For the Phoenix Suns’ last three contests, the team’s rotation has looked a bit different. Rather than starting all three of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal, head coach Mike Budenholzer has had Beal come off the pine.
The early returns on this rotation change have been promising, as the Suns are 2-1 since the change, and Beal is giving the squad a major scoring punch off the bench. He scored 25 points in two of those three contests and even led the Suns in scoring against the Atlanta Hawks on Thursday.
After his performance against Atlanta during which he shot 11-of-16 from the field and 2-of-5 from 3-point range, Durant gave his thoughts on Beal’s new role and said the 31-year-old has looked comfortable on the floor.
Kevin Durant on Bradley Beal's sixth man role: "I don't know the difference between his minutes coming off the bench or starting, but is it about the same? So like, is it really a change?…I feel like he's just comfortable and understanding where his shot's gonna come from" pic.twitter.com/MP2r8CbJCt
— Gerald Bourguet (@GeraldBourguet) January 10, 2025
Injuries maybe prevented Beal from finding his rhythm with the Suns last season, his first season with the team. He was limited to just 53 appearances during the 2023-24 campaign, and his scoring average of 18.2 points per game marked his lowest since the 2015-16 season, when he was just in his fourth year in the NBA and with the Washington Wizards.
Beal has missed some time with injuries so far this season too, as he’s already sat out 10 games. But he’s been able to stay in the lineup as of late, and his recent play as a reserve for Phoenix suggests that Budenholzer might have found the right role him.
His other monster scoring showing in a sixth man role came against the Philadelphia 76ers on Jan. 6. He knocked down 10 shots from the field and three 3-pointers in that contest, and the Suns earned a 10-point road victory.
Maybe it’s not a coincidence that the one game Phoenix has lost since moving Beal to the bench came when the guard had a rough shooting performance. In an ugly loss to the lowly Charlotte Hornets on Jan. 7, he scored only 10 points and misfired on all but five of his 13 shots from the field.
To add insult to injury, the Hornets snapped a 10-game losing streak when they came out on top over Beal and company.
