NEW ORLEANS -- Chris Paul has accomplished so many things in his 17 NBA seasons that it's nearly impossible to rank his Mount Rushmore moments.
Short of a title, perfection, however, might be hard to beat.
Paul was 14 for 14 -- the most field goals without a miss in an NBA playoff game -- in the Phoenix Suns' 115-109, series-ending victory over the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday night.
"I had no clue," said Paul, the former Pelican who finished with 33 points and eight assists. "I think maybe at halftime I said I might have to shoot a little more. But throughout the game, I was literally managing the game. I wasn't taking heat checks. I don't shoot enough to have heat checks."
The top-seeded Suns overcame a 10-point halftime deficit to finish off the Pelicans in six games. Phoenix will face the Dallas-Utah winner in the second round.
Paul led Phoenix to victories by scoring 19 points in the fourth quarter of Games 1 and 3 after trying to distribute the ball to teammates in the first three quarters. Suns Coach Monty Williams said it was difficult to rank Paul's achievements as a scorer, leader and game manager.
"I can't even say because he's done it so many times," Williams said. "This is probably No. 1 because it just happened, and I knew how special New Orleans is to him. He cares deeply about the city and the fans and the children. It's probably No. 1 because it just happened,"
Booker had no problem framing Paul's performance.
"Nobody's seen this -- 14 for 14," Booker said. "This is the first time for all of us."
Booker returned from a hamstring injury to hit a late three-pointer that gave the Suns the lead for good -- fittingly, with an assist from Paul.
After Brandon Ingram gave New Orleans its final lead, 104-103, on a reverse baseline layup with 2:00 left, Paul found Booker unguarded on the left wing, and he made the three-pointer to put Phoenix ahead 106-104 with 1:42 left.
Booker played for the first time in nine days since straining his right hamstring after scoring 31 points in the first half of Game 2. He scored 13 points on 5-of-12 shooting and had 5 rebounds and 3 assists in 32 minutes.
"It was really nice to have him back," Paul said. "All that pressure they've been doing against us the whole series, especially the last three games, was tough. (Booker) was on that left wing, and I don't know if they forgot or didn't realize who he was, but I saw how they were shifted."
"It caught me off guard, too," Booker said. "You don't normally get clean looks like that."
Deandre Ayton had 22 points for Phoenix on 10-of-12 shooting.
The Suns erased the 10-point halftime deficit by making 13 of their first 14 shots in the third quarter to take a 77-74 lead. At that point, Paul was 10 of 10 from the field and Ayton was 6 of 6. Paul had 13 points in the quarter, but New Orleans used an 11-5 run to take an 85-82 lead into the final period.
Ingram led the Pelicans with 21 points and 11 assists.
New Orleans Coach Willie Green, one of Paul's closest friends, said he didn't have to be told about how special Paul's 14-of-14 night was.
"Don't remind me of that right now," he said, smiling. "I'm proud we stood the test. I couldn't ask for any better effort."
MAVERICKS 98, JAZZ 96
SALT LAKE CITY — Luka Doncic and Jalen Brunson each scored 24 points and Dallas beat Utah in Game 6 to wrap up the first-round series.
After Brunson hit a three-pointer from the corner, Mike Conley was called for traveling with five seconds remaining, and Brunson made one of two free throws with 4.3 seconds to play.
The Jazz got an open look for Bojan Bogdanovic on the left wing, but he came up short and the Mavericks moved on to face top-seeded Phoenix in the second round.
Doncic also had 9 rebounds, 8 assists, 2 blocks and 2 steals. Spencer Dinwiddie added 19 points, and Dorian Finney-Smith had 18.
Donovan Mitchell had 23 points, 9 assists and 8 rebounds for Utah, Bogdanovic finished with 19 points.
The Mavericks won in the first round for the first time since since winning the 2011 NBA championship.
Finney-Smith’s three-pointer gave the Mavericks their largest lead at 88-80 before the Jazz scored eight in a row — many coming off hustle plays as Utah played with desperation — culminating with a Mitchell-to-Gobert dunk.
The Mavericks found their range in the third quarter as they Jazz tried multiple defenses but somehow seemed to consistently leave someone alone behind the arc. Doncic had 10 points and Dallas made 8 of 12 from three-point range to outscore Utah 36-19 in the third quarter.
At a glance
NBA PLAYOFFS FIRST ROUND
THURSDAY’S GAMES
Philadelphia 132, Toronto 97
Philadelphia wins series 4-2
Phoenix 115, New Orleans 109
Phoenix wins series 4-2
Dallas 98, Utah 96
Dallas wins series 4-2
TODAY’S GAME All times Central
Memphis at Minnesota, 8 p.m. (ESPN)
Memphis leads series 3-2
Phoenix Suns guard Chris Paul (3) goes to the basket between New Orleans Pelicans forward Brandon Ingram (14) and forward Naji Marshall (8) in the first half of Game 6 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series, Thursday, April 28, 2022 in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker (1) dribbles around center Deandre Ayton (22) in the first half of game 6 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series, Thursday, April 28, 2022 in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Phoenix Suns forward Cameron Johnson (23) shoots over New Orleans Pelicans guard Trey Murphy III (25) and guard Devonte' Graham (4) in the first half of Game 6 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series, Thursday, April 28, 2022 in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Phoenix Suns guard Landry Shamet (14) pushes New Orleans Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado as he and teammates tend to forward Cameron Johnson after he was fouled in the first half of game 6 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series, Thursday, April 28, 2022 in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Phoenix Suns guard Landry Shamet (14) pushes New Orleans Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado as he and teammates tend to forward Cameron Johnson after he was fouled in the first half of game 6 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series, Thursday, April 28, 2022 in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Phoenix Suns forward Mikal Bridges (25) pulls in a pass in front of New Orleans Pelicans guard Devonte' Graham (4) in the first half of Game 6 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series, Thursday, April 28, 2022 in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
New Orleans Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado (15) appeals to an official after a foul in the first half of Game 6 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series against the Phoenix Suns, Thursday, April 28, 2022 in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
New Orleans Pelicans center Jonas Valanciunas (17) passes against Phoenix Suns center Deandre Ayton in the first half of game 6 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series, Thursday, April 28, 2022 in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
New Orleans Pelicans guard CJ McCollum (3) shoots against Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker (1) in the first half of game 6 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series, Thursday, April 28, 2022 in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)