According to the latest news from NBA star Brian Windhorst, the Suns star Booker has been confirmed to miss the NBA playoffs for 2-3 weeks due to a first-degree strain on the hamstrings in the playoffs, which means that Booker will definitely not be able to return to the court in the first round of the playoffs. The Suns, who are currently tied 1-1 with the Pelicans in the first round of the series, will have to compete with the Pelicans without Booker, so now various pessimistic predictions about the Suns are slowly emerging, among which NBA celebrity Perkins is bluntly saying that the Suns will lose to the Pelicans in 7 games of the series.
"My prediction now is that the Pelicans beat the Suns in 7 games. Ingram will be the best stadium in this series, Booker will be out for a while, and that's the main reason I'm predicting! Perkins predicted. Obviously, with Booker's playoff court injury, the balance of victory is already clearly tilted in favor of the Pelicans, even if the Suns still have star players such as Paul and Ayton, but in Perkins' view, this Suns team is no longer able to beat the Pelicans in the first round of the playoffs.
In fact, Booker is indeed the most important stadium presence in the Suns lineup, in the previous two first-round series between the Suns and pelicans, Booker completed the data output of averaging 28 points, 3 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game, and shot 52.6% from the field and 57.9% from three-point range. However, now the Suns are helpless to lose the strongest scorer, and as the top team in the Western Conference regular season, the current Suns are already facing a strong challenge from the Pelicans, plus the pelicans will have home advantage in the future, so many people have begun to worry about whether the Suns will encounter the first round of black eight.
In addition, the Pelicans are actually a strong Western team now, especially with the mcCollum trade, coupled with Ingram's own growth and evolution, so the current Pelicans really have the strength to fight with the Suns. By contrast, the Suns, now without Booker, are struggling, and they are facing the toughest first-round playoffs. How do fans now view this series clash, do you think the Pelicans can finally beat the Suns, and will the Suns, who have the no. 1 in the league, really have a first round of travel?