“I’m excited to play with Book. I think it’s going to be a good situation.” During the media day, Jalen Green was optimistic about his new partnership. Even the fans were excited about the new backcourt duo of Green and Devin Booker playing together. But that excitement turned to question when their new star guard did not suit up for any action during the preseason. And the rumors are true that there is an injury situation, which will have an immediate impact on the Phoenix Suns.

“BREAKING: Jordan Ott says Jalen Green “reaggravated” his hamstring strain in China and will be out “a couple of weeks.” Suns fans will have to wait for the explosive guards debut for Phoenix.” A tweet confirmed that it was the same injury the 23-year-old sustained in training camp leading up to the first preseason game on Oct. 3. Reporter Hayden Cilley added the thoughts from the head coach, “Jordan Ott said that Jalen Green’s hamstring is a “soft tissue injury.” He mentioned that specific injury takes time, but they’re not rushing him back.”

Furthermore, the reports confirmed more grim news for Green. As the former Rockets star will be reevaluated in 10 days, his absence will extend beyond the Suns’ regular-season opener against the Sacramento Kings on Oct. 22. Yes, the reevaluation will happen in 10 days, but there is no guarantee of him being fit. It is a certain blow, as Jalen hadn’t missed a single game since February 2023, but he will miss his Suns regular-season debut.

His 186-game played streak will come to an end, which was the third-longest active streak in the NBA. First time Suns coach called it frustrating while speaking to the media. “We all know the soft tissue injuries are really hard to see exactly the progress. Obviously, it’s frustrating, but this is all part of it. Thankfully, we caught it early; it’s not that serious, but he wants to be out there.” Ott continued and emphasized what Jalen Green has been doing to keep morale high.

“New teammates, new system. There’s just other ways. We’re going to have to speed him up. That’s the reality of it. He did a great job in the China trip hanging in there with us.” It’s a significant blow as the California native was averaging 20.1 points in his four years in Houston. That’s why there was optimism after the Suns traded Kevin Durant to Houston for Dillon Brooks, Green, and the 10th overall pick in the 2025 draft, Khaman Maluach, before the 2025 draft.

Who can step up in Jalen Green’s absence?

As we all know, the Big3 of Kevin Durant, Bradley Beal, and Devin Booker was a major failure. With 0 playoff wins, they even missed a spot in the postseason last year. They needed a change. After cutting ties with KD and Beal, the Suns fired coach Mike Budenholzer and hired Jordan Ott in June 2025, who previously served as an assistant coach for the Cleveland Cavaliers. And the new head coach had new plans, where Jalen Green was supposed to take over the primary playmaking duties.

But the coach and the fans will have to wait for the 23-year-old to be healthy in order to actually see how this pans out. During the preseason, this role was done by veteran Grayson Allen. If you remember, last season he had a bulkier 230-pound frame, but was not nearly as quick or fast. This season, he even underwent some changes and was listed at 218 pounds on the training camp roster. This resulted in him having three blocks in the first half of the Oct. 12 game against the Nets.

Plus, the 30-year-old was always a reliable 3-point shooter. The former Duke alum led the league in 3-point shooting in his first year in Phoenix in 2023-24 at 46.1% and last season averaged 42.6%  from beyond the arc. His skills, for now, will be a sigh of relief for Ott, who is waiting for his starter Jalen Green’s comeback.