At 87:97, the Suns lost again, trailing the Nuggets 2-0 on the road.
Even worse than being two innings behind was Paul leaving the game injured.
Objectively speaking, in today's game, Paul's performance was not bad. In his 24 minutes, he scored eight points, five rebounds and six assists on 4-of-10 shooting without any turnovers.
In this game where the main defense is fought and the shooting percentage of both sides has dropped significantly, both sides are waiting for the other to iron and make mistakes. Therefore, Paul's performance before his injury today was remarkable.
Paul's injury occurred in the third quarter, when Paul covered his groin after a rebound and landed, then walked straight back to the locker room.
Just when Suns fans were still expecting Paul's possible return, the Suns officially announced that Paul was withdrawing from today's game because of a tight left groin.
Strangely enough, when the words "Paul", "playoffs" and "injury" are lined up, fans seem to be unsurprised and even a little used to it.
The 37-year-old Paul is still without a championship, in addition to being limited by his own ability and the strength of the team, as well as some external reasons, another important reason is that Paul's body always drops the chain at critical moments.
In the 2007–08 season, Paul played a career highlight, finishing No. 2 on the MVP list, reaching the Western Conference semifinals in the playoffs, and being eliminated in seven games against the Spurs.
Paul was only 23 years old at the time, and people did not feel any regrets for Paul, because he had time and future.
The following year was the familiar 58 shame.
Losing 58 points is nothing, it is not a bad thing to suffer fiasco and blows at a young age, after all, failure is the mother of success.
Unfortunately, just when it was thought that Paul would definitely go further, he stopped moving forward.
In the 09-10 season, during a game against the Bulls, Paul hit a camera on the sidelines while making a save, resulting in a knee injury, after which Paul underwent left kneescopic joint surgery to repair the torn meniscus.
Paul made a comeback late in the season, but due to the number of wins owed, Paul did not lead the Hornets to the playoffs.
Then came his final season with the Hornets.
During a game against the Rockets, Paul suffered a sprained ankle.
During a game against the Cavaliers, Paul suffered a concussion and was even carried off the court on a stretcher at one point.
These injuries did not prevent Paul from making the playoffs, but they prevented him from becoming a better version of himself, and Paul chose to leave New Orleans after losing six games to the Lakers.
After joining the Clippers, Paul's health has not improved.
And, as people remember, Paul's injury rush was a playoff pivotal moment.
In the 12-13 season, facing the Grizzlies in the first round, the Clippers got off to a favorable 2-0 start and were then defeated by the Grizzlies in two consecutive games. During the crucial Battle of Tenno, Paul injured the finger of his right hand, which greatly affected his performance.
Although Paul scored 35 and 28 points in the injured Tenno Mountain and the injured G6, the Clippers were eliminated by the Grizzlies.
In the 13-14 season, Paul suffered a shoulder injury during the regular season and missed for up to a month.
The 14-15 season was supposed to be the Clippers' best chance season.
In the long regular season, Paul played a rare 82 regular season games, the only time he had full attendance in his career.
In a first-round tiebreaker win over defending champion Spurs, Paul suffered a left hamstring strain. Unconvinced, he hit a last-minute shot to help his team advance to the second round. Paul missed two games in the semifinals against the Rockets, and the team led 3-1 at one point, only to be reversed.
In the '15-16 season, the Clippers made a comeback.
In Game 4 against the Trail Blazers, Paul suffered a fracture of the third metacarpal in his right hand, and the Clippers were defeated twice in a row while leading 2-0. Then Paul was absent from the G5G6, and the Clippers also lost two consecutive games and were eliminated.
In the 16-17 season, Paul's injuries were transferred to his teammates.
He missed up to two months in the regular season due to a left-hand thumb injury, and Griffin was reimbursed for the season in just three appearances in the playoff series against the Jazz. Paul didn't lead the team to a miracle, and the Clippers lost to their opponents in a tie-for-seven battle.
In the summer of 2017, Paul joined the Rockets, and bad luck came to Houston with him.
In the 17-18 Western Conference Finals, the Rockets led the Cosmic Warriors 3-2. Paul suffered a hamstring strain after leading the team to win Tianwang Mountain. The story behind is very clear to everyone, Paul missed two consecutive games, and the Rockets were reversed by the Warriors.
Objectively speaking, this is the closest the Rockets team has come to winning a championship, and it is also the closest that Cosmic Warriors team has come close to defeat.
Paul then briefly stayed in Oklahoma before joining the Suns.
Paul suffered another injury in the 20-21 playoffs, where he injured his shoulder in G1 of the first series, but missed the first two games in the Western Conference finals against the Clippers.
This time the god of fate finally favored Paul, and his teammates did not disappoint him, and Paul reached the Finals for the first time in his career, losing 4-2 to the Bucks.
So many injuries, and repeated unsuccessful championships.
Like the story of the wolves, after losing 4-3 to the Lone Rangers in the Western Conference finals last season, Beverley said mockingly: "Look, Paul will be exposed to injury."
Speaking after today's game, Suns coach Monty said: "Paul was in the slot, and now I'm not sure where Paul got his injury, it looks like there's a groin problem, and we won't know the severity of his injury until tomorrow. ”
0:2 behind the first place in the West, with a groin injury and departure...
We certainly can't conclude that Paul is going to fail again this season, but year after year, again and again. Perhaps in Paul's life, there are some things that really cannot be forced.
Or rather?
On the way to the championship, Paul got the toughest script in his career, but the happy ending has not yet arrived.