3 Bright Spots for Phoenix Suns in First Game without Chris Paul

Last night, the Phoenix Suns beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 124-104 even without their Point God. Chris Paul has undoubtedly been magnificent for the  Suns this year; his leadership and play making cannot be understated when analyzing his impact on his team.

Such attributes even made Paul an MVP candidate earlier this year. His imprint on this league-best team has been massive, and all the appreciation for him has been well-warranted.

But on February 16th, Paul suffered a right thumb injury in the third quarter in a matchup against the Houston Rockets. After trying to throw the ball down low to Deandre Ayton, his arms collided with those of a Rockets defender.

It looked rough, and Paul’s reaction after the play was equally worrisome. A double-techinal foul on CP3 soon after forced him to leave the game, but he likely would have needed to depart on his own regardless.

The injury took Paul out of the All-Star Game for all but two minutes. It also threatens to keep him out until the playoffs begin.

The absence of his winning play promises to make this upcoming stretch of games incredibly important for the Suns. They now have a chance to prove to the rest of the league that their team is not dependent on any singular player, and have the depth to compete at the highest level even without arguably their best player.

Their win over Oklahoma City was a good start. Even though the Thunder sports a meager 18-40 record heading into last night’s contest, a few bright spots emerged for the Suns while against this lower-tier team.