As part of a five-game swing out west, the Pacers are in Phoenix this weekend. Especially in the middle of the winter, it’s one of the most-anticipated visits for teams in cold-weather cities.

This matchup means more to Pacers forward T.J. Warren, who was taken by the Suns with the 14th pick in 2014. He played 261 games for them over five seasons, and he started during his final three seasons.

But then on draft night 2019, the Suns wanted to free up cap space for other moves so they dealt him and the 32nd overall pick to the Pacers for cash considerations.

Warren has returned there just once as a visiting player. He was a little uneasy beforehand and turned to YouTube to prepare for the moment — then scored 25 points and led the Pacers to a 25-point win.

Warren has now played 71 games for the Pacers, including a special showing in the 2020 Orlando restart, but he’s missed 120 games … and counting. So he’s been unavailable 62.8 percent of the time.

It all stems from a difficult left foot injury sustained during the first week of the 2020-21 season.