Oso Ighodaro Is Starting at Center for the Suns, but Khaman Maluach Is Close

Oso Ighodaro has started both of the Phoenix Suns' preseason games at center, and coach Jordan Ott kept the same starting five on Wednesday in Chicago: Devin Booker, Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, Miles Bridges and Ighodaro. The job is open because Mark Williams had surgery on Sept. 10 to repair a torn left labrum, and the Suns have not set a return timetable. Second-year big man Khaman Maluach is the other candidate, and his line in Wednesday's 124-117 loss to the Bulls was the better fantasy box score of the two.

This is the most important unresolved position battle in Phoenix and one of the more useful late-round fantasy questions in the league. Whoever wins the job inherits the rebounding and shot-blocking minutes Williams was signed to provide, on a roster built around two high-volume guards who will create plenty of putbacks and dump-off chances.

Where Williams stands

Phoenix confirmed the surgery on Sept. 11 and said a timetable would be established later. The most cited estimate comes from Arizona Sports' John Gambadoro, who put the recovery at a five-month minimum, which would make a return around the All-Star break possible. That is a reporter's estimate, not a team target, but it lines up with the general recovery window for this kind of repair.

The practical takeaway is that Williams should be treated as a stash only in deep or injured-reserve-friendly leagues. For the first three months of the season, the Suns' center minutes belong to Ighodaro and Maluach.

What the preseason has shown

Ott has said he will let the preseason decide the center competition, and so far it has been close.

Ighodaro's case is about fit. He was the only Phoenix starter with a positive plus-minus in Chicago, and local coverage keeps returning to the same point: he makes the players around him better, with his screening, short-roll passing and defensive positioning. He is 24, in his third NBA season, and the most experienced internal option. After Monday's loss he told the Arizona Republic that he and Maluach have pushed each other all summer and that both will affect games no matter who starts.

Maluach's case is about upside. The former lottery pick has more size and more rim protection potential, and his raw production has been at least competitive with Ighodaro's in both games, including a 25-minute outing in Chicago in which he got to the line and showed passing out of the post. He is also still learning, and the Suns' turnover problems (26 against the Bulls) are a reason Ott may prefer the steadier option with the starters.

Fantasy fallout

Oso Ighodaro is the safer bet for opening night. A starting center playing next to Booker and Green should see 22 to 26 minutes, which is enough for useful rebounds, steals and efficient field-goal percentage. His ceiling is limited by low usage, so he profits mainly in category leagues. He is a late-round pick in 12-team leagues and a must-roster in deeper formats until the rotation settles.

Khaman Maluach has the higher ceiling and the more volatile role. Even off the bench, his preseason minutes suggest he will play a real share of the center time, and a backup center getting 20 minutes with blocks and rebounds can hold value in 14-team and deeper leagues. If he wins the starting job, he becomes a priority late-round pick in all formats.

Miles Bridges and Dillon Brooks both benefit from a lineup without a traditional rebounding center. Bridges in particular, who opened the first game by scoring Phoenix's first seven points and finished with eight points, five rebounds and four assists, should see more rebounds than he would next to Williams.

Mark Williams is a hold only in leagues with injured-reserve slots. Do not draft him in standard redraft formats.

The Verdexed take

We expect Ighodaro to start on opening night in Portland, and we expect Maluach to start at least some games before Williams returns. The split will probably follow matchups: Ighodaro against quicker, switch-heavy frontcourts and Maluach against bigger lineups that require a true rim protector. Neither is likely to clear 28 minutes most nights, which caps both players' fantasy value.

The best draft strategy is to take the cheaper one and watch the other. In most drafts that means Ighodaro is the safer late pick and Maluach the better upside flier. In dynasty, Maluach is the clear priority: Williams' absence gives him the developmental runway the Suns might not otherwise have offered. Full game-by-game outlooks will be at /nba/predictions once the regular season begins.

Betting angle

For season-long markets, the center question matters more for Phoenix's defense than its offense. The Suns have blown big leads in both preseason games, losing a 68-50 halftime lead against Detroit and a 15-point lead in Chicago, and part of that is a second unit still learning how to defend without a veteran anchor. Until Williams returns, we lean toward Phoenix unders on team rebounding props and toward opponents in matchups against big frontcourts.

What's next

Phoenix hosts San Antonio on Saturday, Oct. 10, and visits the Spurs on Oct. 14, two useful tests against Victor Wembanyama. If Ott keeps Ighodaro in the starting five for both, treat the job as his to lose. The Suns open the regular season at Portland on Wednesday, Oct. 21, and their home opener is Saturday, Oct. 24, against Golden State.