A lineup change may be in store for Suns; Chriss nears return

PHOENIX – When a team struggles, change is often soon to follow.

The Phoenix Suns have lost two straight and five of their last six. It’s certainly not their worst stretch of the season, but interim head coach Jay Triano has seen enough to where a change in the starting lineup is under consideration.

The question now becomes how big of a change occurs. One player? Two? Three?

Guard Devin Booker and forward T.J. Warren, the Suns’ two leading scorers, are secure in their positions, but what about everyone else? Has Tyler Ulis’ recent struggles at point guard opened the door for backup Isaiah Canaan? Might Marquese Chriss, who practiced in full Thursday, be ready to resume his role as the starting power forward?

They were all questions Triano was not ready to answer, at least not yet.

On Friday, the Suns are back home to host the New York Knicks, which may mark the return of Chriss, who has missed the last six games because of right hip strain.

“I felt great today. I think I’ll be able to play tomorrow,” he said.

Chriss has not played since Jan. 7.

“I think after the amount of time that he’s missed that conditioning is going to be a big thing,” Triano said. “But, he practiced hard today and he was good at it. Maybe it means, if he does play, it’s shorter stints until we build up that conditioning until later.”

Chriss admitted to getting winded at practice, which again is understandable.

The hardest part for Chriss during his near three-week layoff has been handling his spectator status.

“It’s disappointing, I think, seeing my team lose and seeing my team struggling and hurt when I can’t really do anything to help,” he said. “But I’m just going to try and come out when I play and just give them everything I have and try to contribute.”

How Chriss responds to going through a full practice will determine his playing status against the Knicks.

The Suns are also keeping an eye on Warren, who bumped his left knee in practice, according to Triano. The coach added center Alex Len did not practice after sitting out the Indiana game due to right ankle soreness.

Len is officially listed questionable.

So injuries plus “our lack of good play is going to be another factor” in whether there is a change in the starting lineup, Triano said.

“I have a lot of things to think about.”

In the past, Triano has been reluctant to make a change because of the trickle-down effect. The Suns’ second unit — when healthy — has played well together.

“It’ll factor in but I think that’s part of our development,” he said. “If we make a change, how guys are going to play with other guys, we got to figure that out as well.”

ROOKIE WALL

One player who won’t be inserted into the starting lineup is forward Josh Jackson. Triano ruled out that possibility.

Jackson was perhaps the lone bright spot in the loss at Indiana. He scored a team-best 20 points on 7-of-11 shooting from the field, including a pair of 3-pointers.

It was Jackson’s 46th game of the season, or 11 more than he played last year as a freshman at Kansas.

“I’m kind of hitting it right now, I think,” he said, referring to the proverbial rookie wall. “They said it would happen around this time, like right before All-Star break. I’m kind of feeling, getting a little tired. It’s a mental thing. You just got to fight through it.”

And Jackson has. He earned praise from Triano on Thursday for the energy he’s brought recently.

“Sometimes there’s times where it’s kind of hard for guys out on the court because they play so many minutes and some guys are older like Tyson (Chandler), who can’t really just bring it every night,” Jackson said. “So, of course, we need somebody who we can look at who always has energy and is always just trying to pick guys up so why not me.”

COSTLY TURNOVERS

In a 116-101 loss at Indiana on Wednesday, the Suns shot 41.7 percent from the field, the third time in six games they failed to reach the 42-percent mark.

The inability to put the ball in the basket, however, was not what Triano was concerned about when talking to reporters after practice Thursday. It was turnovers.

Suns’ opponents have scored 26 points off turnovers in each of the past two games.

“I think we can fix whether we take good shots or not,” Triano said. “What concerns me the most is that we turn it over and those are live-ball turnovers. It’s tough to get on guys for not getting back when you’re stuck in the corner and the guy throws it away at halfcourt.

“There’s just no way physically you can do it. Taking care of the basketball is the big thing for me. We’ve just been sloppy with our passes and teams are understanding that and they’re trying to put more pressure on us because of that.”

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