Bradley Beal is officially AVAILABLE for tomorrow’s game vs. the Warriors, coach Frank Vogel said today.
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!His return comes at a time of need, as Phoenix has dropped four of its last five. Beal has been a full participant in practice since Thursday.
“I’m excited,” Beal said about coming back. “It’s been a process for sure. It’s been a game of patience. I’m definitely ready, for sure excited about it.”
Beal missed the first seven games of the season due to this back issue, which he suffered in the preseason, then came back for the next three. However, he re-aggravated the injury in the first half of the Suns’ game vs. the Thunder on Nov. 12, but played through it the rest of the game. He ended up missing the next contest against the Timberwolves and was later ruled out for at least the next three weeks on Nov. 17, which means his re-evaluation period ended Friday. Beal has missed the last 12 contests and 19 in total.
“A lot of things were out of my control,” Beal said of his injury. “No one is in control of being injured, I think that’s probably one of the biggest frustrations a player can have.”
Bradley Beal opening remarks on being available:
“A lot of things were out of my control. No one is in control of being injured, I think that’s probably one of the biggest frustrations a player can have” #Suns@BurnCitySuns https://t.co/y1Zrjxc45Q pic.twitter.com/uhG5kr0Od4
— Brendan Mau (@brendan_mau) December 11, 2023
Since his initial return, Beal had been playing on a minutes restriction, but still averaged 17.3 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.7 assists in 28.7 minutes per game.
The Suns have not played in one game with the team’s Big 3 of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Beal so far this season. However, Durant was limited in practice today and is questionable for tomorrow’s game with a left ankle sprain. He has not fully participated in any practice since spraining his ankle last Tuesday vs. the Lakers. Beal gave these two a lot of credit for helping him through the process, saying he would have been “hard-headed” about returning if not for them and others
Here’s the advice they gave him: “Take your time. Make sure you’re 100%, we got it….We need you down the stretch.”
"I probably would have played and been hard headed through the process if I didn't listen to my teammates"#Suns Bradley Beal discusses how much his teammates helped him getting through this injury and also how leading the team is a "collective effort" pic.twitter.com/q4XLZFBpwp
— Burn City Suns Talk 🎙️ (@BurnCitySuns) December 11, 2023
Booker and Beal alone have yet to play in a game this year.
“(I’m) beyond excited (to play with Booker),” Beal said. “He’s playing at an elite level right now. It was tough the last couple of games, to see him be double teamed, triple teamed. And I’m like, ‘That’s we want to avoid, that’s what we try to stay away from.’ So, I’m definitely happy that I cab come in and fill that void for him, relieve a little bit of pressure and just try to keep uplifting his play because he’s playing at an elite, elite level right now.”
Here’s how the Suns’ record has fared so far with and without these three stars.
- Booker, Durant and Beal: 0-0
- Booker and Durant: 7-3
- Durant and Beal: 1-2
- Booker and Beal: 0-0
- Durant only: 2-4
- Booker only: 2-1
- Beal only: 0-0
Tomorrow’s game tips off at 8 p.m. MST.
Phoenix Suns Injury Updates: Bradley Beal, Kevin Durant and More for Tomorrow vs. Warriors
*Get the BEST Phoenix sports insider information, exclusive content, and access to our seasonal magazines! SIGN UP HERE to unlock our premium content!*
Brendan Mau is a senior writer covering the Phoenix Suns and more for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on X via @Brendan_Mau
