• Preview
• Recap
• Bleachers

Suns look to snap skid as they host Jazz

Dec 6, 2008 - 11:18 AM Utah (13-8) at Phoenix (11-9), 9:00pm EST

PHOENIX (Ticker) -- The last week hasn't been kind to the Phoenix Suns. With four straight losses - including three by deficits of 13 or more - the once-feared Suns are beginning to look old, timid and surprisingly slow.

If they hope to snap out of it this funk, they will have to do so against an opponent that has owned them for the last two-plus seasons. The Suns host the Utah Jazz on Saturday.

The Jazz have won seven of their last nine meetings with the Suns, including a 109-97 beating in Salt Lake City on November 17. And their lineup is finally beginning to round into shape.

Utah has been hit hard by injuries, stripping the team not only of its star players but its depth. However, star point guard Deron Williams is getting closer to full strength - displaying some of his usual explosiveness in Friday's blowout win over Toronto - while Andrei Kirilenko, Matt Harpring and Brevin Knight all returned after missing multiple games due to nagging ailments.

The only piece missing is All-Star forward Carlos Boozer, who has missed nine straight games with a strained left quadriceps. While he likely won't make his return until next week, the Jazz will take whatever healthy bodies they can get.

The last time Utah visited Phoenix, Williams had a field day, collecting 25 points and 15 assists en route to a 126-118 Jazz victory.