Phoenix Suns guard Bradley Beal to miss two more weeks
Phoenix Suns shooting guard Bradley Beal will miss the beginning of January with a right ankle injury.
Beal sprained his ankle in the first quarter against the New York Knicks last week. Considering this was only his sixth game of the season, that was a big blow.
X-rays were negative and MRI showed no structural damage. The Suns will evaluate Beal in early January.
Beal hit a 3-pointer, but it landed on Donte DiVincenzo's foot and sprained his ankle. The referees reviewed the incident and determined that DiVincenzo was charged with a foul for not giving Beal room to land after the jump shot.
The Knicks defeated the Suns 139-122 on point guard Jalen Brunson's 50-point breakthrough. The Knicks haven't beaten a team with Kevin Durant in more than a decade, but they finally emerged from the crisis with a road win.
Bill’s another injury, another setback
The Suns acquired Beal in a blockbuster offseason trade with the Washington Wizards. They sent future Hall of Fame point guard Chris Paul and several draft picks to the Wizards, who then traded Paul to the Golden State Warriors for shooting guard Jordan Poole.
Mat Ishbia purchased the Suns for a record $4 billion midway through last season. He hopes to leave his mark on the team by forming a Big Three with Durant, Devin Booker and Beal.
Beal has missed most of the season with a back injury and had his debut with the Suns delayed as he recovers from a back sprain. He played three games in November before back problems worsened and he missed nearly a month.
Beal averaged 16.4 points in five full games before exiting the game against the Knicks with an ankle injury.
Without Beal, the Suns will rely on Devin Booker and Durant to provide extra scoring. The Suns average 114.9 points per game, ranking 15th in the NBA. The Suns deliberately introduced Beal to relieve the scoring burden on their two top stars. But injuries scuppered their plans.
There are only two games this season where neither Booker nor Durant led the Suns in scoring. Guard Grayson Allen led the Suns in scoring with 26 points in an overtime victory over the Chicago Bulls in early November. Center Jusuf Nurkic scored 31 points in an early December loss to the defending champion Denver Nuggets.
Next person: Grayson Allen, Eric Gordon
With Beal out, the Suns will rely on the experienced pairing of Allen and Eric Gordon to get more playing time.
Head coach Frank Vogel tried to use Booker as the point guard, and Allen started 22 games at shooting guard this season. Allen averaged 12.2 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game.
The Suns acquired Allen, formerly of the Milwaukee Bucks, in a multi-team trade with the Portland Trail Blazers that sent Damian Lillard to the Bucks.
Gordon has started 16 games for the Suns this season. He averaged 13.8 points and 2.8 assists per game and proved to be the Suns' most reliable scorer alongside Durant and Booker.
Sophomore guard Jordan Goodwin has earned Vogel's trust, spending 20 minutes per game on the bench. Goodwin is an undrafted player from St. Louis who averaged 6.3 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game.
Crazy Suns struggling to stay above .500
The Suns finished November with an 11-6 record but have lost seven of their last 10 games. They lost 14-13.
The Suns are one of the few teams that is better on the road (7-5) but has a losing record at home (7-8).
The Suns are one of the worst teams to bet on in the NBA this season. They have a 10-16-1 record in point control.
Despite a slow start, the Suns still have a +850 chance to win the 2023-24 NBA Championship. They are the fourth-ranked team on the DraftKings NBA Futures Committee.
The Suns have a +450 chance of winning the Western Conference, trailing only the defending champion Denver Nuggets at +225.
The Los Angeles Clippers (17-11) are the favorite to win the Pacific Division at +140. They lead the Sacramento Kings (16-10) at +290 odds, the Suns at +400 odds, the Los Angeles Lakers (15-14) at +600 odds, and face the weak Golden State Warriors. Lead + Warriors (13-14). 1100. The Suns are +3.5 underdogs when they take on the Kings on Friday night in Sacramento. They host the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA Christmas Five on Christmas Eve.
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Source: www.casino.org
