Devin Booker Talks Suns' Game 1 Win Over Clippers: 'We Wanted That One Bad'

Devin Booker put on a show in the Phoenix Suns' 120-114 win over the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals, going off for a 40-point, 13-rebond, 11-assist triple-double.

After the game, he told reporters the Suns knew how important Game 1 was:

"It felt good, man. We want to protect home court. That was big for us to come out and secure that one. I don't know if I showed that much emotion through the playoffs that much, but not having Chris [Paul] out there and being a high-intense game, we wanted that one bad. It's obviously only one. We know what they're capable of and what they've done—came back down 0-2 from the past two series—so we've gotta stay locked in." "

The Suns needed just about every last point, rebound and assist from Booker in the back-and-forth win. Without Paul in the lineup because of COVID-​19 health and safety protocols, Booker had to play the role of both scorer and facilitator, responding with the first triple-double of his career.

"Without Chris taking on the playmaking role, [I was] trying to find the balance of keeping everybody involved and imposing my will on the game," Booker said. "... I just wanted to be aggressive."

The Clippers were trying to steal a win on the road and were without a superstar of their own, as Kawhi Leonard remains out with a knee injury. Paul George continued his torrid postseason with 34 points, though he couldn't quite match Booker.

"We just gotta find a way to adjust," George told reporters after the loss. "This is a different caliber team than the last two we faced. A little more guard play. We have to figure out how to counter, which we will. We'll figure out another game plan."

You can expect that game plan to center on slowing down Booker—if that's even possible at this point. Game 2 is scheduled for Tuesday at 9 p.m. ET in Phoenix, and both CP3 and Kawhi appear unlikely to be available.