The Phoenix Suns were given a timely reminder of the greatness of Kevin Durant in Sunday's overtime loss to the Sacramento Kings, snapping a seven-game win streak. That contest set up perfectly for Durant's clutch play to carry them over the line and keep them atop the Western Conference.
We know Durant is going to be missing for a couple of weeks yet - although if we're looking for positives about this situation - at least it happened now with the Emirates NBA Cup getting underway, and not during the playoffs.
Thankfully for the Suns, Bradley Beal won't be joining Durant either.
Beal went down after twisting his knee late in the loss to the Kings, although he gutted it out and finished the game. It was a scary moment for player and team - and we feared the worst in the moment - with Beal's list of injuries since landing in Phoenix many and varied.
It is a massive boost to the franchise then, to see that Beal is not on the injury report ahead of the important four-game swing that takes in the Utah Jazz, a rematch with the Kings, Oklahoma City Thunder and Minnesota Timberwolves. Of those meetings, the games versus the Jazz and Thunder will also serve as cup games.
"It feels a little sore. But X-rays were negative, which is the best thing I could ask for. So probably just a bad bruise or something."
— Gerald Bourguet (@GeraldBourguet) November 11, 2024
Bradley Beal talked about playing through the knee injury after DeMar DeRozan fell into his leg: pic.twitter.com/hqvO3zsqHr
There is added importance to having Beal available, and it goes beyond the injury woes of Durant after such a fantastic start to the season. Although rookie Ryan Dunn and center Jusuf Nurkic played against the Kings, both are dealing with ankle issues at the moment. Dunn's had been listed as a sprain, while Nurkic's was just general soreness.
Nurkic was limited to only 15 minutes of action versus Sacramento, and in his extended absence from the game Domantas Sabonis went off to the tune of 20 points and 12 boards. On top of that, Devin Booker revealed he has been dealing with an illness of some kind, although he was coy on revealing exactly what that was.
Bradley Beal is playing the best defense of his life, and the numbers prove it.
— Basketball Poetry (@bballispoetry) November 8, 2024
Wrote about Beal's metamorphosis, rechargeable batteries, coach Bud's impact, and how the Suns' defense has overperformed even against a weak slate of initial foes:https://t.co/zXPiEyysrR#SunsUp
It's possible all three will take part in the Western Conference road trip, but having several key players not at 100 percent puts the emphasis on Beal to produce at an even higher level. He's off to a great start this season too, and on the defensive end in particular he has easily looked as impactful as he ever has on that end of the court.
Playing on after twisting his knee and with his previous injury history also gave the fans a needed boost after watching the win streak get snapped. Beal's body has rightly been called into question several times since he made it to The Valley, but this was the latest example that you can say nothing about his heart.
A return to the Washington Wizards version of Beal would be ideal then, because we know he's capable of insane scoring outbursts. Really though this is an opportunity to show the league that - although he's overqualified as a third option for the Suns - Bradley Beal is still able to lead a playoff calibre group through stretches of the season.