Jordan Ott encourages a next man up mentality from the Suns after Mark Williams' injury
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Jordan Ott encourages a next man up mentality from the Suns after Mark Williams' injury originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Phoenix Suns have been an impressive team this season, especially with how they have surpassed expectations. With first-year head coach Jordan Ott, the Suns have done well to compete against the best teams in the league.
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With Devin Booker and Dillon Brooks leading the charge for the Suns, they are firmly in the postseason spots. An underrated player this season has been Mark Williams, who is now sidelined with an injury for the next few weeks.
Williams' injury opens up new opportunities for other Suns players
Throughout the 2025-26 season, the Suns have struggled with injuries. Jalen Green has barely played this season due to his hamstring issues. Even Booker has missed games, which has made an impact on the roster's potential.
Now, Brooks and Williams are the latest major injuries on the roster. They have juggled many rotations this season, but they still have found a way to compete at the highest level of the Western Conference.
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Williams is a major loss for the Suns because he was quite a reliable center for Phoenix. Now, Ott wants his team to step up and prove that the center rotation in Phoenix can compete and beat any team in the league.
"It’ll have an opportunity for both (Oso Ighodaro and Khaman Maluach). It’ll have an opportunity to just continue to take the next step. Next man up. Ready to go," Ott said ahead of their game against the Bulls.
Both players are quite young, but they have the energy and qualities to become good centers. Since the Suns want to play an energetic brand of basketball, they have the traits to become contributors. Ott believes in them, which can go a long way.
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