The Phoenix Suns will host the Chicago Bulls at Talking Stick Resort Arena on Friday.
The Bulls (26-27) continue a roller coaster ride of a season with a road matchup with the Suns (16-37), who have dropped three straight contests and are falling to the bottom of the Western Conference rather quickly. Chicago enters the game with Dwyane Wade recovering from an illness that has him listed as questionable, while Jimmy Butler’s heel has trainers saying they are optimistic for him to play on Friday. The Bulls schedule has been nothing short of brutal over their last four contests, where they have split the way to Phoenix with two wins and two losses. In order, the Bulls defeated the Thunder in Oklahoma City, lost at the Rockets, came back with a win in Sacramento and then got blown out by the Warriors. The Suns will not pose the same challenge as some of the top tier Western Conference opponents they have seen over the last week, but it has been a difficult West coast trip so far.
Phoenix is still seeing growth from sophomore guard Devin Booker, who was the playing the enforcer role in the most recent loss to the Memphis Grizzlies and called out Grizzlies guard Troy Daniels. In terms of the 110-91 loss to Memphis, the entirety of the Suns offense went ice cold, as they shot just 33.3 percent from the field as a unit. Booker and back court partner Eric Bledsoe combined for 36 of the teams points, which made up more than a third of their total. Phoenix ranks in the bottom third in offensive and defensive efficiency on the season, and if both Butler and Wade play, they will have the upper hand.
