00:00To the incredible Phoenix Suns faithful, let's talk about one of the biggest stories of our
00:05season so far, the health and impact of our center, Mark Williams. When we first traded
00:10for Mark during the 2025 NBA draft, the single most critical key to his success here in Phoenix
00:15was immediately clear. His health, his track record, playing 106 games over his first three
00:22seasons, was a known factor. In fact, it was the reason the Los Angeles Lakers rescinded a February
00:272025 trade for him after they performed a physical. Our front office, led by general manager Brian
00:33Gregory, was aware of these issues. Brian was very confident before the season that we would
00:37manage Mark's body better than previous teams had. And to this point, we absolutely have.
00:44Mark Williams has already played in 47 games this season, breaking his previous career high for a
00:50single season, which was 44 games set last year. And remember, we still have 30 games left to play.
00:57Of the games, he's missed. Four were proactively built into the schedule for knee management during
01:04back-to-back sets. And the other was a one-game suspension for an altercation with New Orleans
01:10Pelicans guard Jose Alvarado. This is a massive victory. Coach Jordan Ott put it perfectly.
01:16Major win for him. I think when you first come here and you hear about the plan of no basketball,
01:21I think that's tough for a basketball player. So major win for him. He's such a mature adult that
01:27he owns his own development. He knew this was a big piece. It was a big piece to this year.
01:31And he's superseded any expectation we've had for him, not only as being available, but as a player.
01:37And we're so excited to see what's next. Coach Ott added that this success in staying healthy has
01:42everyone even more excited for the future, especially when you consider a full off-season
01:47of growth for the 24-year-old. It's really a testament to what he did this summer every day in here,
01:52without being actually on the basketball court, Ott said. Now let's shift to a situation on the
01:57other end of the spectrum, Jalen Green's injury luck this season. When we acquired Jalen Green
02:03via trade in the same off-season, his health record was the polar opposite of Mark Williams's.
02:09That durability, playing 67 games as a rookie and missing only six total games over the next three
02:14regular seasons, was a large part of the appeal, especially as he stepped into a role previously
02:21held by the oft-injured Bradley Beal. But this year, largely due to a nagging hamstring issue,
02:27Jalen has played a career-low five games, with 30 still remaining. He exited a loss to the Atlanta
02:33Hawks on January 23 with what was called precautionary right hamstring tightness. He returned to come off
02:40the bench on January 30, playing 16 minutes before exiting with a hip contusion. Both the hamstring and
02:46hip have been on the injury report for the three games he's missed since. Coach Ott says Jalen is
02:51handling it as well as can be expected for a player who isn't used to this. He does have like a
02:56youthfulness, to him, himself, that I think helps him on some of these down days where he never really
03:01feels how down he is, and now that the end is in sight, like he can feel that he's very close,
03:07Ott said. For now, Jalen Green, like Devin Booker ankle, remains day-to-day. But there's a growing
03:14sense of momentum now that he's back on the court and trending toward a return. As Coach Ott said,
03:19when he steps on the court, everyone feels kind of who he is. That's the exciting part is when he
03:25gets out there, everyone feels it just by him being out there and in the jersey. So, Suns fans,
03:31it's been a tale of two very different health journeys for key players this year, with Mark
03:36Williams proving his durability and Jalen Green working his way back. What part of this team's
03:43resilience has impressed you the most so far?
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