For the third time in franchise history, the Phoenix Suns have secured a berth into the NBA Finals (@Suns/Instagram).

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The Phoenix Suns are headed to the 2021 NBA Finals, and there absolutely should be no asterisk attached to their stellar run, according to guest Greg “Espo” Esposito, host of the Solar Panel Podcast. And why should there be? Phoenix bounced back from a 2-1 deficit to dethrone the defending champions before sweeping the MVP Jokic-led Nuggets. Then, the Suns took down a deep and resilient Clippers squad in a gritty series that could have gone either way. Espo breaks down how the Suns just keep on winning and provides a brief glimpse into their forthcoming Finals appearance against either the Bucks or Hawks.

6:05-6:20: “What you’ve seen is a maturation process for Devin [Booker]’s game. You’ve seen leadership. You’ve seen just the chance for him to finally on the NBA’s big stage, the playoffs, prove that he is not an empty calories guy.”

8:28-9:19: “Having grown up a big Charles Barkley fan, I’ve always taken issue with the ‘If a guy doesn’t win a championship, you have to kind of pooh-pooh his career and his legacy.’ … Basketball is a team sport. Individuals can have big games, but what you’re seeing with the Suns is proof yet again that nobody wins alone. This team is truly a team, and the thought that Chris Paul’s legacy or his career wasn’t impressive until Year 16 when he finally made it to the Finals just seems somewhat laughable. But that’s the storyline. That’s the way things are perceived nationally.”

16:15-17:07: “A win’s a win. Doesn’t matter if it’s pretty, if it’s ugly, if it’s one point, if it’s 90 points. In the playoffs, a win is a win. I think the Suns proved in the series against the Clippers they can win any way possible. They can win when the refs seemingly are against them like they did in Game 2 where they won on what’s dubbed as the ‘Valley Oop.’ They pulled that one out. … They found a way. Defensive slugfest where nobody’s scoring the basketball, the Suns found a way. Just explosive offensive night, the Suns had that too. This team can win anyway, anyhow, anywhere.”

20:53-21:21: “Monty Williams is helping mold this young Suns roster in multiple ways, on and off the court. And I think that’s such a big factor to why he’s been successful here is because these guys, again, were looking to be taught, were looking to be shown, how to be true professionals, and Monty Williams has done that unbelievably well.”

24:40-25:43: “Boo-freaking-hoo. There’s no asterisk. Does Toronto have an asterisk because Golden State was hurt? No, people don’t think about that, they just go, ‘Oh, Toronto was the champions that year.’ Last year because it was played in a bubble, do the Lakers have an asterisk? No, they pound their chests just like anybody. …The Suns have beaten everybody that they faced. Hands down, they’ve done what they’ve been asked to do. They can’t control who’s there. And Chris Paul had his shoulder injured against the Lakers and was out with COVID, Devin Booker as a broken nose. Things happen, and things have happened to the Suns. And in the past, the Suns over the last 50 plus years have been one of the most unlucky franchises in NBA history. I could not care less what the path was to get to a title.”

28:18-28:26: “DeAndre Ayton has proven that he is a max player in this league this playoffs.”

31:33-32:27: “My daughter’s four, so this has been kind of the first time she’s really been into basketball, and they rush right to see the end of [Game 2]. And my daughter was just as excited as I was for it and that [the ‘Valley Oop’] is the kind of thing that makes a fan for life. It’s those kind of moments that solidify it, and that’s what made it so cool for me was I knew there was a generation, like my daughter and a little older than my daughter, that were like me during the ’93 run, that that will be seared in their memory forever. That that may be the moment that they just decided I’m gonna love basketball irrationally well into my 30s and 40s and 50s because I saw something that was unbelievable in the moment. That’s why we all watch sports and that’s what I loved so much about that play.”

34:49-35:21: “The reason they had a spot to invite [Cam Payne] in was because Ricky Rubio had COVID going into the bubble. Monty Williams has a relationship with him that they had established and Monty saw something in him and said, “Hey, I want you to come here.” Without that moment, they’re probably not in this moment because Cam Payne, with Chris Paul out, stepped up in a big way. He’s been the perfect change of pace when they take Chris Paul out and when they play him even next to Chris Paul.”

41:20-42:00: “[Torrey Craig’s] defense was completely series-shifting in Game 6. Without the kind of defense that he played, without what he was able to do in those minutes that Cam Johnson couldn’t fill because of illness, he stepped up in one of the biggest ways possible.”

46:15-46:41: “Whether it’s Atlanta or Milwaukee, that’s going to be the biggest vulnerability for the Suns is can they mentally stay locked in to win four games? I think they can, I think they’ve proven it, but they have to work hard. And like I said, I mentioned this quote that Monty Williams says: ‘Do not get happy on the farm.’ Because, and I add this part, if you get happy on the farm, that’s when you’re gonna get slaughtered.”

*This marks the Suns’ first Finals appearance in 28 years. In the intro, 18 years was incorrectly cited instead. We regret the error. Was the year 1993 really almost three decades ago? Man, we’re getting old.

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Music: “Who Likes to Party” by Kevin MacLeod.