Suns’ Bradley Beal scores 13 in season debut after back injury

CHICAGO — Phoenix Suns guard Bradley Beal made his 2023-24 season debut in Wednesday night’s 116-115 overtime win over the Chicago Bulls.

Beal, who missed the first seven games of the season because of a back injury, scored 13 points on 3-of-12 shooting from the field to go with four rebounds, four assists, two blocks and two turnovers in 24 minutes. Head coach Frank Vogel said before the game that Beal would be on a minutes restriction.

“He was good in stretches and you could tell he was a little bit rusty in stretches, which was to be expected,” Vogel said. “A difficult opponent.”

Beat did not play in overtime, something that Vogel said the team had decided before the game. Beal said he was frustrated but added, “I’m glad we pulled out the win. That’s why we have a great team with a lot of depth.”

The Suns acquired Beal in a trade with the Washington Wizards this past June in exchange for Chris Paul, Landry Shamet and four future first-round pick swaps. Beal played in 50 games last season for Washington, scoring 23.2 points with 5.4 assists on 50.6% shooting.

Phoenix got their first chance to see Beal playing alongside superstar Kevin Durant, although the Suns will have to wait a little longer to be at full strength. Devin Booker (calf) missed his third straight game on Wednesday.

“He’s one of the most dynamic players in the league,” Vogel said before the game. “Having missed as much time as he had, we expect there to be some rust. With guys sliding into different spots in the rotation, hopefully it doesn’t shake the rhythm up that much.

“Just having a player that is as dynamic as Bradley Beal on both sides of the ball and being able to generate offensively, not just scoring the basketball, but creating for others, should give us a huge lift.”