grab more boards. While doing so, it seemed like he threw some shade at Giannis Antetokounmpo. He said that Suns need to be better to grab rebounds from Giannis’ missed free throws. However, he made it seem like Giannis is surely going to miss saying: “Everybody is anticipating him to miss, even him.”

Now, it seemed CP3 was frustrated after the loss, as Suns did a tremendous job cutting it to 1 point in the 4th quarter. But, he did make a fair point about the rebounds. While the Bucks had only 2 more rebounds than the Suns, it was the offensive boards that hurt the Suns.

Milwaukee grabbed 8 offensive boards to the Suns’ 5. Moreover, Giannis Antetokounmpo alone had 5 offensive rebounds. Even in Game 4, the Bucks had 17 offensive rebounds. On the other hand, the Suns managed just 5, which was as many as Giannis had.

The main reason is that Phoenix lack size in their roster. Milwaukee has big guys like Giannis Antetokounmpo, Brook Lopez and Portis. For the Suns, it is often DeAndre Ayton who grabs majority of the boards. Moreover, they don’t possess skilled rebounders like Connaughton for the Bucks.

Suns will need to figure out how they can limit Bucks’ offensive rebounds in order to win Game 6 at Milwaukee.

Giannis Antetokounmpo shines, but misses big free throws

Giannis Antetokounmpo showed out once again as he finished with 32 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists. However, he missed some crucial free throws in the 4th quarter once again.

He missed his last 3 free throws, 2 of which would most likely put the game away. We have seen this before when he missed from the line against Toronto in 2019.

But, he finished the game off in the best Giannis way possible, finishing with an emphatic dunk. Jrue was sensational as he added 27 points, 13 assists and 3 steals. Khris Middleton made big buckets in the 4th once again including a clutch step back three.

For Phoenix, Devin Booker had yet another 40 point performance go in vain. All starters scored in double figures but couldn’t get the job done.

Chris Paul struggled throughout the game. However, he made some important shots in the 4th quarter as he ended with 21 points and 11 assists. Ayton impressed once again with a 20 point double-double.

Now, Phoenix will hope to steal Game 6 as they travel to Milwaukee. Can Phoenix win Game 6 at the Fiserv Forum and force game 7? Tell us your views in the comments below.

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