The Suns haven’t played since Sunday night and they’re probably wishing they didn’t have that extra time to stew over a 21-point loss to the Thunder. Phoenix has lost three of its past four games with the slide started by the Clippers last week in a 102-96 LA victory. To show improvement the Suns better start winning games against teams that aren’t from Portland or Sacramento. You can bet on NBA odds at BookMaker.eu every day of the season.
LOOK AHEAD
A stronger Clippers bench could mean an extra win or two over the course of a season and that’s huge in what’s again expected to be a tightly-contested Western Conference. We’re likely to see more of LA’s reserves in this one after the Clips played an emotional game the night before in Dallas. The Clips will play three games in four nights with a home contest against the Pistons on Saturday, before they too get an extended early-season break. LA will have four days off following the Detroit game. After that they have a brutal stretch of five games in seven nights.
After getting blasted in Oklahoma City on Sunday for their third loss in four games, the Suns get an extended break to lick their wounds and game plan for the Clippers. A three-day break precedes a four-game homestand that gets started with a rematch between these clubs. The Clippers bench outplayed Phoenix’s during that game on Nov. 2, using a 15-0 run to pull away. While the Suns have a formidable starting five, the inability of reserves to maintain any kind of momentum is a cause for concern. The Suns will try and regroup with two winnable games against Denver and the Lakers following the Clippers into Talking Stick Resort Arena. The stretch of games concludes next Wednesday when the Bulls visit for an ESPN game.
INJURIES
Clippers guard Chris Paul returned to the court Monday after missing one game with a sore groin and took a finger in the eye that forced him out of the game for a brief time. He played nearly 33 minutes and scored 14 points.
Lacking significant contributions from his bench, Suns coach Jeff Hornacek has been forced to leave his starting unit on the court longer than he’d like. Starting guards Eric Bledsoe and Brandon Knight are each playing around 35 minutes a night. While it may not be a big deal this early in the year, those heavy minutes will catch up to the backcourt duo.
KEY MATCHUP
As happens so often, a role player is deemed expendable, largely forgotten and eventually traded only to become a star in a new city. Two years ago, in one of Doc Rivers’ first moves as Clippers coach, he helped engineer a three-team trade that sent backup Bledsoe to Phoenix to acquire J.J. Redick and Jared Dudley. Bledsoe had become expendable in Los Angeles when Chris Paul decided to re-sign. The move has worked out well for both the Clippers and Bledsoe, who is flourishing in the Arizona desert having moved into a starting role. He averaged 17 points, 6.1 assists and 1.6 steals last season and together with Knight, the tandem has become one of the toughest backcourt duos in the league. Bledsoe’s numbers have improved through the early stages of this NBA season. He’s averaging 21.9 points, 6.1 assists and 2.1 steals through seven games. Bledsoe went up against Paul when the teams met in Los Angeles last week and had equal numbers to those of the Clips eight-time All Star. Bledsoe’s 16 points was his second lowest output through seven games, but you know he’s pumped to again go against the team that traded him and the player who replaced him.
ODDS AND PREDICTION
While the Phoenix Suns have an awesome starting five, the bench adds little value and the team is suffering early in the year because of it. That’s the problem the Clippers tried to address during the offseason and the plan has worked so far. Just like last week, the Suns will face a Clippers’ starting five that matches up with them just as well or better. The Clips were able to eke out a 102-96 win when the teams met in Staples Center. The difference between them is the bench. The Clippers have former Sixth Man of the Year Jamal Crawford, and added Paul Pierce and Josh Smith while newcomer Lance Stephenson is an upgrade over Matt Barnes at the small forward spot. The Clippers will be contending for a top seed in the West while the Suns are likely battling for one of the two lower seeds come playoff time. The Suns are always a tough out at home, but the Clips have the firepower to overcome that. Look for Los Angeles to take advantage of the bench disparity and use that to take a narrow victory from the home team.
Los Angeles 104, Phoenix 101
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