On May 24th, the first game of the Western Conference Finals took place. The Phoenix Suns narrowly defeated the Pioneers 95-92, clutching a three-point victory. This result fell far short of the media's previous predictions, which claimed that after conquering the Lakers, the Phoenix Suns would easily sweep their way to the championship. The press had anticipated a crushing, exhilarating blowout. Instead, it was a nail-biter.
Furthermore, as the core player and the hero who defeated the Lakers, Nowitzki's performance was subpar. He shot 8 for 18 from the field, scoring only 23 points with a shooting percentage below fifty percent. For a time, some media outlets in Portland even boldly proclaimed that Milicic could completely lock down Nowitzki, chanting the slogan that the Pioneers could continue last year's miracle and win the championship.
