"Tuesday is the night when the Suns see if they have simple answers for their complicated questions.

No Suns question looms larger for the season's tip-off Tuesday at Portland than how Hedo Turkoglu will perform with a new team and new role.

His passive preseason performance offered no preview of how the big shot-maker/playmaker the Suns expected will pan out as their starting power forward. He has put in extra work, said the right things about fitting in and been an amiable teammate but has not resembled his starry past or $9.8 million salary.

Can it all click when the bright lights come on and the games begin to matter Tuesday?

"I hope so," Turkoglu said. "They told me it'd take some time to get used to everything. I know I can't play the way I was in preseason but it was a good learning process for me. I'm looking forward to (Tuesday). It should be fun. Hopefully, even with my eyes closed, I'll be making my shots. Even if I don't, I'll be doing my job on the rebounds and defense."

Suns coach Alvin Gentry said he has not settled on starting Turkoglu for the long term. Such a move - Turkoglu coming off the bench - would be to give Steve Nash a pick-and-roll partner in Hakim Warrick and help the second unit, which struggled in the preseason. Turkoglu said he would have no problem with coming off the bench as "a team guy."

However, the Suns started every preseason game well until Warrick started the finale to rest Turkoglu.

"I felt a little bit tired," said Turkoglu, who led Turkey to the European Championship final in September. "I didn't want to miss training camp because it was most important for me with a new team and a new system.""