Suns Ready For Jalen Green Boost Ahead of Cavs Battle

Phoenix Suns fans got a pleasant surprise ahead of Friday's matchup against the Cleveland Cavaliers when star guard Jalen Green was left off the team's injury report, meaning he's got the green light ahead of game time.

Green, who had missed multiple games this past week after re-injuring his right hamstring, now looks to help push the Suns even further up the Western Conference standings after a statement win over the Detroit Pistons last night.

"Just the objective measures to get to 100% and he's there. It's just continue to test on the floor with some bodies in front of him," Suns coach Jordan Ott said of Green's progress towards a return.

"As much live action as you can get at this time of the year. Me personally, I'd love to see him out there. It's him, too. He's got to feel good and that's what we want. We want to be safe with this thing."

READ: Suns vs Cavs Injury Report

Green is expected to come off the bench, according to Arizona Sports' John Gambadoro:

"I would expect Jalen Green to come off the bench tonight when the Suns take on the Cavs. Would make sense as he did come off the bench vs the 76ers and Hawks in his past two games coming back from the hamstring injury."

I would expect Jalen Green to come off the bench tonight when the Suns take on the Cavs. Would make sense as he did come off the bench vs the 76ers and Hawks in his past two games coming back from the hamstring injury.
— John Gambadoro (@Gambo987) January 30, 2026

Green has twice now this season attempted to come back from the same hamstring injury that's hampered him since training camp. After successfully completing roughly 20 minutes of action in his respective returns, Green's exited in the first quarter of both secondary games that followed.

READ: Can Suns Get Revenge vs Cavaliers?

When Green has been fully healthy, we've seen some of the small snippets that's made him a great scorer in the past. His explosiveness and ability to attack the rim pairs well with Devin Booker — who is out tonight for Phoenix.

However, Green's set to play just his fifth game of the year thanks to the recurring hamstring strain, which is unfortunate considering his health wasn't even a question in previous years with the Houston Rockets.

When Green exited last Friday's matchup against the Atlanta Hawks after just four minutes of play, Ott said there was no new damage shown on his imaging — which is good a good sign for not only his potential return, but also future stability on the court as well.

Suns-Cavs will start a few minutes past 7:00 PM MST at Mortgage Matchup Center.

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