Devin Booker and the lowly 1-4 Phoenix Suns are set to take on Lauri Markkanen and the 2-2 Utah Jazz in their first NBA Cup battle this season.
Phoenix heads into the contest with a number of players dealing with injury woes, including their summer trade acquisition Jalen Green.
The 23-year-old, shoot-first guard has yet to make his debut with the franchise since arriving via trade from the Houston Rockets this past summer, and the Suns recently were given a new update on the availability of the young scorer.
“Jalen Green (right hamstring strain) has been downgraded to out for the Suns tomorrow against the Jazz,” Arizona Sports’ Kellan Olson shared via X/Twitter on Thursday night.
“That’s now six missed games to open the year.”
“Dillon Brooks is out for the third straight game with what is now being listed as a core muscle strain.”
By joining his former Rockets teammate and Kevin Durant trade centerpiece Dillon Brooks on the bench, Green will be missing a sixth consecutive game to begin his Suns tenure.
Phoenix is set to run into a buzzsaw of sorts against a scorching Jazz offense and their 2023 All-Star Markkanen, a versatile 7-foot scorer who enters the contest boasting averages of 34.0 points, 7.3 rebounds and 2.8 assists on a sensational 66.4% true shooting percentage.
Without Green in the lineup once again, it will be a struggle for Phoenix to match Utah’s No. 4 ranked offense (120.5 offensive rating).
Once again, it will be up to Booker to keep the Suns in the game from an offensive standpoint.
Heading into the night, the 4-time All-Star has contributed 29.2 points and 6.0 assists of his own on a 54.1% effective field goal percentage.
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