Keita Bates-Diop 'staying ready,' bringing more size to Phoenix Suns starting lineup

CHICAGO – Phoenix Suns forward Keita Bates-Diop just waited for his opportunity to play meaningful minutes.

It knocked Thursday night and he answered with a 13-point effort against his former team.

The San Antonio Spurs still won, but Bates-Diop showed his value to his new team.

“True pro, somebody that’s just been waiting for his number to be called and came out and made some huge plays for us,” Suns superstar Kevin Durant said after the game.

Bates-Diop has started Phoenix’s last two games in helping give the Suns (3-4) a bigger lineup. At 6-8, he can play the four so Durant can operate at a natural three position.

“Just putting the work in and staying ready,” Bates-Diop said.

The Suns signed Bates-Diop in the offseason to a two-year deal for $5 million with a player option for the second year.

Coming off a career year in which he averaged 9.7 points and shot 39.4% from 3, Bates-Diop looked like the fifth starter to go along with Devin Booker, Bradley Beal, 7-footer Jusuf Nurkic and Durant.

He has size, can defend, is athletic and knocks down 3s.

Then the regular season began with Josh Okogie starting, with Suns coach Frank Vogel saying he loved his game. Bates-Diop was spending most of his time on the bench.

The former Ohio State star only saw action in one of Phoenix's first four games – final six minutes of a 20-point win over Utah in the home opener.

Then the Suns needed to do something to help offset the size advantage San Antonio possessed over them with 7-foot-4 rookie phenomenon Victor Wembanyama.

Okogie is a full foot shorter at 6-4. Enter Bates-Diop.

He scored 13 points in 18 minutes, played the entire fourth quarter in Thursday's rematch and hit a 3 to tie the game at 116-116 with 4:21 remaining.

The Suns still lost, but Bates-Diop showed he’s worthy of more playing time.

“It’s only going to help with his confidence,” said Durant after the Spurs rematch. “I’m excited for Keita and hopefully that leads to more minutes for him.”

Thirty-six hours later, Bates-Diop got his first start at Philadelphia to begin a three-game road trip and again help the Suns matchup better against size, this time in reigning NBA MVP, center Joel Embiid.

“We knew we were going to double team,” Vogel said. “Just having a little more size on the backside.”

Bates-Diop tallied eight points, two blocks, two assists, but only grabbed three rebounds in Saturday’s 112-100 loss to the 76ers, which outrebounded the Suns, 51-42.

Bates-Diop is 3-of-7 from 3 so far this season, but that rebounding stat against the 76ers was weighing on his mind going into his second start Sunday at Detroit.

“Crash a little bit more, rebound a little bit better,” Bates-Diop said.

Twenty-four hours later, Bates-Diop only took three shots against the Pistons in 20 minutes, didn’t score but doubled his rebounding total from the previous game with six in a 120-106 victory to snap a three-game skid.

“He’s giving good length and defense and rebounding,” Vogel said after Sunday’s victory. “We held these guys to 10 offensive rebounds, best offensive rebounding team in the NBA. Having Keita out there with his size, gave us a lift.”

The Pistons are now fourth in the league in offensive rebounds per game at 13.1 after Bates-Diop and the Suns kept them at bay on that end.

Okogie came off the bench to score 10 points, snatch seven rebounds and handle two steals, showing he’s still engaged despite not starting.

“For me, it’s just winning the game,” Okogie said. “That’s how simple it is. We just needed to come out with a win. Starting, not starting, whatever the case may be, how can I impact winning? For me, nothing changes. Play some defense, bring energy to the team and impact winning. That’s what I focus on and that’s what we were able to do.”

Have opinions about current state of the Suns? Reach Suns Insider Duane Rankin at dmrankin@gannett.com or contact him at 480-787-1240. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter, at @DuaneRankin.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Keita Bates-Diop 'staying ready,' brings more size to Suns' lineup