Chris Paul puts the Suns in the West final in a duel in which Jokic is sent off

Jokic faces off with Booker in the post-action melee that earned him expulsion.David Zalubowski / AP

The Phoenix Suns are back.

11 years later they have qualified for the final of the Western Conference after sweeping Denver 4-0.

Chris Paul, the 36-year-old point guard, was the positive protagonist of the fourth game (118-125), irrepressible for the Nuggets defense.

Nikola Jokic was the negative lead.

The 26-year-old Serbian center, elected MVP of the season on June 9, was sent off for swiftly slapping the ball in Payton's possession.

The referees, after reviewing the action, considered that Jokic also hit the Suns player.

More information

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With almost four minutes to go in the third quarter, the Suns led 75-83.

The advantage was extended to 16 points (80-96).

The Arizona team dominated from the start, but from then on they successfully managed their lead.

Chris Paul was decisive with 37 points and 7 assists.

He formed an overwhelming duo with Devin Booker, the 24-year-old guard, who had 34 points and 11 rebounds.

Denver's response was insufficient to even come close to reaching the bottom line.

Jokic added 22 points and 11 rebounds, Barton, 25 points, and Porter, 20. Campazzo came off the bench and contributed 14 points and 2 assists in 22 minutes.

The Nuggets, who were eliminated last season by the Lakers in the West final, have suffered the loss of one of their figures, Jamal Murray, who has been injured since April.

Jokic got ejected after this hard foul on Payne 😯 pic.twitter.com/EvG1Dfvuub

- Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) June 14, 2021

The Suns will now face the winner of the tie between the Clippers and Utah.

The last time the Arizonans reached the West final was in 2010. The team's base was made up of Nash, Stoudemire, Richardson and Grant Hill.

In the

playoffs they

beat Portland and San Antonio and in the conference final they lost to the Lakers of Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol.

Since then, the Suns had not made the

playoffs again

.

In November they signed Chris Paul in a multiple trade that led to the transfer of Ricky Rubio to Oklahoma City, although the Spanish point guard ended up returning to Minnesota.

Irving is injured and the Nets lose

Milwaukee tied the tie against Brooklyn at two. The Nets not only lost the game 107-96 but also suffered the loss of Kyrie Irving. The point guard had to leave the court after playing just 17 minutes due to a sprained ankle. Giannis Antetokounmpo, with 34 points and 12 rebounds, beat the Nets defense. Middleton accompanied him with a very complete performance and added 19 points, 8 assists, 4 rebounds, 2 steals and 2 blocks. Holiday, with 14 points, and Tucker, with 13, also stood out in the victory of the Bucks. The Nets dominated the first quarter but later noted the absence of James Harden and the injury of Kyrie Irving. Kevin Durant was left very alone. He added 28 points, 13 rebounds and 5 assists. Kyrie Irving, despite his premature retirement from the court,he was the second highest scorer for his team with 11 points.

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