Suns play with extremely short rotation in Sunday loss to Pistons
Mar 19, 2017, 4:01 PM | Updated: Mar 20, 2017, 8:33 am
The Phoenix Suns bench looked a little bit emptier than a usual NBA sideline in a 112-95 loss to the Detroit Pistons on Friday.
The Suns dressed only eight players for the game against Detroit. Rookie guards Tyler Ulis and Derrick Jones Jr. started alongside T.J. Warren, Marquese Chriss and Alex Len. Warren, at 13.8, is the only player in the lineup to avergae double figures in points per game.
The three reserves were center Alan Williams, forward Jared Dudley and forward Jarell Eddie, who the Suns signed to a 10-day contract from the D-League Windy City Bulls earlier on Sunday morning.
Eddie scored a career-high 13 off the bench, while Ulis led the Suns with 17 points and 11 assists. Chriss added 15, while Williams scored 11 to go with 12 rebounds off the bench.
With only eight players available, the team’s injury report was predictably lengthy. Guard Devin Booker was listed out with an ankle injury, which was bothering him Friday when the Suns hosted the Orlando Magic.
The Suns listed guard Ronnie Price as out with a left lower leg contusion and guard Leandro Barbosa out with illness. On top of that, veterans Eric Bledsoe, Brandon Knight and Tyson Chandler were all out after being shut down for the season.
Chandler, 34, has been out the longest, not playing since Feb. 15. Bledsoe, 27, was shut down by the Suns on March 15 after playing 66 games for Phoenix this season. The most interesting situation is that of Knight, who refused to enter the game against the Kings on March 15 complaining of back pain. Head coach Earl Watson said Knight was done for the year soon after.
The Suns (22-47) have been hanging onto the third-worst record in the NBA and therefore the third-best chance at a top pick in the 2017 NBA draft.
