“The Suns are 11-2 with Durant in the lineup this season— and 1-9 without the two-time Finals MVP”. This observation by Shams Charania is enough to highlight the importance of Kevin Durant for the Phoenix Suns. The 36-year-old has been anything but fully consistent in his appearances this season. Out of his team’s 23 games, he has only appeared in 13, having gotten sidelined for the rest. Amidst his absence in the Suns’ 3 most recent games, Durant’s presence would certainly be required when his team takes on the Utah Jazz. Fortunately, there seems to be good news on the horizon.

NBA reporter Gerald Bourguet recently provided an update on the Phoenix Suns’ Injury Report. According to it, Kevin Durant’s status has now been shifted from ‘OUT’ to ‘Probable’ for the upcoming matchup. To add some extra good news, the names of Jusuf Nurkic, Ryan Dunn, and Grayson Allen are not a part of the updated report, ensuring their availability. A probable status is all but a guarantee of the athlete’s availability. Therefore, unless he develops any last-minute complications, Kevin Durant will be certainly present to take on the Utah Jazz.

The 2x NBA champion had sustained an ankle sprain during the Suns’ matchup against the San Antonio Spurs. The incident occurred after the power forward/small forward stepped (most likely unintentionally) on Julian Champagnie’s foot, as 4:30 minutes remained in the 2 quarter. Durant reportedly left the game 39 seconds later, after making 13 points in 16 minutes. When asked about an update a few hours ago, Durant claimed, “I’m feeling good”. However, the player wasn’t sure about his availability status even then, as he said, “I don’t know. That’s one of those things… As we get closer to tip-off, I’ll know.” Well, now we know. With Durant now potentially set to return, the only players who won’t take on the Utah Jazz may be Jalen Bridges (earlier listed under Day-To-Day) and Collin Gillespie, who is not set to be re-evaluated for another four weeks.

Speaking of the Utah Jazz, their Injury Report currently has Lauri Markkanen listed as ‘Questionable’. The team initially sidelined the player because of low back injury management, and he missed out on the previous game against the Portland Trail Blazers. According to CBS Sports, they find it “slightly concerning” that the player is tagged as ‘Questionable’. After all, they listed him as ‘Probable’ earlier. Fortunately, they have not declared him ‘OUT’ yet. The same cannot be said for Jordan Clarkson, Sviatoslav ‘Svi’ Mykhailiuk, and Taylor Hendricks.

In light of these updates, both teams will have to make adjustments to their starting lineup.

What will the starting lineup and depth chart for the Suns-Jazz game look like?

Kevin Durant’s availability means that the Phoenix Suns will have all its starters available for the upcoming game. However, given the 36-year-old’s condition, Suns head coach Mike Budenholzer may go easy on the player. As a result, Ryan Dunn may continue seeing increased minutes. It is not sure whether that will be the case or not. Despite this, the Phoenix Suns’ starting lineup will look something like this:

Given the updates for the Utah Jazz, their starting lineup is expected to look like this:

The Phoenix Suns or the Utah Jazz? Who will you be rooting for during the upcoming matchup? Let us know in the comments section below.