PhxGametime
Formerly Bball_31
Norm Frauenheim
The Arizona Republic
Apr. 4, 2003 12:00 AM
Suns center Jake Tsakalidis has collected more minutes on the bench than on the floor this season, but he may be at the end of a frustrating wait.
Tsakalidis figures to re-emerge in the stretch run as Suns coach Frank Johnson intends to make use of his roster.
"We might have to go to some players who haven't played," Johnson said Thursday as he previewed a schedule that resumes Saturday afternoon against Minnesota, the first of four games in five days. "There's a chance Jake will play, because we'll have to stretch the bench a little more."
Tsakalidis hasn't played in six of the past seven games. When back surgery put him on the injured list for a 34-game stretch, the Suns often talked about how much he was missed. Since his return to the active roster March 13, he has been mostly missing.
"It's frustrating," Tsakalidis said after he put in some overtime with Johnson. "It's tough, but I have to keep working. If he wants to put me in, fine. I have to be ready."
A mix of circumstances has pushed Tsakalidis to the forgotten end of the bench, among them the simple struggle to find practice time for the third-year center, who could match up against Lakers center Shaquille O'Neal on Sunday in Los Angeles.
"He was out for three months," Johnson said. "Think of all the practices and games we had to get to a certain point. He didn't have all of that."
Johnson said he doesn't know how long Tsakalidis may be able to play, but the center's 7-foot-2 presence looms as a big factor as the Suns attempt to nail down the Western Conference's eighth and final playoff spot. The NBA season is at the point when the game becomes more physical and the pace more deliberate.
"At some point, we're certainly going to need his big body," Johnson said.
The Arizona Republic
Apr. 4, 2003 12:00 AM
Suns center Jake Tsakalidis has collected more minutes on the bench than on the floor this season, but he may be at the end of a frustrating wait.
Tsakalidis figures to re-emerge in the stretch run as Suns coach Frank Johnson intends to make use of his roster.
"We might have to go to some players who haven't played," Johnson said Thursday as he previewed a schedule that resumes Saturday afternoon against Minnesota, the first of four games in five days. "There's a chance Jake will play, because we'll have to stretch the bench a little more."
Tsakalidis hasn't played in six of the past seven games. When back surgery put him on the injured list for a 34-game stretch, the Suns often talked about how much he was missed. Since his return to the active roster March 13, he has been mostly missing.
"It's frustrating," Tsakalidis said after he put in some overtime with Johnson. "It's tough, but I have to keep working. If he wants to put me in, fine. I have to be ready."
A mix of circumstances has pushed Tsakalidis to the forgotten end of the bench, among them the simple struggle to find practice time for the third-year center, who could match up against Lakers center Shaquille O'Neal on Sunday in Los Angeles.
"He was out for three months," Johnson said. "Think of all the practices and games we had to get to a certain point. He didn't have all of that."
Johnson said he doesn't know how long Tsakalidis may be able to play, but the center's 7-foot-2 presence looms as a big factor as the Suns attempt to nail down the Western Conference's eighth and final playoff spot. The NBA season is at the point when the game becomes more physical and the pace more deliberate.
"At some point, we're certainly going to need his big body," Johnson said.