As the Phoenix Suns prepare for the play-in tournament against the Portland Trail Blazers and potentially a deeper playoff run in the Western Conference, questions abound about the roster.
While the Suns clinched the No. 7 seed in the West after preseason expectations didn’t believe Phoenix would be playoff bound, Jalen Green played in a career-low 32 games due to a recurring hamstring injury.
As a result, he never had much of a chance to develop team chemistry alongside face of the franchise Devin Booker with Dillon Brooks also in the mix.
But the Suns are out of time to build that chemistry with the new-look trio, as the play-in tourney is upon us.
Now’s the time for Green and Co. to show fans, as well as the front office, what this team will look like at full strength in a postseason atmosphere.
At least one big name NBA pundit is ready to see Green in that situation, but hints that his time in The Valley could be brief if he doesn’t deliver on the big stage.
‘Is this the right fit?’ Zach Lowe curious to see Jalen Green in the playoffs
“I’d like to see Jalen Green again in the playoffs,” Zach Lowe said on The Bill Simmons Podcast breaking down the “30 most intriguing NBA playoff guys.”
“Can we just get a re-do on the Warriors disaster from last year?” he asks.
For context, Green did not exactly endear himself to the Houston faithful in the 2025 postseason series against Golden State. In that series loss for the Rockets that went the full seven games, Green averaged 13.3 points, 5.4 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 0.6 steals. He shot just 37.2% from the field and an ugly 29.5% from 3-point range. He scored fewer than double digit points in four of those seven contests as well.
Lowe also notes the one game where Green “just went crazy” — a 109-94 win in Game 2 when Green scored 38 points on 13-of-25 shooting (8-of-18 from long range).
If you exclude that near 40-point outburst from the former No. 2 overall pick, however, he averaged just 9.2 points over the other six playoff contests.
“He hasn’t played much this year,” Lowe said of Green. “They plugged him right back in as the full-time starter and he’s basically just being Jalen Green, which is taking a lot of shots and not making enough of them.”
Green shot 42.2% from the field and 31.3% from beyond the arc during his first season in Phoenix.
Lowe noted that Green’s decision making has been “a little bit better” of late with some nice passes out of pick-and-roll sets that he calls “level-up passes” for Green.
“But it’s just, it’s very inconsistent,” Lowe added.
As a result of his inconsistent shooting throughout his first season in a Suns uniform, coupled with what Lowe called a “disaster” in the playoffs a year ago, the pressure is on Green to reset the narrative in his new threads. If not, the Suns might change their tune from prior to the trade deadline when ownership made it clear he was not available.
“His contract is super tradeable,” Lowe said. “And I could see him shooting (the Suns) out of a play-in game or a playoff game.”
Lowe wrapped up his analysis of Green by questioning his fit on the roster.
“Is this the right fit for him with Booker?” he asks. “Maybe we’ll learn a bit more with him in the playoffs.”
It’s a shame that Green endured such a difficult, injury-riddled year during his Phoenix debut, but his playoff performances, as Lowe hints, could ultimately define his future in The Valley.
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