Jae Crowder has been a huge piece for Phoenix these last two seasons. He was pivotal in helping the team get to the NBA Finals last season and has been excellent again this season. As Phoenix approaches the biggest game of the season so far on Sunday, Crowder will need to step up again as he has for a lot of this series against the Dallas Mavericks.
Both teams will be feeling the pressure that only a Game 7 can bring, although the Suns will have their home support backing them throughout the game. And Crowder isn’t worried too much about the game, as evidenced by his answer when he was asked what he will be doing to prepare for a game of this magnitude:
"I'm about to get my nails done. Pamper myself a little bit." Jae Crowder on what he plans to do heading into Game 7. #Suns #Mavs #NBAPlayoffs2022 pic.twitter.com/xe8sbshmI3
— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) May 14, 2022
“Oh, I’m gonna go get my nails done right now, pamper myself a little bit. Get my feet done. Sit by the pool, talk to my dad. You know, watch a movie tonight, keep my feet up, get a massage at some point today. But I just try to check my boxes, do like I said, make sure that my body is where it needs to be.”
The best way to deal with pressure in huge moments is to just go about the routine and keep relaxed while staying locked in mentally. This seems to be a team-wide thing for the Suns, with Devin Booker talking about how he plans on playing pool and Call Of Duty before the game.
One way or another, it’s about who turns up on the day and the Suns have the better team in the series, even though the Mavericks might have the best player. If they can all perform as they have at home in this series, then the game should be a wrap for the Suns and they can move on to thinking about playing the Golden State Warriors in the Conference Finals.
