On April 20, 2022, Beijing time, the NBA playoffs continued, and in the second game between the Suns and the Pelicans, the two sides played very hard, and the Suns did not have the advantage of the first game. From the very beginning of the game they were suppressed by their opponents, although in the second quarter they recovered the point difference with Booker's play and completed the counter-overtaking. But as the game progressed, the Pelicans got better and better, winning the Suns by 12 points in the third quarter, and the game was completely biased towards the Pelicans' side. In the end, the Pelicans beat the Suns 125:114 to tie the score to a 1:1 draw!
Booker played 24 minutes and 47 seconds in this game, shooting 12 of 19 from the field, having 31 points, 2 rebounds and 1 assist, and 7 of 11 three-pointers. But these are all he did in the first half, the third quarter of the game although he reached 7 minutes, but did not contribute, and then the Suns officially announced that Booker will not return to this game because of hamstring tension, which is a very big blow to the team, and finally the Suns also regrettably lost the game!
And according to the US media health expert Dr. Nirav Pandya, M.D., said they conducted a study of hamstring injuries for NBA players from 2016-2021, and players suffering from hamstrings missed an average of 6.3 games, and after returning, both playing time and shooting percentages dropped!
This is really very fatal for the Suns, to know that this season's Booker has played MVP-level performances, and his absence has a huge impact on the team! And if you look at this average number of games, if Booker misses six games, he will miss at least all the remaining games in the first round, and the second round may also be absent for a while!
If the Suns break through the first round without Booker, they'll meet the winner between the Lone Ranger and the Jazz, with a higher overall intensity than this series. Booker's state will directly determine their fate, so the injury of Booker in this game is really a very big blow to the Suns' championship this season, and I hope Booker does not have too much of a problem and can return to the field as soon as possible!