Dario Saric set to make season debut for Suns, Jalen Smith out

The Phoenix Suns will likely get a big boost on Tuesday with the return of big man Dario Saric. After the Croatian missed the entire preseason and the team’s first three regular season games due to soreness in his right quad, Saric is listed as probable for the matchup with the New Orleans Pelicans.

Saric’s absence has been felt in a handful of ways.

Firstly, center Damian Jones backed up Deandre Ayton in the opening two games. Jones struggled with being in the right spots on both ends, which is what Saric excels at the most. Jones’ play was poor enough for head coach Monty Williams to turn to Frank Kaminsky in crunch time of a close game on Saturday. Kaminsky had his first practice on Thursday after being claimed off waivers. He got the nod ahead of Jones again on Sunday, this time taking his spot in the rotation.

Saric played his best basketball for the Suns last season in the bubble as a small-ball 5, averaging 14.8 points, 9.5 rebounds and 1.9 assists per contest.

The majority of the Suns’ success offensively through three games has been with the performance of players from last year’s system who know how to play through Williams’ 0.5 philosophies. Mikal Bridges, Cam Johnson and Cam Payne all thrived in Sunday’s win and are off to great starts. Saric’s familiarity being inserted into both units will be a relief for an offense still searching for crisp flow. Williams refers to Saric as a “connector” often and his functionality in that role is key for the Suns this season.

Elsewhere, rookie Jalen Smith is out for his second straight game because of a sprained left ankle. Smith was a late addition to the injury report before tip-off on Sunday. The first-round pick made his NBA debut in the season-opening win on Wednesday when it wasn’t a lock he was even going to play. That was because of foul trouble for Ayton and Jones, and while Smith is still figuring out where to be on an NBA floor, he played well in 16 minutes as a center.

Wing Abdel Nader is still out in concussion protocol after a fall he took in the preseason on Dec. 14.

Tuesday’s game against the Pelicans has a start time of 8 p.m. and you can hear pregame coverage beginning a half-hour prior on Arizona Sports.

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