Raja

Bell

Each had been starting before getting hurt, but the way Jerry Sloan is behaving these days, you never know.

Bell could get plenty of minutes as a backup at small forward and shooting guard, but the defensive specialist isn’t going to have any fantasy value.

Bell will not only play tonight, but with Matt Harpring absent, he’s going to make his first start of the season.

Bell missed his first game in two seasons this week with inflammation in his right knee but won’t have to go on the injured list. When he will play again is another story, but he will be a game time decision tonight. We’d recommend benching him in daily leagues and checking his status on Sunday for next week.

He was running, cutting and shooting on Monday, but we’d still not be surprised if he misses the entire series with the injury. “If he keeps this type of improvement, we’ll aim for Game 5,” trainer Aaron Nelson said. “There would be a good possibility that he could play.” There’s no doubt the Suns need him, but we’ll have to wait and see how he feels on Wednesday and Thursday.

He missed two games with a calf injury but made a surprise start in Game 4. A start in Game 5 would not be surprising.

If he can’t go on Tuesday, it will mark the third straight game he’s missed with the injury. He didn’t dress for Sunday’s Game 3.

That’s not surprising, as he could miss the rest of this series with his calf injury. However, he says he’s shooting for a Game 5 return, although he hasn’t even started running yet.

Bell appeared to energize the Suns in Game 4, but hit just 1-of-5 shots in Game 5.

“Better than it was (Thursday),” he said. “I had a little swelling from the flight, but I think it’s a little better.” He provided an emotional boost in Game 4, but was clearly not very effective in Game 5, allowing the Mavericks to pick on him. They’ll go at him hard again tonight, and Mike D’Antoni needs to make sure that having Bell on the court isn’t going to do more harm than it will good as the Suns face elimination in Phoenix.