FLAGSTAFF – Maybe it is being 23 years old with three teenagers also in the gym. Maybe it is being a fourth-year pro. It probably is not the goatee, as he would attest.
Whatever it is, Alex Len feels more mature as a Phoenix Suns center. After three seasons of injuries, inconsistent roles and coaching changes, Len might have some stability ahead this season just in time for what could be an important contract year if he does not sign an extension by Oct. 31.
Len’s offseason was known mostly for saving a drowning friend – and perhaps a struggling lifeguard, too – in late April on a Dominican Republic beach, but basketball defined the rest of it.