Suns versus Nuggets. Joker versus KD. The stage is set for a clash of the titans en route to a spot in the Western Conference Finals for two teams in desperate need of a ring.
The second-round series, which opens on Saturday, April 29, in Denver, promises to be pure gold. A precious nugget tumbling along a cool Colorado creek — and hotter than the sizzling Arizona sun.
Sure, the Suns haven’t clinched a chip just yet, but they’ve won the Western Conference on three occasions. Meanwhile, Vail-loving Gerald Ford was president when the Nuggets played their first game in the NBA, and yet they’ve never even appeared in the Finals. Even the Rockies went to the World Series once.
On the flip side, at least the Nuggets haven’t hosted a parade as a consolation prize just for making it to the Finals. The Suns did just that after they crashed and burned in 1993.
The Suns and Nuggets have plenty of history in the post-season, having met four times dating back to the 1981 season. Phoenix owns the all-time series 3-1, most recently sweeping Denver in the conference semis in 2021 while marching to the Finals — and then losing in six.
But the rivalry between these two proud Western cities exists beyond their NBA teams. The two cities are also home to sister alt-weeklies — Westword and Phoenix New Times — that were founded in the 1970s, even if the Phoenix outlet started first. Beyond the trash-talking between our two newsrooms, we asked Westword‘s Catie Cheshire and New Times’ Elias Weiss to break down the series for us. Then we made a bet — more on that below.
Mascot Mania
Which iconic mascot is better?
The Nuggets’ Rocky.
There may not be a mascot more beloved than Rocky, who came out on top in a survey of 1,500 basketball fans. The mountain lion hilariously interacts with fans, and his backward half-court shot is legendary. On April 25, when the Nuggets sent the Minnesota Timberwolves packing to reach this matchup with the Suns, he sunk the shot on his first try.
Kenn Solomon, who was the man inside the suit from Rocky’s inception in 1990, has passed the torch to his son Drake in recent years. That’s a pretty unbeatable legacy. — Catie Cheshire
The Suns’ Go the Gorilla.
A survey this season from NJ Bet, a sports-gambling clearinghouse in New Jersey, found that Go the Gorilla is the third-most-intimidating mascot in the NBA. Not that we have gorillas roaming the Sonoran Desert.
James Oberhaus, an avid Suns fan, sent a singing telegram named Henry Rojas to the Suns’ arena in 1980. Rojas donned a gorilla costume to deliver the message, catching the attention of security guards who encouraged Rojas to stick around and entertain the fans during breaks, a request he fulfilled repeatedly. As a result of his continued presence at the games, Rojas was offered the role of the Suns’ official mascot after eleven years sans mascot and one failed attempt to dress a guy up as a giant anthropomorphic sunflower. We don’t have those in Phoenix, either.
Since then, Go the Gorilla has become famous for his slapstick humor and athletic antics on and off the court. — Elias Weiss
Go the Gorilla ranks as the third-most-intimidating mascot in the NBA.
Christian Petersen / Getty Images
Will the Nuggets or Suns Win the Series?
Nuggets in six.
There’s no denying both of these teams have what it takes to make a championship run. The Suns are title favorites and the Nuggets are the top seed in the Western Conference. But this season, the Nuggets have yet to melt under the bright light of the Suns.
Sure, the Suns have Deandre Ayton, Devin Booker, Kevin Durant and Chris Paul. But let’s remember that on March 31 all of those guys could barely squeak out a win against a Nuggets team without four of its five starters, including reigning MVP Nikola Jokic, Jamal Murray, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and Michael Porter Jr.
The only Nuggets starter who played in that 100-93 game was Aaron Gordon, and his Christmas night dunk over the Suns’ Landry Shamet is indisputably the best dunk of the year. These teams will fight to the end, but the Nuggets are ready and they’ll come out on top, vanquishing Phoenix at the Footprint Center on May 11. — Cheshire
Suns in six.
They’re favored in their three home games, according to Las Vegas oddsmakers, and only a two-point underdog in each game at Ball Arena. That’s well within the margin of error, so it’s anyone’s series to claim.
If a trio of superstars with a show-stealing supporting role by former first-overall draft choice Ayton can steal one road win, then it’s all over for the perpetually disappointed fans in Denver.
Let’s just hope the dreaded Curse of the Suns doesn’t get in the way. — Weiss
Devin Booker is just one of a trio of superstars on the Suns’ roster.
Christian Petersen / Getty Images
Murray Versus Booker Promises Sizzle
Jamal Murray. Enough said.
Nikola Jokic did the thing — winning back-to-back MVPs — but Murray is a playoff king. Murray knows exactly how to turn it on in the big moments, and he’s not afraid of the Suns’ clutch-time counterpart Booker, winning fourteen of the sixteen games he’s played against Booker in their respective NBA careers.
Murray has similar numbers against the Suns, defeating the team seventeen of twenty times he’s played against it while averaging 21.1 points over those games. When the Nuggets and Suns matched up in the Western Conference Semifinals in 2021, Murray didn’t play. He’d torn his ACL two months earlier.
He’s back and better than ever, averaging 27.2 points per game, and rest assured he won’t let the Nuggets get swept again.
The sun might be the center of the universe, but if you think everything revolves around you, you could make the mistake of underestimating a Nuggets team that’s hungrier than a ten-year-old about to eat a Happy Meal. Even if the Suns figure out a way to stop Jokic, there’s Murray, then Porter, then Gordon and, oh, yeah, some actually good bench players.
But it will come down to Murray, and if the past is any indication, he’ll be leaving Phoenix with some more killer performances. — Cheshire
Dbook, of course.
While Jokic is the reigning league MVP, he’s the team’s only superstar. Phoenix has a trio of superstars in Booker, Durant and Paul.
In the Suns’ first-round rout of the Paul George-less Los Angeles Clippers, Booker became the second player after primetime Michael Jordan to average 30 points, five assists, two steals, a block, and 65 percent true shooting in the first four games of a post-season series.
Book put up a whopping 47 points in his double-double in game five against the Clips. KD scored 31, and the hometown pride of Arizona, Ayton, scored 21 of his own in a double-double. Much like the actual sun in Phoenix, this is the time of year when we turn up the heat.
As long as we haven’t seen the last of playoff Book, he’ll likely continue to be the key difference-maker wearing orange and purple. But KD’s big numbers against L.A. are in spite of coach Monty Williams saving the big minutes for this series — which could mean the Slim Reaper is destined to outshine young Book in round two.
On Friday, Durant became just the third NBA player to ever ink a lifetime contract with Nike, joining Jordan and LeBron James. Talk about great company. — Weiss
Which Fans Will Make an Impact?
Ball Arena will rock.
Westword has two Sun Devils on our staff, so we’re not total Phoenix haters. But for fans, there’s no doubt that Denver comes out on top. The Nuggets fan base shows up — even for games against the dregs of the league — and gets Ball Arena rocking. Perhaps thanks to that sixth-man energy, the Nuggets stormed their way to a 34-7 record at home this season.
Just as Ball Arena has been the stage for some epic matchups on the court, the last time the Nuggets and Suns met in the playoff, it was the site of some of the top beef between fans, too. A Nuggets fan who goes by Marty and a Suns fan, Nick McKellar, got in a fight. After the fight broke up, McKellar proclaimed, “Suns in 4!”
That rocketed McKellar to internet fame as the “Suns in 4” guy. But back in 2021, Marty told Westword he was ready for a rematch. We can only hope the two refrain from throwing actual punches if they cross paths during this series. Regardless, the dripped-out Marty is just one example of Nuggets fans passionate enough to put themselves on the line to defend the team.
Ball Arena will rock(y) each night, ready to help the Nuggets bring it in and win their first title. Suns fans stand no chance. — Cheshire
It’s Mr. ORNG.
Phoenix Suns fans are legion — and their numbers have only been getting bigger. According to Hoop Social, the Suns have nearly 2.2 million fans — about half the total number of people living in metro Phoenix. Denver has fewer supporters, with just 1.7 million.
We’ve got more than just the Suns in 4 guy-repping Planet Orange. Local artists Leslie Carrasco and Lalo Cota have dotted Arizona’s hiking trails and notable downtown Phoenix locations with Suns-themed art. We even paint our sidewalks for the Suns. Serg Caraveo, also known as “the Chug Father,” quaffs beers whenever the Suns win.
Mesa resident Edward Willekens, once the Mesa Community College basketball mascot, waves pom-poms and dances at home games for the Suns. Rappers Zanezor and Dann G are busy in the studio cooking up hometown playoff anthems, while “Shirtless Blake” made national television via TNT in 2021 when he wildly cheered and flailed about while taking off his Suns shirt and hat.
Superfans Veronica Philpot, Paul Nicosia, and Kevin Arnett haven’t missed a home game in years. They’re always decked out in Suns gear and claim to be the loudest fans in the building.
Maybe the most recognizable is Patrick Battillo, also known as “Mr. ORNG.” Frequently clad in a tangerine-colored bodysuit, wig, team jersey, face paint and glasses, you’d have to be blind to miss him in the stands at both home and away games. — Weiss
A Friendly Alt-Weekly Wager
Denver
Even though we already send Arizona 2.8 million acre-feet of water from the Colorado River each year, if the Suns win, Westword will send Phoenix New Times some more liquid — this time sparkling.
Phoenix
No one here is afraid of eating some delicious homemade tamales, whether Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs agrees or not. If Denver wins, New Times will send Westword some of its best “illegal” treats.
It’s a deal. Share your best trash talk with us at [email protected] and [email protected] Keep it classy, and may the best team win!
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