Suns' Starting Lineup Gets Massive Shakeup vs Clippers

The Phoenix Suns have unveiled their starting lineup against the Los Angeles Clippers, and it sure looks different than previous games:

• Devin Booker
• Jalen Green
• Grayson Allen
• Royce O'Neale
• Mark Williams

Many had anticipated Allen would be bumped from the starting rotation with Green back healthy, though he simply slides to the wing while Ryan Dunn is relegated to the bench after previously starting all eight games.

Injury-wise, Dillon Brooks was ruled out previously on the team's injury report while Allen - who was suddenly labeled as questionable due to illness earlier today - got the green light ahead of tonight.

For Los Angeles, the Clippers are without James Harden (personal) and Kawhi Leonard (ankle) as Bradley Beal makes his highly anticipated return to the desert for the first time since leaving over the summer.

Jalen Green's Debut is Here

The obvious storyline in Phoenix is the return of Jalen Green, which is now officially here after the star guard missed the first eight games due to his hamstring injury.

"I think we're all excited to see exactly what that looks like," Suns head coach Jordan Ott said of Green playing next to Devin Booker.

"He had obviously a couple practices with us early in September. Just his speed, his elite speed, his downhill threat, his paint presence, he'll be able to put pressure on the defense in a couple different ways that we don't totally have.

"So athleticism, just everything, we'll put him in pick-and-rolls, we'll move him off the ball. Use his cutting, his speed in multiple different ways."

Devin Booker's Hot Run Continues

It will be quite interesting to see how Booker and Green's game combines with each other, as the two primarily have operated as shooting guards in the past while leading their respective squads in scoring.

Booker is currently averaging 31 points per night to pair with seven assists and 3.9 rebounds, earning some hefty praise from Clippers coach Ty Lue before action tonight:

“Yeah, he's definitely the top and always been a big fan of (Devin) Book and how he plays. Having him with USA and the Olympics last year, just seeing he was one of the one guys that could actually adapt and do what you need to do every single night, things he hadn't done before as a player in the NBA, but things Steve (Kerr) asked him to do was full asked him to do, he was able to adapt and do it every single night and so you love those kind of guys.”

Will that change with Green in the picture?

"I think it's gonna be a good situation," Green said of playing next to Booker. "I think I'm gonna be able to learn a lot from him while at the same time adding what I can bring to the table. I think we're gonna complement each other a lot, especially with the system that Ott's got us playing in.

"I think we gonna be playing fast, and I think we gonna be creating a lot for each other and create for others. So I'm very excited about it, and I think we gonna shock a lot of people too."

Tonight will be the first test of how the dynamic will look, though the Suns are expected to slowly integrate Green back into full action.

Suns-Clippers is set for tip just past 7:00 PM MST.

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