When will Suns' Jalen Green return? Guard getting 'live reps' now

MEMPHIS — Phoenix Suns guard Jalen Green was dribbling the basketball and laughing it up with assistants Chaisson Allen and DeMarre Carroll after the team’s morning shootaround on Wednesday, Jan. 7, at FedExForum.

He’ll miss his 27^th straight game on Jan. 7 against the Memphis Grizzlies with a recurring right hamstring strain, but the explosive guard is drawing closer to returning to action.

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Green participated in a workout after the morning shootaround. He last appeared in a game on Nov. 8 at the Los Angeles Clippers.

“Not yet 3-on-3, but it’s live reps now,” Suns coach Jordan Ott said pregame. “That’s where he’s at.”

Green is in the second week of a 2-to-3-week evaluation period. Ott addressed Green’s status on Sunday, Jan. 4, revealing a possible time frame for a return.

“Is he 100% strength? He's there,” Ott said before Phoenix upset defending NBA champion Oklahoma City on Jan. 4 at Mortgage Matchup Center. “So now, this is the ramp-up time period onto the court is where he's at. That's currently where he's at. So he's fully healthy, strong. His sprint speed is good and now we're going to give him a couple of weeks to play.”

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Based on Ott’s “couple of weeks to play,” Green could return later this month with his progression being taken into consideration.

The Suns will likely look to have Green play 5-on-5 in practice at least once, but they’re going to remain cautious with him.

“Totally. There are measures to reach,” Ott said. “There are numbers we can see based on strength and sprint speed. Is he there yet? Is he fully healthy? Knowing that when you get out in a competitive environment, you see a gap, you try to drive the gap. That's a unique environment that he's going to be put in. You're going to go and with this soft tissue injuries, want to be as careful as we can.”

Another flare-up would put the remainder of Green’s first season in Phoenix in jeopardy.

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“So we're going to have multiple days where we're going to try to stretch it in our practice gym,” Ott continued. “He's a valuable piece to us. Has a whole long career ahead of him. Again, every step of the way, there's been measures to try to be reached and he's done it. We absolutely want him out there healthy.”

Green has been traveling with the team to maximize every opportunity to rehab the injury.

In his fifth NBA season and first with the Suns, Green initially injured his hamstring during training camp.

This is after playing every game in his two previous seasons with the Houston Rockets.

The Suns acquired Green along with Dillon Brooks and the 10^th overall pick in the 2025 draft, 7-footer Khaman Maluach, from Houston in the Kevin Durant trade before the 2025 NBA Draft.

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Green reinjured the hamstrong during the team’s weeklong trip to China for two preseason games against the Brooklyn Nets.

Sidelined for all four preseason games, Green missed the first eight games of the regular season before making his Suns debut Nov. 6 against the Clippers in Phoenix. Green scored a game-high 29 points as a starter, setting a franchise record for most made 3s in a Suns debut with six in leading Phoenix to a 115-102 win.

Green then started Phoenix’s next game at the Clippers, but he reinjured his hamstring while making a pass in the first quarter. He was assisted off the court and didn’t return.

The Suns announced Nov. 11 that Green would be re-evaluated in 4-to-6 weeks. The team provided an injury update on Dec. 22, saying Green would be re-evaluated in 2-to-3 weeks.

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The Suns have been one of the NBA’s surprise teams as they’re seventh in the West despite Green only playing two games.

Have opinions about the current state of the Suns? Reach Suns Insider Duane Rankin at dmrankin@gannett.com or contact him at 480-810-5518. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter, at @DuaneRankin.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Injured Phoenix Suns guard Jalen Green is getting closer to retuning