Suns' Miles Bridges Exits Preseason Game in Chicago With Ankle Injury

CHICAGO — The Phoenix Suns’ newest starting forward had a scare in the second preseason game of his Suns career. Miles Bridges checked out of Wednesday night’s preseason game against the Chicago Bulls with 11:01 left in the first half with a right ankle injury, according to Suns beat writer Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic — and he did not return. The Suns officially ruled Bridges out for the second half.

The sequence looked like the kind of thing teams handle with an abundance of caution in October. Bridges grabbed at his ankle while sitting on the court early in the second quarter but kept playing. The 6-7 forward later retied his shoe, then came out of the game and went to the locker room. Rookie Rasheer Fleming replaced Bridges at the time and started the second half in his place, Phoenix leading 64-62 at halftime.

The nightWhat happened in Chicago

Bridges finished with three points in seven minutes before the injury ended his night. It was his second game in a Suns uniform after he posted eight points, five rebounds and four assists in his preseason debut on Oct. 5 against the Detroit Pistons — a game that also introduced the new-look Suns and their edge.

The Suns went on to lose the game 124-117, falling to 0-2 in preseason play. Dillon Brooks paced Phoenix with 24 points, while Jalen Green and Collin Gillespie added 12 apiece and Devin Booker chipped in 11 on a rough 3-of-14 shooting night. Bulls rookie Caleb Wilson led seven Chicago players in double figures with 15 points in the Bulls’ preseason opener. Phoenix’s second unit provided the game’s early spark, turning a 24-24 tie into a 40-29 Suns lead at the end of the first quarter behind Collin Gillespie, Luke Kennard, Jordan Goodwin, Ryan Dunn and Khaman Maluach.

The contextPreseason caution, not a crisis

The injury did not appear serious, NBC Sports reported Wednesday night — and nothing about the Suns’ handling of the night suggested otherwise. With the regular season still two weeks away, ruling a player out for a second half of a preseason game in October is exactly what a team does when there is no reason to rush. The Suns open the regular season on the road Oct. 21 against the Portland Trail Blazers, and they have two more preseason games to get there, including a home date with the defending Western Conference champion San Antonio Spurs on Oct. 10.

That timeline is the whole story. Bridges has barely had time to settle in — he is one of the newest pieces of a remade roster, and camp is where the chemistry gets built. An ankle tweak that costs him the rest of an exhibition is only a problem if it costs him more than that. For now, the Suns will treat it like what it looks like: a preseason scare in a month full of them across the league.

The fitWhy Bridges matters this much

The Suns went all-in on Bridges this summer. Phoenix sent Grayson Allen, Royce O’Neale and an unprotected 2033 first-round pick to the Charlotte Hornets in exchange for Bridges, a 2029 first-round pick and a 2027 second-round pick — a significant price for a 6-7 forward the franchise believes can be a two-way pillar alongside Devin Booker. Bridges’ arrival pushed Collin Gillespie out of the starting lineup, according to NBC Sports, which is a clear statement about how the coaching staff views him: not a rotation piece, a starter from day one.

His first week in Phoenix has shown the outline of the plan. In the Oct. 5 debut against Detroit, the eight points, five boards and four assists came with the kind of defensive activity and playmaking the Suns traded for — the ability to guard multiple positions, run in transition and take some creation load off Booker and Jalen Green. The real camp battle has been at center, between rookie Khaman Maluach and Oso Ighodaro; on the wing, the Suns already know who their guy is.

The rosterFleming gets his look

Rasheer Fleming starting the second half is the silver lining. The rookie replaced Bridges in the first half and then got the third-quarter nod, and those are exactly the reps that matter for a young player fighting for a rotation spot. Rankin noted that Fleming and Ryan Dunn appear to be battling for the Suns’ 10th-man role: Fleming brings corner-three shooting and upside, Dunn brings a year of experience and defensive playmaking — he forced an eight-second violation and had a big-time block during that first-quarter run.

For a team that is still mapping out its second unit — the group that turned a tied game into an 11-point lead in the first quarter — every preseason minute has information value. Wednesday’s second half became an extended look at the kids. That is what October basketball is for.

What’s nextSpurs, then Portland

The Suns continue their preseason schedule at home Oct. 10 against the Spurs — a measuring-stick game against the team that just won the West. Whether Bridges plays will likely depend on how the ankle responds over the next few days, and the Suns have every incentive to be conservative: the only date that truly matters is Oct. 21 in Portland.

That’s the thing about October. Wins don’t count, losses don’t count, and a night like Wednesday only matters if the scare turns into something more. For now, Phoenix gets to exhale, treat its new forward carefully, and keep building toward the 21st in Portland.