Suns may finally have come to their senses with Khaman Maluach if GM can be trusted

The Phoenix Suns have returned from the All-Star break fully healthy and ready for a playoff push, although they will be without Dillon Brooks for their meeting with the San Antonio Spurs.

General Manager Brian Gregory fielded questions from the media ahead of the action getting back underway, with the prospect of rookie center Khaman Maluach playing more minutes coming up.

Prospect of Maluach getting more minutes "a possibility"

With Nick Richards no longer in the picture having been shipped to the Chicago Bulls at the deadline (a great move), there is one less big on the roster for Maluach to compete with.

Gregory is obviously aware of this, although banking on the 19-year-old to play any part at all in this season is perhaps the biggest gamble he will have taken since getting the job in the offseason.

The Suns have been much better than expected at 32-23, and if there is one thing raw prospects do, particularly at the center position, it is make mistakes.

Which is something the Suns can't afford right now as they chase the postseason, with head coach Jordan Ott reluctant to give any of the three rookies on this roster major minutes to this point.

Then again, Gregory has done enough during his short time in the role to be backed on this, given he was there for the successful Kevin Durant trade and adding Maluach in the first place.

The franchise has also done an excellent job at adding to the roster around the fringes, with Collin Gillespie, Jordan Goodwin, Jamaree Bouyea and even Mark Williams clear success stories.

If Gregory believes Maluach can join that group sooner than expected, then the Suns have no choice but to believe him given what we've seen from this team so far.

This comes with clear risk however, as turning Maluach loose now and the Suns dropping down the standings while he gets schooled by veterans would harm all involved.

They need to guard the confidence of the rookie, while Suns fans would be disappointed if this team failed to make even the play-in tournament.

The time to actually throw Maluach in the deep end was at the start of the campaign, when there were zero expectations and fans expected this team to finish bottom of the Western Conference.

Gregory also revealed both Maluach and Rasheer Fleming have been itching to play in as many G League games as possible, which shows they have the right attitude ahead of pushing for bigger roles in Phoenix.

Gregory appears to believe Maluach at least is ready to step into that spot, and only time will tell if this is his latest genius move or the first serious misstep of his tenure.