00:00The Phoenix Suns entered Friday's matchup leaning toward the side of establishing rhythm,
00:05a key part of head coach Jordan Ott's rhythm vs. rest proposition for navigating the final two
00:10games of the regular season. He was clear, however, in adding a significant asterisk
00:15to that approach, emphasizing that overall health remains the absolute priority above
00:20anything else on the court. Given that framework, the outcome of the evening's contest can only be
00:26viewed as a failure for the organization. The final score, a lopsided 1-on-1 73 loss to the Los
00:33Angeles Lakers, carries little weight in the standings, but the events that unfolded within
00:38that game overshadow any statistical result. The most concerning development of the night
00:43involved Grayson Allen. He had just been cleared from the injury report after missing Wednesday's
00:48game due to a right quad contusion. Unfortunately, in the middle of the second quarter, he tweaked
00:52his left hamstring and was unable to return to the floor. This is a particularly difficult setback
00:58given the context of his season. Allen has been limited to just 51 games this year due to a
01:03handful of minor ailments, yet when available, he has been a critical offensive piece as a
01:08complementary player. He was tracking toward easily the best statistical year of his career.
01:13Had he maintained his health, his potential absence in the postseason would represent a significant
01:18blow to the Sun's rotation and spacing. His value is quantifiable. In his only appearance against the
01:24Portland Trailblazers this season, a Phoenix victory achieved without Devin Booker, Allen contributed 24
01:30points and connected on six three-pointers. With the Trailblazers securing a win on Friday against the
01:36Los Angeles Clippers, they now sit just one victory away from clinching the eighth seed in the play-in
01:42tournament when they face Sacramento. Should Portland win that game, they will arrive in Phoenix on
01:47Tuesday. Allen's role off the bench, especially as a spacer and driver, is integral for an offense
01:54that has found itself in a real funk lately. While his consistency has wavered over the last two months
01:59alongside the rest of the supporting cast, his presence provides a necessary dimension that is
02:04difficult to replace. As for the rest of the Sun's rotation, Devin Booker was the lone member who did not
02:10suit up on Friday, either by his own choice or by the team's decision to rest him. When asked after
02:15Wednesday's win about his preference regarding rest, Booker caught himself laughing at the question,
02:20perhaps finding irony in the notion of preferring anything other than rest at this stage of a
02:25grueling campaign, despite posting his lowest minutes per game average since his rookie season
02:31and the third-lowest overall minute total of his career. This year has been a major grind. He has
02:36operated as the undisputed captain of the ship for the first time in his 10 years of NBA duty.
02:41Elsewhere on the injury front, Jordan Goodwin was out due to a left ankle sprain sustained on
02:46Wednesday. The severity of that sprain will determine his availability for Tuesday's play-in
02:52game. There is a measure of optimism for Suns fans, however, as Goodwin was seen testing the
02:57ankle on the court at halftime on the night he injured it, suggesting a decent chance he will be
03:02ready to go. Similarly, Jalen Green did not play after being listed as questionable with right knee
03:07soreness, given that he played only a few minutes on Wednesday, before aggravating the knee. The
03:13situation carries a similar type of optimism regarding his status for the upcoming elimination
03:17game. With the outcome of the game long decided, the Suns' available rotation players logged regular
03:23minutes through nearly three full quarters. Two-way rookie Kobe Brea did not check in until there were
03:28just over two minutes remaining in the third frame. Moving forward, it is a near certainty that Phoenix
03:32will opt for more extreme measures regarding rest in Sunday's regular season finale to avoid another
03:38incident similar to Allen's hamstring tweak. On the other side of the floor, the Los Angeles Lakers
03:43entered Friday night with a clear objective to win. The context of the Western Conference standings
03:49fueled their motivation. The Denver Nuggets entered the evening as the third seed, just one game up in the
03:55loss column over both Los Angeles and Houston. With each team navigating its own path, Denver faced a
04:01decision, hold strong and face the sixth-seeded Minnesota Timberwolves, the team that knocked them
04:07out of the playoffs two years ago, or dropped to fourth and risk a second-round collision with the
04:11Oklahoma City Thunder. The Nuggets' action suggested an attempt to lose and avoid Minnesota, as they rested
04:17all of their starters against a Thunder team that was also sitting numerous key players. However, Denver's
04:22effort to reposition themselves was unsuccessful, and they remain in the third seed heading into Sunday.
04:28Regardless of Denver's maneuvering, the Lakers' priority was securing home court advantage in the
04:33first round, a factor more tangible than attempting to manipulate a preferable matchup. With LeBron James
04:39playing on the second night of a back-to-back and the team taking the floor without Luka Doncic and
04:44Austin Reeves, the commitment to victory was evident. With their win over Phoenix, coupled with a surprising
04:49Rockets loss to the Timberwolves, the Lakers are now locked into home court advantage for the first round.
04:54So as we look ahead to Tuesday's play-in tournament, I have to ask you, the Suns faithful, given what
05:00we saw happen with Grace and Allen on a night where the team was trying to find a rhythm, would
05:04you
05:05prioritize complete health above all else right now, even if it means entering Tuesday's game without
05:11any real momentum?
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