Suns, Western Conference champions

CP3 finished with 41 points, eight assists and four boards for the Suns, who will play in their third NBA Finals in their history against the winner of the Eastern Conference Finals against either the Atlanta Hawks or the Milwaukee Bucks, whose series is tied 2-2.

CP3 reached the NBA Finals for the first time in his 16-season career at the same Staples Center where he helped give the Clippers some respect during his six seasons.

The Suns last reached the NBA Finals in 1993 under Charles Barkley, but fell to Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls in six games. Their only other Finals appearance came in 1976, when they lost in six games to the Boston Celtics.

The Suns’ Playoff run has ignited an inactive fan base that hadn’t seen their team in the postseason since 2010. The Suns will have those fans rooting for them in the Finals as well, as they will count home-court advantage against whichever team comes out of the Eastern Conference due to their better regular-season record.

“I feel it when we go out on the court,” (about fan support) coach Monty Williams said at the start of the series. “That environment, I don’t know any other environment like it. There may be some as loud, but nobody is louder than our fans on game nights.”

Williams’ first season as an NBA head coach came in 2010-11 when CP3 was his point guard with the Pelicans. Now the pair will head to the championship round together.

“I’ve known Chris for 11 years, so we could stand here all day talking about our friendship,” Williams said before Game 6. “It’s bigger than basketball. There’s a connection and a kinship from the tough conversations, coaching, texting, FaceTime, watching games. That probably gets my attention, along with some other things.”

And the Suns will need a few more wins – four, to be precise – to take home the first title in their 53-year existence.