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The Suns stunned the NBA world with a gorgeous 10-pass sequence that looked like the peak Warriors

Scott Davis

  • The Suns got an and-one layup off a gorgeous 10-pass sequence in Game 2 of the Finals.
  • The Suns kept whipping the ball around against a scrambling Bucks defense.
  • The Suns look like a team with valuable chemistry that can’t be stopped.

Sometimes NBA teams click at the right time. There is an intangible connectivity, where players instinctively know where to be and where to find their teammates.

An opponent can play 23.5 seconds of near-perfect defense, cutting off one shot after the other, and still be beaten.

That’s where the Phoenix Suns seem to be now.

On Thursday, the Suns took a 2-0 lead over the Milwaukee Bucks in the NBA Finals.

Late in the second quarter, the Suns’ connectivity was on display with a brilliant offensive possession entirely improvised.

The Bucks defended it well, cutting off Chris Paul in transition, then rotating out to shooters, stopping one potential three-pointer after another. The Bucks even got their hands on the ball at one point, deflecting a pass and nearly forcing a turnover.

It didn’t matter. The Suns kept whipping the ball around, players moving into open spaces until eventually, Suns forward Mikal Bridges dumped off a pass to center Deandre Ayton in the paint. Ayton went up for the layup, got fouled by the Bucks’ P.J. Tucker, and finished the basket for the three-point opportunity – the worst outcome for the Bucks after 21 seconds of solid defense.

That possession was huge, putting the Suns up 11 going into the half.

This is the mark of a team that gets hot at the right time. The Suns posted the second-best regular-season record in the NBA, but few saw them as true Finals contenders.

No team has been as steady this postseason. The Suns have the togetherness of past champions. They rarely get off-keel, and when they do, they correct themselves, getting back to their brand of basketball.

There is a lot of series left to be played. The Bucks overcame a 2-0 series deficit to the Brooklyn Nets in the second round, and they are going home for Games 3 and 4, where their role players figure to shoot better in Phoenix.

But if the Suns make quick work of the Bucks, even in Milwaukee, that 10-pass sequence could become the sort of hallmark moment where a championship felt like destiny.