The Phoenix Suns will wrap up their preparations for the upcoming NBA campaign with a second pre-season clash in the space of 11 days against the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday at the Footprint Center.
Both teams are expected to be contenders for this year's Larry O'Brien trophy, and an early chance to put their title credentials on display now awaits in Arizona.
Match preview
Off the back of a defeat to the Detroit Pistons two days earlier, the Phoenix Suns recorded arguably their most impressive pre-season result so far by beating the Denver Nuggets 118-114 at the Ball Arena on Monday.
Despite taking to the court without Devin Booker, Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal, Mike Budenholzer's men kept themselves within two points of their opponents after three quarters before completing a well-deserved comeback in the final 12 minutes.
The Suns largely had Ryan Dunn and Monte Morris to thank for their victory last time out as both men chipped in with 20 points—including nine in the fourth quarter for Dunn—while Morris notched a team-high seven dimes.
Having picked up three wins from four pre-season matches so far, the Suns can now equal their 4-1 record from last season, where they also concluded proceedings with a clash against the Lakers, winning 123-100.
That preceded three defeats on the bounce for the Phoenix-based outfit against their fellow Western Conference counterparts, but the Suns have since won three straight meetings of their own after a 118-114 triumph in the most recent edition of this fixture on October 7.
With just over a week left before they meet again in their second regular-season involvement, both teams will be looking to get one over the other ahead of next Saturday's encounter at the Crypto.com Arena.
The Lakers missed out on the opportunity to make it back to back pre-season wins as they came up well short against the Golden State Warriors following a 111-97 defeat in Wednesday's affair at the T-Mobile Arena.
JJ Redick's men raced to a 10-3 lead early on in the first quarter but would go on to lose all four quarters after a rough shooting night which saw them make just 34 of their 95 shots overall, including 11 from 40 three-point attempts.
The Lakers' offensive struggles were largely unsurprising in a game where LeBron James endured his worst outing in a long while, tallying just six points on 3-9 shooting from the field in his 23 minutes.
It is now three defeats from four warm-up encounters so far for the Lakers, whose only victory in that time has come against the Milwaukee Bucks courtesy of a 107-102 triumph at the Fiserv Forum last Friday.
With the start of the new NBA season drawing increasingly closer, the Lakers could really do with a return to winning ways as they set out for their penultimate pre-season involvement before rounding things off against the Warriors on Saturday.
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Team News
Forward Josh Okogie was absent from the Suns' victory last time out with a niggling hamstring problem, and his availability continues to hang in the balance.
Grayson Allen (Achilles) and Jusuf Nurkic (finger) are also major doubts, although the former is expected to be back in time for next week's curtain-raiser against the Los Angeles Clippers.
All-star guard Devin Booker is on course to return to action here having missed his side's last two matches with a sore ankle, with Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal also set to feature after a rest last time out.
Jarred Vanderbilt continues to step up his recovery to full fitness off the back of multiple foot surgeries this off-season and will not take part in any pre-season game for the Lakers.
Armel Traore, who signed a two-way contract in June, also misses out and will not play any further part as he prepares to suit up for G-League side South Bay Lakers.
Austin Reaves is likely to be used in limited capacity once again after he was handed a minutes restriction on his return from an ankle injury last time out.
Phoenix Suns possible starting five:
Jones, Booker; Beal, Durant; Plumlee
Los Angeles Lakers possible starting five:
Russell, Reaves; James, Hachimura; Davis
We say: Suns to win by 6+ points
With most of their regular starters getting a much-needed rest last time out, the Suns should be the fresher of the two teams coming into this Friday's meeting.
Budenholzer's men will undoubtedly still be buoyed by their triumph over the Nuggets, and we are backing them to emerge victorious here and close out their pre-season journey with a win.
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