PHOENIX (AP) — Demons lurk for the Phoenix Suns in their upcoming playoff series against the San Antonio Spurs.
They were there in Game 1 of the 2007 Western Conference semifinals, when the Suns’ Steve Nash collided head-on with Tony Parker. A cut on Nash’s nose bled uncontrollably and he was forced to sit out 45 seconds of the critical final minute of a close loss in Phoenix.
In Game 4 in San Antonio, the Suns were wrapping up a victory with 18 seconds left when Robert Horry slammed Nash into the scorer’s table with a hip-check. Amare Stoudemire and Boris Diaw came off the bench to Nash’s defense. The result, an automatic one-game suspension for Stoudemire and Diaw.
Four of the last five times Phoenix was eliminated from the playoffs, the Spurs did it.
