As inconsistent as the Phoenix Suns have been this season, there has been consistency in the player performance hierarchy, if there could ever be such a thing. Steve Nash is awesome, Marcin Gortat has been great and everyone else is up and down. A lineup change has seemingly sparked Jared Dudley, as he is playing much better now as a starter than he did while playing a familiar reserve role.
And so, once again, we rank the players according to who was hot and who was cold over the past week for Phoenix. The number in parentheses indicates the previous week's ranking.
1. Steve Nash (1): Nash had an up and down week for Phoenix. After not playing against Dallas, he put up 30 points and 10 assists in the Suns victory over New Orleans. Nash was relatively quiet the rest of the week, scoring only six points against Houston and 11 against Charlotte. Nash set up his teammates well, as usual, this week dishing 29 assists in three games this week. (Ryan Bafaloukos)
2. Marcin Gortat (2): Gortat probably won't get any All-Star respect for his fine season so far, thanks to the team's overall lack of success. But that doesn't mean he's not doing his part: he's had five straight double-doubles and 15 straight double-digit rebounding games. (Justin Burning)
3. Jared Dudley (4): Dudley is back. However, there was just enough chatter after he sat against the Charlotte Bobcats, as Michael Redd put up 17 points, that he might get put back on the bench. Duds did have a solid week, putting up 15 points in each of the three games he played. Exactly the type of play we all expect from him. (Jess Root)
4. Grant Hill (3): Grant again had a week of production that was weaker than we've gotten used to over his Suns tenure. But, on a team producing very little overall, his numbers were relatively decent. However, his minutes were down -- Hill averaged 21.5. (JB)
5. Markieff Morris (7): The rookie Morris had an inconsistent week. Morris had 11 points and eight rebounds in 27 minutes played against Charlotte; however, he only scored 19 points total in the other three games. (RB)
6. Michael Redd (13): Michael Redd was a forgotten man for a while there, until Jared Dudley went and got himself hurt. Dudley sat out on Saturday and Redd stepped in and scored 17 points on 50% shooting. It may not be indicative of any future production, but it was certainly needed. (JB)
7. Shannon Brown (8): Brown had a typical week for himself. He shot 35 percent. He scored 12 points one game and went scoreless in another. A model of inconsistency. (JR)
8. Josh Childress (11): Mr. Childress got himself a nice chunk of playing time this week, averaging 18.5, which is the most consistent action he's seen in a while. His production in that time wasn't great, though; he had 6.5 points and 3.8 rebounds. We'll see how long Coach Gentry keeps him on the court. (JB)
9. Sebastian Telfair (6): Telfair saw an increase in playing time this week, scoring 13 points against Dallas and nine points against New Orleans. Telfair dished 14 assists in four games this week. (RB)
10. Channing Frye (9): Frye's 2011-2012 season continues to be a big disappointment. There was a time last season when Suns fans were calling Frye the team's next clutch player. No one really feels that way anymore, but his 16-point, 7-rebound performance against the Hornets was a nice surprise. (JB)
11. Ronnie Price (10): In the last week, Price went from starter to lost man in the rotation. He started the week starting and playing 25 minutes. He ended the week playing four. He did not score in the last two games. Sebastian Telfair is now getting solid playing time. (JR)
12. Robin Lopez (12): Perhaps a ranking this low is undeserved, considering his 13-point, 6-rebound performance against Charlotte (which included 11 points in the pivotal fourth quarter). But Lopez's play has continued to be unpredictable and it's hurting the team. (JB)
13. Hakin Warrick (5): Warrick saw minimal playing time this week and did not play at all against Charlotte. Warrick scored six points and grabbed four rebounds total in three games played this week. (RB)
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