SALT LAKE CITY - For a guy on a first-name basis with waiver wires and 10-day contracts who has played in just about every league there is, finding a place to set down roots in the NBA is a fairly important touchstone.

Raja Bell thought he had done that after two years in Salt Lake City. He had become a co-captain and a favorite with both Jazz fans and longtime coach Jerry Sloan. With his relentless defense and improving offensive game (12.3 points a game last year), he had every reason to think he would be resigned last summer.

Publicly, everyone from Utah owner Larry Miller on down called retaining Bell a priority. Privately, the closer the July 1 free agent deadline came, the less contact Bell had with the Jazz — which sent a different message his way.

"I’d be lying if I didn’t say I was a little surprised," said Bell, who returns to Utah tonight for the first time as a Phoenix Sun in regular season play. "I did a lot of media (interviews) to make sure people knew I wanted to stay in Utah and I wasn’t blowing smoke.

"I had great neighbors. My wife (Cindi) and I loved everyone there. She went up there early for Amanda Harpring’s baby shower (wife of Utah’s Matt Harpring). We would have loved to have kept our home.

"But it had been three months since my (April) exit interview and I hadn’t heard from them. The draft came and went. The Jazz knew my agent (Herb Rudoy) and I expected things to happen pretty quickly on July 1."

And when the clock struck midnight the Suns — as has been their custom — were on the phone. A five-year contract offer that included financial security (almost $25 million) and promise to be an integral part of a winning team was made.

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"The length of the deal, coupled with how good a team this was . . . that’s kind of tailor-made for me," Bell said. "The way they painted it for me, it sounded great right away.’’

The Suns couldn’t be happier either. With guard Joe Johnson’s decision to spurn the Suns for the Atlanta Hawks, Bell has slipped into his spot in the lineup and is averaging 16 points after two games. His hustle rebound and jumper with 1:57 left to play, just as the shot clock was about to expire, iced the Suns’ 122-112 win over the Los Angeles Lakers Thursday.

And then there is his commitment to defense, something that attracted the Suns to him in the first place.

"We got the real thing with Raja," coach Mike D’Antoni said. "Just as a teammate and how he understands the game and how conscientious he is, he’s a great pickup for the community and the franchise. His character is as good as his talent and that’s pretty big.

"He’s a hard-nosed, good defender and his offensive game keeps improving every year. He’ll draw the hard assignments like Kobe (Bryant) for us and he’ll get his share of shots the other way."

Bell said he was very nervous when the Suns went to Utah in the preseason — he didn’t show it, hitting 8 of 15 shots in an easy win. But he expects the butterflies to return tonight with a full building and a lot of memories waiting.

"This time it will be a lot more raucous environment," he said. "The first time, it was hard to put my finger on it, but I just couldn’t calm down. I was trying to say hello to too many people and there was too much going on. I need to focus a little better this time.’’

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