Golden State hosts Phoenix at Chase Center on Monday night riding a four-game winning streak, and this time the Suns will face the Warriors’ stars. Stephen Curry and Draymond Green sat out Sunday’s 124-112 win over the Clippers on the front end of a back-to-back for injury management, and both should be cleared to play tonight, while Al Horford played Sunday and is expected to rest. Rookie Yaxel Lendeborg carried the load without them, scoring a career-high 37 points on 13-of-19 shooting, including 6-of-11 from three.

Phoenix arrives at 1-3 and has not won since beating a short-handed Golden State team 131-122 on October 24, when the Warriors rested Curry, Green, Horford and Brandin Podziemski on the second night of a back-to-back. Devin Booker scored 43 in that game but has totalled just 23 points on 8-of-26 shooting in losses to Oklahoma City and Denver since. Friday’s 127-120 home defeat to the Nuggets also saw Dillon Brooks ejected in the third quarter for kicking Jamal Murray, after he had scored a season-high 22 points on 9-of-12 shooting.

Suns vs. Warriors NBA Betting Odds

Golden State is a 2.5-point home favourite; the money line has the Warriors at -150 and the Suns at +125. The Over/Under sits at 227.5 with standard -110 juice on both sides.

Phoenix has yet to cover this season, going 0-4 ATS, including its nine-point win over Golden State as a 9.5-point favourite. The Warriors have covered four straight, a run that includes a 134-114 rout in Denver as 7.5-point underdogs.

The total trends pull in opposite directions; the Over has cashed in six of Phoenix’s last seven games dating back to last season, but the Under is 4-0 in Golden State’s last four home games. The Suns’ scoring has been all over the map, from 83 points in their season-opening loss at Portland to 131 against the Warriors, while Golden State has topped 110 points in five straight games.

Phoenix Suns

Defence is the Suns’ biggest problem. Phoenix is allowing 124.5 points per game and holds the league’s worst defensive rating, and opponents are shooting 43.9% from three against it, the worst mark in the NBA. Miles Bridges has been a bright spot, posting season highs of 24 points and 10 rebounds against Denver, and Collin Gillespie added 16 points, 10 assists and four steals off the bench.

The backcourt needs more. Jalen Green went 1-of-6 for two points against the Nuggets, and Booker has to find the form he showed in the first meeting for Phoenix to keep pace. Mark Williams remains out with a shoulder injury, leaving Oso Ighodaro, who returned Friday after a two-game absence, and a thin frontcourt to battle on the glass. No league discipline for Brooks had been reported as of this morning.

Golden State Warriors

Curry has been sensational, averaging 29.2 points per game while shooting 44.0% from three and making all 40 of his free throws. He hit six and eight threes in his last two outings, scoring 75 points combined against Minnesota and the Lakers. Lendeborg was averaging 19.8 points and 7.8 rebounds before Sunday’s outburst and now has two 30-point games in his first seven, joining Wilt Chamberlain and Rick Barry as the only Warriors to do so. Podziemski filled the stat sheet against the Clippers with 17 points, eight rebounds, and eight assists.

Depth is still a work in progress. Jimmy Butler (ACL) and Moses Moody (patellar tendon) remain out, Kristaps Porzingis is away from the team with an illness, and Horford is expected to sit. The bench has picked up the slack, scoring 40 points against the Clippers, led by Brandon Williams’ 17. Golden State is on the second night of a back-to-back, but the two players who matter most will be fresh.

NBA Prediction: Who Will Win Suns vs. Warriors?

The first meeting tells us very little, since Golden State played without four of its top rotation players. The Warriors have won and covered four straight, three of them with Curry in the lineup, and they now face the league’s worst defence and a Suns team that can’t stop the three. Booker can always get hot, but Phoenix has yet to cover a number this season, and Golden State has won 22 of its last 28 home games against the Suns. I’ll lay the short number with the healthier home team.

​Best Bet: Warriors -2.5 (-115)

SUNS

Away

110

WARRIORS

Home

121

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