The Phoenix Suns’ behavior during their second-round series against the Dallas Mavericks is rubbing one of their former players the wrong way.
Retired ex-NBA sharpshooter Tim Legler, who is now an analyst for ESPN, appeared this week on “The Old Man and the Three” podcast (h/t NBA Reddit). During the episode, Legler criticized the Suns for their celebratory antics against the Mavs in Game 2 on Wednesday.
“You guys are the No. 1 seed, you have the best record in the league,” said Legler. “You lost in the Finals last year, you have greater aspirations than winning a game against the Dallas Mavericks in the [second] round where you’re getting all this strutting and posing and posturing.
“I just didn’t like that,” added Legler. “Just two games into this series, like, alright man, enough with that. It’s a blowout. Let’s just win the game and get onto the next game. I just wasn’t a fan of that.”
Legler, who played for the Suns back in 1990, has worked at ESPN for more than two decades. He did also say in the podcast that he loves the Suns and the way that they play the game but just did not like their antics.
The Suns, who are heavily favored in the series against Dallas, had a few notable instances of showboating during Game 2. Devin Booker and Deandre Ayton were among those who got into the act.
Of course, nothing that the Suns did was particularly egregious, and part of the fun of the playoffs is celebrating success, especially in front of your home crowd. Granted, there have been signs that the Suns themselves feel like they need to tone down the energy a bit this postseason.
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