"The squeeze is coming, and for the Suns that might be a good thing.

With Leandro Barbosa expected to make his return from wrist surgery against the Lakers the Suns have a numbers crunch in their backcourt.

Backup point guard Goran Dragic has played unexpectedly well this season at both ends of the court.

Shooting guard Jason Richardson, who briefly was replaced in the starting lineup by Barbosa, is playing some of his best basketball since joining the club.

And Steve Nash is orchestrating like an MVP again.

But that's four players for two positions on the court - not even counting Grant Hill, who can swing from forward to guard and is having flashbacks to the '90s.

Still, with all the backcourt players dealing with various injuries or aches and pains, spreading the minutes isn't necessarily a bad problem to have.

"All the guys; we need them to play," said Dragic, who tested a sprained ankle Wednesday with some running and jumping drills and is likely to return against the Lakers after a full practice today.

"(Barbosa) has been out for a month and we need his quickness and his aggressiveness. So I think it's going to be important to have all of us.

"Last week for Steve was really tough. He was playing like 40 minutes. I've never had an ankle sprain before and it was hard to watch from the bench.

"Now all of these guys will be ready and finally we can get together and play these last games."

Of course, much will depend on how Barbosa plays when he returns.

"LB has won a lot of games for us," coach Alvin Gentry said. "He's been a heck of a player and a game changer. We have to find out if he still has that ability.""