Bradley Beal appears to be adjusting well to his new role with the Phoenix Suns, who have won two of three games since the three-time All-Star was moved out of the starting lineup.
Beal is averaging 20.0 points over his last three games and will likely come off the bench again when the Suns face the visiting Utah Jazz on Saturday.
The Suns shot 57.6 percent from the field in their 123-115 home win over the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday.
Beal is not pleased with his new role, but he said the change hasn’t affected his approach to each game. He scored 25 points on 11-of-16 shooting off the bench in Thursday’s victory.
“I’m not gonna be a distraction, I’m not gonna be unprofessional,” Beal said. “I always take pride in my game, in who I am, in what I do. This is no different. I guess it’s just more magnified because it’s something that people are not used to seeing.”
Phoenix coach Mike Budenholzer made another surprising move on Thursday when center Jusuf Nurkic was a healthy scratch for the first time this season. Mason Plumlee and rookie Oso Ighodaro combined for 15 rebounds in Nurkic’s absence.
“Just went with Mason and Oso tonight,” Budenholzer said. “Just trying to figure out what’s best for the team, find the right combinations, the right group.”
On Thursday, that group included guard Grayson Allen, who finished with five 3-pointers and a season-high 23 points. Kevin Durant added 23 points and seven assists.
Phoenix has won 15 of its last 17 meetings against Utah, including the last eight in a row.
The rebuilding Jazz lost their second straight game on Thursday, losing 97-92 to the Miami Heat.
Collin Sexton and Lauri Markkanen scored 23 points apiece for Utah, which has shown a bit of improvement since opening the season by losing 20 of its first 25 games.
Sexton has scored at least 20 points in six of his last seven games, while Markkanen is 14 of 30 (46.7 percent) from 3-point range over his last two contests.
The Jazz battled Miami to the final minutes despite playing without six players, including Jordan Clarkson (foot), John Collins (hip), Keyonte George (heel) and Brice Sensabaugh (illness).
“I’m really pleased with the team’s competitiveness and fight,” Jazz coach Will Hardy said. “I thought we made Miami work really hard for every basket. The spirit of the group was great.”
Hardy has focused on the team’s incremental growth and remains encouraged by Utah’s impressive rookie class, which includes guard Isaiah Collier and forwards Cody Williams and Kyle Filipowski.
Williams and Filipowski combined for nine points and five steals against Miami. Filipowski added 11 rebounds.
Hardy was also pleased with Collier, who started his fifth game this season and contributed eight points and nine assists.
“He’s doing a great job at recognizing how to best involve his teammates,” Hardy said. “Isaiah does a good job of not just doing the work physically, he also studies the film. I’ve really enjoyed coaching him, his understanding is a luxury for us.”
Utah has struggled against Western Conference foes this season, losing 21 out of 24 matchups.
–Field Level Media
