PHOENIX – Jalen Green is just happy to be back.
Green returned to the Phoenix Suns lineup against the Philadelphia 76ers Saturday, logging 16 minutes off the bench and scoring eight points on six field-goal attempts. It was just Green’s sixth game in a Suns uniform since coming over in a blockbuster offseason trade with Houston that sent Kevin Durant to the Rockets in exchange for Green, Dillon Brooks, the No. 10 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft and five second-round picks.
To date, injuries have derailed Green’s grand plans. Most recently, he has dealt with a hip contusion that compounded the impact of a lingering hamstring injury he has battled throughout the season.
“This is the most games I’ve missed in my life, the most time I’ve spent away from basketball,” said Green, who had never played fewer than 67 games in his four previous NBA seasons. “I’m still working out and everything, but just not being able to play is hard for me.”
With Green’s return, and with just two more games remaining before the All-Star break, the Suns and Green are hoping to put all of that in the past. Coach Jordan Ott wants the Suns to create more rim pressure, and he believes the reintegration of Green could be the spark that gets the Suns to the basket more over the season’s final 29 games.
“We’re excited to see what that all looks like.” Ott said. “With Jalen, with our bigs, with our offensive rebounding, in transition, our cutting. We’ve got to somehow just get there more.”
Green hasn’t played much with big men like Oso Ighodaro or Mark Williams, so Ott is also ready to see the screen game in action.
“What we’ve seen so far is his ability to hit the roll,” Ott said. “He’s done that multiple times in the games he’s played.”
Green has reaggravated the hamstring injury multiple times this season. The fear of reaggravation is another factor that he must overcome.
“I was able to run without thinking much.” he said. “Obviously, there’s still a trust factor, trusting everything. But, I mean, that’s going to come with time, playing, and being unconscious and forgetting about injuries.
“I’m just trying to get back to, you know, what feels normal to me.”
Green hasn’t let the injury struggles steal his joy. Ott noted how Green has attacked his rehab and how he has conducted himself off the court.
“It never stopped him from (being) who he is, just a general joy that he is to be around,” Ott said. “Even though he wasn’t playing, being there, on the bench, being supportive of his teammates, that’s a new piece for him and I think that’ll help him now that he’s out there.”
It’s a good time to ramp up as the game action slows down for the Suns, allowing Green to work back into game shape without worrying about a busy NBA schedule.
The Suns host the Mavericks and the Thunder before they get some time off for the NBA All-Star Weekend. That break will provide seven rest days for everyone but Devin Booker, who will participate in the 3-point contest and the All-Star Game.
“It just starts with the minutes,” Ott said of Green. “Once that competitive range goes up and he feels good with his conditioning piece, we’ll all be in a much better spot.”
This article first appeared on Cronkite News and is republished here under a Creative Commons Attribution-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
