Phoenix Suns have big decision before opener. Who starts at center?

“I feel like you asked this question about five, six times,” Ighodaro said after Friday’s morning shootaround on Oct. 16. “I say the same thing every time. Khaman and I, for this team, whatever is asked (of) us, we’re going to do. I feel like Khaman has been great starting. I feel like I do good things when I’m starting, too. Whatever (Suns coach Jordan Ott) wants, that’s what we’re going to do.” 

With Mark Williams expected to miss several months after suffering a torn labrum in his left shoulder that required surgery, Ighodaro and Maluach have been competing in training camp for the starting position.

“I feel like Khaman and I come in there every day and prepare to start,” Ighodaro later said. “We’re both ready and I’m sure there are going to be games where matchups call for one way or another, but neither of us are worried about that. We want to go out there and win. It sounds cliché, the PR answer, but that’s truly the way we think and feel about impacting winning. There’s no ego with this.”

Ighodaro later admitted both he and Maluach “want to start,” but have an overall team perspective on the situation.

“As a basketball player, you’re ambitious, you want to start,” Ott said. “You want to be out there, but the main thing is impacting winning and I’m going to keep saying that every time I’m asked.”

Ighodaro sat out Friday’s preseason game against the Utah Jazz at Mortgage Matchup Center with hip soreness. Maluach started in his place, posting seven points and a game-high 12 rebounds in a 119-116 loss.

Ott said pregame Ighodaro should be ready for the Oct. 21 season opener against the Portland Trail Blazers.

Phoenix faces the Golden State Warriors in its home opener Oct. 24.

Ighodaro kept referencing the Suns coaching staff when asked about who will start that matchup against the Blazers.

Ott has addressed it multiple times throughout training camp.

His answer has stayed consistent as well.

“We have two hungry, young dudes that are improving at a fast rate,” Ott said pregame Friday. “We need both. We're going to need 48 minutes of good center play. Those two guys are competitive dudes, but they also want to win. They're all about the right stuff and they've both had great summers. They played well in these preseason games. We're going to need both.”

Ott concluded his comments with some context on the decision process.

 “I don't know exactly where it lands on Wednesday night,” he said. “Get the group healthy, which we're close. Go out there, full force, on Wednesday night, and there's going to be 82 games. It’s going to change game to game.”

Maluach’s answers have been aligned with Ott’s and Ighodaro’s on the competition.

“It's going great because we're getting each other better,” Maluach said. “It's not guaranteed for any of us to start.”

While matchups are a key element in who plays, Ott did say earlier in camp it’d be ideal to have someone establish himself as the starter and then make a change if necessary.

It’s a given Ighodaro and Maluach will play more with Williams being out.

“I’m excited for real,” said Maluach about the season. “It doesn’t matter if it’s preseason or real season. I take all the games the same. I don’t take any reps for granted. I can’t wait until the real season to get here.”

However, with their skill sets being different, whoever starts will factor into how the Suns play to start the first half. The Suns can run offense through Ighodaro because of his ability to handle the ball and pass from the high post.

That helps open the offense for the remaining four starters to find perimeter shots or cut to the rim for dunks and layups.

Plus, Ighodaro has proven to be durable. He played every game last season.

Maluach brings a defensive presence that enables the Suns to press up even more on the perimeter because they have a 7-footer who can protect the rim.

Maluach hardly played last season. He lacks experience, but the 10th overall pick in the 2025 draft has major upside on both ends.

Ighodaro started the first two preseason games with Devin Booker, Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks and Miles Bridges.

Maluach started the next two preseason games against the Spurs without Booker and Bridges both times and minus Green and Brooks in the second one Wednesday at San Antonio.

Booker rested both games while Bridges sat with a right ankle injury he suffered in the first half against the Chicago Bulls. Brooks and Bridges rested Wednesday.

While Ighodaro and Maluach have each started two, Ighodaro participated in a workout Wednesday morning with Collin Gillespie, Booker, Green, Brooks and Bridges.

Gillespie leads the second unit.

“It’s good, just building the chemistry,” Brooks said after Friday’s shootaround. “It's learning different schemes that we do on the offensive end together and then ultimately, we see what spots guys like. So it is important to mix that in during the year and keep chiseling.”

Ott was thrilled with how the workout went.

“We've had a ton a practice, but it's more about getting the group together, the reps together, which we were able to do,” Ott said before Wednesday’s preseason game.

Ighodaro having an important workout with four starters and a key reserve suggests his importance to the team and how he’ll be utilized.