PHOENIX β The Suns still have 10 games to go in the regular season, but they are already adding to their trophy case, as they clinched their 2nd-straight Pacific Division title after the Golden State Warriors lost to the Orlando Magic Tuesday night.
This is the Suns' 8th division title, with their others coming in 1981, 1993, 1995, 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2021.
Phoenix is also on the verge of clinching the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference, which means they would have home-court advantage throughout the playoffs. The Suns would clinch if they beat the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Memphis Grizzlies lose to the Brooklyn Nets on Wednesday night.
The Suns won't have point guard Chris Paul back in the lineup against Minnesota on Wednesday, but he is getting closer to returning after breaking his thumb against the Houston Rockets in the final game before the NBA All-Star break on February 16, as he practiced on Tuesday.
Suns head coach Monty Williams says he is excited to see Paul get closer to a return and had some fun when talking about what Chris Paul has been able to do in recent days.
"Well, he's been able to tie his own shoes, he was able to walk out on the floor and say hello, (and) he was able to dribble the ball," Williams said. "He was able to get up and down today and do 5-on-0. He's been able to do some stuff to get his cardio back at a certain level. There's not an overwhelming report on Chris right now but each day over the past week and a half, I've seen him getting up more shots, getting concept shots, and doing more stuff in a script environment. But no 5-on-5 with the team."
Forward Jae Crowder was also out at practice today, and was not on the Suns' injury report, meaning he may not miss any time after rolling his ankle during Sunday's overtime win over the Sacramento Kings.
Williams also said that point guard Cam Payne practiced. He missed Sunday's game due to an illness. He added that it is great to get everyone back in time for the playoffs.
"It's huge. For one, it gives you a chance to see your team in totality. We haven't had this group together one game if you think about Torrey (Craig) being in the rotation. So if we can get everybody back and get a rotation rhythm and get a game rhythm, a defensive rhythm, there's all kinds of things that can happen by getting the group together. We haven't had that opportunity and at the same time, I'm proud of what we've learned about the guys that have played."
Forward Cam Johnson will not play Wednesday. He's out as he continues to recover from a quad injury.
Also seen at practice today were centers Dario Saric and Frank Kaminsky.
Saric tore his ACL in game 1 of the 2021 NBA Finals against the Milwaukee Bucks and has not played yet this season. Kaminsky has not played since November due to a knee injury. Both Saric and Kaminsky were going through drills.
The Suns wrap up the regular season on April 10th. Tip-off Wednesday night in Minnesota is at 5 p.m.