National Basketball Association

The social media world is wondering why Frank Kaminsky didn't protect Chris Paul

Updated Jul. 30, 2021 8:21 a.m. ET

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One thing is for sure after the Phoenix Suns' win over the LA Clippers on Wednesday night:

Chris Paul is headed to his first NBA Finals after dropping 41 points on the Clippers in Game 6 of the Western Conference finals, leading the Suns to a 130-103 blowout win. 

And while that was the main story of the night, it wasn't the only story of the night. 

With 5:49 left to go in the fourth quarter, and the Suns leading 118-92 on the back of 15 points from Paul so far in the quarter, CP3 and Clippers guard Patrick Beverley exchanged a glance on the way to their respective huddles during a timeout. 

Apparently, that eye contact was enough to rile Beverley up, because he promptly turned around and pushed Paul to the ground with his full force. 

The shove didn't come as a complete shock, considering Beverley had been having it out with just about every member of the Suns all series.

This just happened in Game 5:

On Thursday's edition of "Undisputed," Shannon Sharpe expressed his displeasure with the shove from Beverley, who, as evidenced above, was making fun of Paul just earlier this week.

"I know this is not the same guy that undercut Chris Paul, Chris Paul bounced like a rubber ball on the floor, and [Beverley] got up and mocked him. … He always has been and always will be a front-runner. When things are going well for Pat Bev, he wanna [laugh] in everybody face. … Now Chris Paul got the upper hand, and he shove the man?"

Sharpe also said that in his NFL playing days, if a player from the opposing team would have gotten out of line with one of his superstar teammates, he would have handled it personally.

"Couldn't have been one of my teammates you shoved like that. Especially not that guy. If that would have been John Elway and the guy just shoved him, guess what? I'll get you back."

That brings us to our next point. 

While some might be unclear as to why Beverley reacted so strongly to a staredown from Paul, just about everyone is unclear as to why Phoenix's Frank Kaminsky was so calm during the kerfuffle. 

Kaminsky appeared to see an angry Beverley charging toward Paul. He also saw the push and reacted … calmly.

Kaminsky has played in six games this postseason, scoring a grand total of 10 points in 38 minutes. He did not play in the Clippers series, and during the regular season, he averaged 6.6 points and 4.0 rebounds.

And he certainly didn't endear himself to the masses after Wednesday night, according to Twitter, which reacted strongly (and hilariously) to Kaminsky's under-reaction:

For what it's worth, Kaminsky's mind seemed to be elsewhere after the game. And fans on the ground didn't seem too miffed by his choice to stay out of the drama between Beverley and Paul.

Congratulations, Frank. You're one step closer to your first NBA title. 

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National Basketball Association

Phoenix Suns

Chris Paul

Frank Kaminsky

Patrick Beverley

LA Clippers

Shannon Sharpe

Skip and Shannon: Undisputed