Suns' Chris Paul out at least one week with groin injury

Suns guard Chris Paul will miss multiple games in the second-round series against the Nuggets, according to Shams Charania of The Athletic (Twitter link). 

He is expected to be re-evaluated in one week after undergoing an MRI on Tuesday. Paul suffered a groin injury during the second half of Phoenix’s Game 2 loss to Denver on Monday, which left the Suns with a 0-2 deficit in the series.

The Suns are preparing to play without their floor leader in Games 3-5, Charania adds.

The injury appeared to occur with just under five minutes left in the third quarter when Paul attempted to box out Kentavious Caldwell-Pope and grabbed at his left groin afterward (NBA.com video link).

Backup point guard Cameron Payne, who was dealing with a lower back injury when the postseason began, played nearly 17 minutes on Tuesday after logging just eight minutes in the Suns’ first six playoff games. 

As long as he remains healthy, Payne figures to take on a larger role, while Devin Booker will likely have more ballhandling responsibilities.

Paul has a history of injuries in the postseason. The future Hall of Famer has already missed eight career playoff games due to health issues.