Sean Singletary, who has received the bulk of the playing time behind Nash, would likely get his second NBA start if Nash can’t go. The Suns also have rookie Goran Dragic, but he has only played six minutes over the last five games.

 Nash’s availability could affect coach Terry Porter’s decision whether or not to play Shaquille O’Neal tonight. Porter appeared to be leaning toward resting O’Neal against the Hornets, but might not want to go without two starters. Either way, the Suns are through announcing whether O’Neal will play before he sits out games. It doesn’t allow (1) Teams to gameplan for the Shaq-less Suns and (2) allow opposing coaches to use the fact the Suns are sitting a healthy player as motivation for their pregame speeches (”They don’t respect you, there aren’t even playing Shaq!”)

 It’s a beautiful day in New Orleans, with temperatures expected to reach 75 degrees in the first week of December. Good thing, because the gusty winds that are whipping around the city would be a lot tougher to deal with in 40-50 degree weather.

 Nash will have a tough assignment with Devin Harris tonight. Harris had an awful game in the Nov. 4 loss to the Suns in New Jersey, but he and Vince Carter have blossomed into the top scoring backcourt in the league and the key for the Nets. But the Suns have a big advantage insdie with Shaquille O’Neal going against Brook Lopez and Stoudemire getting the defensive-impaired Yi Jianlian.

 This is the second game Nash will miss this season. He sat out the win over Sacramento on Nov. 14 after he was suspended for his role in the shoving match with Houston.

 Rookie Sean Singletary will make his first NBA start against the Heat. Goran Dragic, who hasn’t played in any of the last three games, should also get some time.

 The Suns don’t want O’Neal playing in back-to-back games and he’s been bothered by minor knee and hip soreness over the last week after diving into the crowd for a loose ball against Portland Sunday. The Suns want to have a fresh O’Neal Wednesday in Minnesota, where the T-Wolves have won three of the last four games with Phoenix and swept them last year with Al Jefferson averaging 35 points a game.

 “I don’t like playing teams that have new coaches. Everybody is out to prove they deserve more minutes or they should get more minutes or they are worthy of their minutes.”

 The Suns are 5-2 on the road so far – with a short-handed loss in Chicago and a poor effort in Utah – but they seem to calm down and player a tighter game. Phoenix’s wins in San Antonio, New Jersey, Milwaukee and Sacramento rank among the best in the early going.

 “From a consistency standpoint, we play better on the road than we have as far as energy and the way we approach it and the results we’ve been getting,” Porter said.

 *Look for Leandro Barbosa to step right back in and play plenty tonight – especially since Matt Barnes is gimpy with a sore toe and Alando Tucker remains on the sidelines as he recovers from knee surgery.

 Porter liked what he saw in Monday’s practice, even though Barbosa admitted he lost his conditioning and lost weight during his nine-day, five-game absence in Brazil. “He went through everything and he was good. He’s fresh, moving quick and his shot looked good. Playing basketball is a good thing for him right now.”

*Shaquille O’Neal isn’t going to ask out of the lineup, but he sees the results of extra rest as clearly as everyone else. And the more time off between games, the better. Not only are back-to-backs tough but “the first day off is not really like a day off. The second day is when you can just start all over.”

 Back-to-backs have been a disaster. In games against New Orleans, Indiana, Shaq has found himself in almost constant foul trouble and averaged 6.7 points and 5.0 rebounds.

 But O’Neal with one day off as been a mixed bag. He put two good games together against the Lakers (Thursday) and Blazers (Saturday) with one day in between.

 So it’s likely he sits out tonight, plays Wednesday against Minnesota (where the middle won’t be so open for Suns-killer Al Jefferson), and looks to dial it up again when his old friends from the Miami come to town Friday. Sunday’s game against the perimeter-oriented Nets offers another possible rest day.

 *Kudos to Amare Stoudemire, whose efforts to rehabilitate fresh water wells in Sierra Leone ($50,000 donation) as earned him the NBA Community Assist Award for October.

  The Suns continue to be very visible in the community, be it their annual celebrity waiter event at Majerle’s in Chandler over the weekend, or Shaquille O’Neal feeding hundreds of families for Thanksgiving

 Trotting out the “work in progress” line yet again and trying to turn the conversation toward the baby steps of improvement for the defense was rough sledding. The toughest challenge came when national writers were asking the two-time MVP and heartbeat of the team if he felt “marginalized” by an offense that so far as turned him into little more than a dribble-and-dump point guard.

After years of being handed the keys by Don Nelson and Mike D’Antoni, he admitted “I’m just trying to fill my role now.”

 Hmm. Is Kobe Bryant trying to fill a role? How about Tim Duncan or Dirk Nowitzki?

 Raja Bell tried a different tact, refusing to address questions pertaining to the offense. Whether this was a response to a recently public plea from general manager Steve Kerr to stop talking to the media and address all concerns internally or if the point was made clearer in private is unclear. But in either case, the message has been delivered.

 But we’ve heard from those precincts before. Their general discomfort for Terry Porter’s system and frustration about leaving what worked so well for four seasons behind has been reiterated since training camp.

 The new wrinkle after the 105-92 drubbing at the hands of the Lakers Thursday came from Amare Stoudemire, by far the most vocal critic of D’Antoni’s system and proponent of Porter’s way on both ends of the floor. After needing 21 shots to collect 21 points and reaching the free throw line, Stoudemire sounded almost melancholy about the old days, taking about how effective the Suns fastbreak was with him as a center and the team exploiting mismatches with their speed and precision.

 Now, it’s on Stoudemire and Shaquille O’Neal to deliver inside. And when Stoudemire misses a half dozen bunnies inside and the rest of the Suns are cold from the outside, the Suns look like a pretender in any sense of the word.

 Gone are the days when the double-digit deficit could be wiped out before an opposing coach could get a timeout called. When the Suns fall behind by eight points, it feels like 18. When back-to-back 3-pointers by Vladamir Radmanovic (who used the Suns as his own personal slumpbuster Thursday) and Derek Fisher pushed an eight-point lead to 14 last in the third quarter, the Suns were done.

 The Suns used to trade baskets until opponents could no longer keep up. Now they are trading stops until their defense – which is better but by no means a strong point – falters for a sequence of possessions.

 Don’t expect any major changes. Management isn’t blinking. Kerr and Porter fully expected the Suns to struggle through the first month or two of the season, and were pleasantly surprised that the turnovers and other hiccups didn’t cost more wins during a 7-2 start. But when the level of competition stiffened while the offense was still groping through the fog, the turnovers wound up in their basket and the shots weren’t as easy to find.

 The big losers in all of this are the two rookies who were supposed to be nightly fixtures in the rotation. The Suns can’t deal with the growing pains of Goran Dragic and Robin Lopez when the veteran regulars are making enough mistakes for. It’s pretty hard for Nash and O’Neal and others act as mentors when their most-often response to questions is: “Your guess is as good as mine.”

The Suns looked the most cohesive all season in the opener at San Antonio. They executed in the half court. They ran with a smaller lineup, with Nash dancing through the lane and creating shots off the fly. And at the end of the game, they rammed the pick and roll down the Spurs’ throats. With each passing game, they have looked less and less comfortable.

 Look for some subtle changes. The first came with Sean Singletary bumping Dragic to the end of the bench. That may allow Porter to go back to Grant Hill as a starter – where he is much more effective and happy – and put Barnes with the second unit since the need for a third ball handler on the floor with Singletary and Boris Diaw on the floor is lessened.

 With Barnes slowed by back spasms Thursday, the change could come under the guise of an injury move Saturday against the Blazers. But the Suns are 4-1 with Hill as a starter (the only loss game when Barnes and O’Neal sat out a loss at Chicago) and Hill is averaging 12.5 points and seven rebounds in those games.

 Barnes is a good player and brings a lot to the team. But Hill just works better with the first unit. The Suns are quicker and get out on the break faster. The ball swings better around the perimeter and the passing opens up early shots for Raja Bell.

 But tweaks will only do so much. The Suns have to run when O’Neal is sitting, and they have to spend time in practice playing at that tempo to get used to it again. After playing 12 games in 20 days to start the season, the schedule eases back a bit in December and will give the team more time to iron out the problems. Getting Leandro Barbosa back will help too.

 Even if Barbosa returns Friday, his status for Saturday’s home game with Portland would be up in the air. But the Suns don’t play again until they open a two-game road trip in Oklahoma City on Tuesday, which would give Barbosa enough time to recover from the long trip and get a few practices in.

 *Forward Matt Barnes was moving very gingerly after the game Friday. He said his back locked up on him in the second quarter when he got hit trying to box out on a rebound. He played the entire third quarter (five points, four rebounds) through some nasty pain.

 ”This is the first time I’ve ever had back spasms. It was tough,” Barnes said. “But I wanted to keep playing. I’ve already missed enough games already (two due to suspension, three to be with his wife for the birth of their twins) and I don’t want to miss any more. I’m going to play Saturday if I can. I hope this isn’t anything that’s going to affect that.”

 *Raja Bell was asked about the offensive struggles, but politely declined to address the issue. But he did offer this assessment of the loss: “You get beat like that, you failed your test. We’ve got a lot of work to do.”

 *Sean Singletary was told after practice Wednesday that he’d moved ahead of Goran Dragic on the point guard depth chart for now. The rookie from Virginia had a 3-pointer and two assist in his 13 minutes but also had two turnovers, three fouls and had trouble keeping up on defense.

 ”I tried to get out there and make a couple of things happen,” he said. “I wanted to bring some energy, but we didn’t match their intensity. I was excited to be out there, it’s been awhile. Now I have to prove I belong but bringing some offense, getting the guys involved and defending. Now it’s on me.”

 The Suns are back up to 11 players with Matt Barnes back in the lineup, with Leandro Barbosa the only missing player.

 So the Suns will have the entire starting lineup intact, should coach Terry Porter stick with Matt Barnes over Grant Hill at small forward. Even though the Suns like having Hill as an extra ball handler with the second unit, he’s been much more effective as a starter, the role he is most familiar with.

 Other leftovers from the Suns’ best win of the season Sunday against the Pistons:

 *If you didn’t recognize the one man who was able to talk O’Neal into finally leaving the floor after his ejection, that’s “Uncle Jerome.” Jerome Crawford has serves as Shaq’s personal security man for more than a decade and you’ll see him in just about every public photo of O’Neal. While teammates and coach Terry Porter weren’t getting through to an enraged O’Neal after the call was finalized, Crawford found the magic words to get Shaq moving in the right direction. He’s a good-natured and affable guy, but good luck getting any information out of Crawford, who could probably write a hell of a book on his time alongside The Diesel.

 *Those around the Suns are just as amazed as everyone with the way O’Neal has played to this point in the season. The athletic moves and speed that many thought were gone for good and were nowhere to be seen last season has made a comeback, and the Suns are making use of the mismatch. Teams that have become used to not doubling O’Neal are paying the price – now the trick is to make the opponents who do pay as well. Phoenix isn’t there yet, but Sunday was a good step in that direction.

 *Who was that big guy lowering his shoulder on the way to the basket and hitting a 3-pointer last night? Boris Diaw really helped the Suns get through when they were short-staffed over the weekend, playing 35 minutes and showing he can be effective at the small forward as well if need. The Suns staff sees Diaw as the key to putting the Suns over the top because of his versatility and matchup problems he presents. And if Diaw attacks the baskets instead of settling for the soft hooks inside of five feet, he is a weapon to be reckoned with.

 *Porter has been an impressive bench coach in his first 11 games. The Suns are much better at in-game adjustments, taking advantage of matchups and utilizing a zone defense this season – and those counter-punches have paid dividends in several games. Under Mike D’Antoni, the Suns often overwhelmed teams with their talent and system but once things started sliding the wrong way, they rarely reversed. Porter’s team is more regimented, not as much fun to watch, but is very effective.

 *After only 11 games, is “Sideshow Rob” dead? O’Neal let it slip last night that the Suns have gone to calling Lopez “Bird,” likely because hair looks like a suitable home for, well, robins. Lopez was a DNP at Sacramento and likely would have been again if not for Shaq’s takedown Sunday. But he made the most of his opportunity with nine points, four rebounds and a steal in 14 minutes – keeping the momentum alive in the second quarter with a nice stint after O’Neal departed. An added bonus: He didn’t miss any dunks.

 *Sean Singletary must be thanking Steve Nash for getting suspended. He finally got out of mothballs in Sacramento and did enough good things to get another seven minutes in the first half against the Pistons. The team remains committed to Goran Dragic, but with fouls and turnovers still a problem, Singletary might get more chances to show what he can do.