Saturday night's game was the third that Suns' guard Raja Bell has missed this season. He missed seven combined in the past two seasons.

Even though he is still hurting after landing on Shaquille O'Neal's foot on Nov. 9, he does not want to sit, although he is trying to get as much rest as he can.

"I could run, but I didn't have my normal gait," Bell said of Tuesday's game. "The problem was changing directions. When you're trying to guard someone like (Chicago Bulls' guard) Ben Gordon or (Rockets' guard) Tracy McGrady, it's hard to do that without changing directions. I'm frustrated. I do not like sitting."

After Leandro Barbosa scored 62 points in his first two starts for Bell, Suns' Coach Mike D'Antoni was asked about Bell's starting slot. D'Antoni pointed out that the Suns need defense most.

"Raja is the heart and soul of our team, and Raja is a great player," D'Antoni said. "LB is a great player. When you have instant offense coming from the bench, it's better, I think. LB is comfortable off the bench. I wouldn't even touch that. They'd have to shoot me before I touched that. I love Raja as a player, and he symbolizes what we want to be."

Barbosa scored 25 points as a reserve Thursday.