Phoenix Suns point guard Bradley Beal is injured once again.
Beal left the Suns’ Tuesday night’s 130-125 victory over the Sacramento Kings early in the first quarter quarter with a hamstring injury. Beal, dealing with various injuries throughout the season, departed the game with 7:21 left in the opening quarter. He received treatment on the bench before being ruled out for the remainder of the contest.
Beal eventually limped to the locker room. He finished the game with five points as he knocked down both shots, including a 3-pointer.
While the severity of the injury is unknown, Beal has already been ruled out for Wednesday night against the Detroit Pistons, per head coach Frank Vogel. Thus, Beal will not play again until after the NBA all-star break.
Frank Vogel confirmed Bradley Beal is out tomorrow.
They don't think the hamstring injury is serious.
— Kellan Olson (@KellanOlson) February 14, 2024
Tonight’s game marks the 25th game that Beal has sat out. However, Beal had played in 23 straight contests. The Suns (32-22) are 19-11 in the 30 games that Beal has played.
“They don’t think it’s too serious,” said Suns coach Frank Vogel, as he’s calling it a left hamstring strain. “Hopefully with the break right after (Tuesday’s game), he doesn’t miss too much more time. We’ll see where he’s at.”
Beal has played well since Jan. 1. Over these 22 games, Beal averaged 19.4 points, 4.9 assists, and 4.7 rebounds while shooting .497/.355/.787.
With Beal out, Eric Gordon is slated to get another start. Gordon was fantastic against the Kings, tossing in 23 points on 8 of 17 shooting from the field and 4 of 9 from the 3-point line. He added three rebounds, three assists and one block. 2o of Gordon’s points came in the opening half.
Danilo Gallinari
Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic reported that the Suns are interested in Danilo Gallinari despite signing free agent Thaddeus Young. The Detroit Pistons released Gallinari after the trade deadline to make room for all their moves. Phoenix has one open roster spot.
Gallinari averaged 7.3 points with a shooting slash line of .451/.355/.850 in 32 games with Detroit and Washington. The 35-year-old forward also produced 2.3 rebounds and 1.2 assists.
However, the Suns may have competition for Gallinari’s services. As Jonathan Conahan of Heavy.com suggested that the New York Knicks look into signing Gallinari, Robin Lopez or Danuel House.
Los Angeles Clippers
The Los Angeles Clippers won’t have three players against the Golden State Warriors tonight. Kawhi Leonard is out with a left abductor strain. It is the fifth game that Leonard will miss this year.
Amir Coffey will likely start in Leonard’s place. Coffey has produced 10.7 points and 2.9 caroms in seven previous starts while shooting .532/.429/.929.
Clippers’ 6th Man Norman Powell and Kobe Brown also could see an increase in minutes.
Meanwhile, according to the Athletic’s Shams Charania, the Clippers sent P.J. Tucker and Bones Hyland home earlier today.
Development: The Clippers sent home two players – Bones Hyland and PJ Tucker – from road trip vs. Warriors tonight, sources say. Both are expected to rejoin the team after the All-Star break. https://t.co/YkhZiWm026
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) February 14, 2024
Both Tucker and Hyland have fallen out of the Clippers rotation. However, both are expected to return to the team following the all-star break.
Other News
Gordon moved into 15th place on the NBA’s all-time 3-point list on Tuesday night with 1992. He has been very good in the games he has started this year, averaging 16 points and 3.2 assists per game with a shooting slash line of .523/.459/.833.
Devin Booker scored 25 points on 7 of 17 shooting Tuesday night to move into second place on the Phoenix Suns’ all-time scoring list. Booker, who has topped the 20-point mark in 39 of 44 appearances this season, moved past Alvan Adams with 13,918 points.
No. 1 moves to No. 2 🫡
Second ALL-TIME in franchise history! pic.twitter.com/mmnEg6KhPZ
— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) February 14, 2024
Booker also slid into third place on the franchise all-time with 4883.