Game Preview: Suns v Trail Blazers

The Phoenix Suns host the Portland Trail Blazers at Talking Stick Resort Arena
on Sunday. The Trail Blazers (28-36) have won four of their last five games, but
are coming off one of their worst losses of the season on Saturday. Portland
actually took a 21-point lead into the half against the Washington Wizards on
Saturday, but proceeded to blow it in a 125-124 overtime loss. That should-be
win would have given this team five-straight victories, which is exactly what
they need as they sit in the nine-seed in the west. The Trail Blazers are now
two games behind the Denver Nuggets for that eight-seed and that loss on
Saturday may be the game they look back on if they do end up missing the
playoffs. With all that said, Portland have been playing some great ball
recently and this is the perfect opportunity for them to bounce back and forget
that loss to make up some much needed ground. The Suns (22-44) have won four of
their last six games, as they continue to play spoiler. The most recent win may
have been the most satisfying, as Devin Booker hit a game-winning jumper to
defeat the Dallas Mavericks, 100-98. The future appears to be getting brighter
by the game too, as Eric Bledsoe, Booker and Marquese Chriss have formed a nice
threesome to build around. While the recent winning stretch has moved them up
from the bottom seat in the Western Conference, it’s a much needed boost for
this team going forward. They’ll still have plenty of ping pong balls in the
offseason as well and fans can only look forward to an exciting future. In the
two meetings between these teams this season, they have split both home games.
Phoenix has actually won nine of its last 11 home games against Portland in this
series in total.