The Phoenix Suns (6-9) have won two out of two games on their five game road trip with a very nice chance of coming home 3-2 for the trip. They face the Dallas Mavericks (10-7) Monday night who will be without their star Dirk Nowitzki who is sitting out four games with a sore right knee / poor conditioning.
The Suns caught a break in Chicago when Derrick Rose was out with a foot problem. The Suns lost. They caught a break in Boston with Rajon Rondo was out with a wrist problem. The Suns won. That sets up this game as the tie-breaker for both the overall road trip record and as the rubber match facing teams without their best player.
Helping the Suns even just a little more, they are coming off two full days of rest for the first time this season. The Mavericks last played Saturday, just barely edging New Orleans 83-81.
Projected lineups:
It looks like Alvin Gentry will stick with changes to his starting lineup.
- Point guard: Steve Nash -- Jason Kidd
- Shooting guard: Ronnie Price -- Delonte West
- Small forward: Grant Hill -- Shawn Marion
- Power forward: Markieff Morris -- Lamar Odom
- Center: Marcin Gortat -- Brendan Haywood
- Key subs: Suns (Channing Frye, Shannon Brown, Michael Redd, Jared Dudley,Robin Lopez). Mavs (Jason Terry, Ian Mahinmi, Brandan Wright, Rodrigue Beaubois)
TV Broadcast info:
The game tips at 6:30 p.m. Arizona time on Fox Sports Arizona and on the radio at Arizona Sports 620. Live game thread will be available at Bright Side of the Sun.
Phoenix Suns At Dallas Mavericks Game Preview: The Road Home - Bright Side Of The Sun
if the Suns hope to finish off their road trip with a win against Dallas before returning back home to play the Toronto Raptors tomorrow, the Suns will need to keep their energy and intensity high and continue to play great defense like they did over their last two games. The Mavericks are still a dangerous team even when Dirk-less, so the Suns need to come out strong and keep the pressure on throughout the game.
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