All Signs Point to Monster Season From Devin Booker

Devin Booker Primed for Big Season

The Suns moved on from two-time NBA Finals MVP Kevin Durant, sending him to the Houston Rockets via trade. Booker is the unquestioned leader for the Suns.

Ott, who is the Suns' fourth head coach in four seasons, has a tall task to build an offense around Booker, the team's primary point guard, and Jalen Green. Green, just 22 years old, has untapped potential but could be an awkward fit next to Booker since they are the same position.

Booker is often compared to the late, great Kobe Bryant. He often uses the quote, "Be Legendary," which Bryant left signed on a shoe to Booker in the final season, to service his play.

In 2020-21, he scored the most points ever by a player in their first-ever playoff run (601), and scored 40 points in back-to-back NBA Finals losses to the Milwaukee Bucks. His nine-game playoff run in 2023 in which he scored a whopping 331 points is compared to Michael Jordan's 1991 run.

Booker, incredibly, had a 70% true shooting mark.

"Although we didn't get it done in '21, I was able to see it go from the bottom almost to the top," he said."It wasn't easy, but just understanding that it's an everyday grind and it starts right now."

But Booker's undeniable superstardom has been questioned. Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards is now regarded as the NBA's best shooting guard, even though Booker is in his prime years of his career.

Booker's 2023-24 and 2024-25 seasons met expectations, but they did not ascend him to the same tier of players as Edwards, and Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, each of whom are ranked as better two guards than Booker in an NBA.com GM poll.

Durant was the Suns' leading scorer in 2023-24, when they were swept by Edwards and the Timberwolves in the postseason, and 2024-25. But now without him, this is an opportunity for Booker to try and take a leap into the next level of superstardom. The team is counting on him to perform and attract younger, more athletic players to successfully retool.

Can Booker Lead Suns Back to Playoffs?

If Booker is to successfully prove he can be a candidate for first-team All-NBA, or even an MVP award winner, he must challenge his teammates. He has the most NBA experience on the Suns' roster and can add to the team's list of all-time greats with another playoff run.

"The leadership aspect is going to be more important than ever this year, just realizing our roster, the age of our roster and just the experience that I've had and what I've seen,"Booker said."So I'm gonna do what I can. Always gonna use my voice."

Charles Barkley's Suns never went back to the Finals. Steve Nash, who is a senior adviser to the team, went deep in the playoffs but never reached the championship goal. It's only Booker, who may already be the team's greatest player in history, that is left from the 2021 squad.

He will try to bust through the window that has shut on the franchise's elite players since its inception with Dick Van Arsdale, and that other late greats such as Walter Davis, Tom Chambers, Kevin Johnson and Dan Majerle were unable to break through.

The Suns' all-time winner is Nash, who certainly will help Booker's point-guard ability. His facilitation is very good, as he is just one of two players in the last two seasons to rank in the top-11 in points per game and assists per game, along with Nuggets star Nikola Jokic.

Booker On The Clock for Suns' Championship Goals

This is not a championship or bust season for the Suns. That means the pressure will be off of Booker, who has helped the Suns reach higher aspirations than ever before in franchise history.

"From being at the bottom and almost getting the job done, I have unfinished business here," Booker said. "I know how much it would mean to this city and this organization."

The city of Phoenix owes a lot of its basketball highs to Booker, who is extremely loyal to the organization and by all accounts, will retire a Sun. However, an ownership change has taken place and Booker, though loyal to the team, has said he does not want to go through another rebuild.

The Suns' current corps will not win an NBA championship as currently constructed. Phoenix is trying to focus on building a championship culture and identity it already had during its 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons with former GM James Jones and head coach Monty Williams, along with Chris Paul.

Booker has a massive contract and his trade value is not as high as it once was. Phoenix has gone all-in to make things work with Booker, but what if that train runs off the track?

The Suns need to be aggressive in pursuing young talent. The Thunder, who have a young team and three of the top-25 players in the league in their core, and Dallas Mavericks with three former No. 1 picks are not going to go down unless they have a major shakeup.

There is no way the Suns can break through and challenge those squads in the West.

That means Booker will have to prove he can compete for an NBA Most Valuable Player Award to prove he is the guy that Phoenix can count on to chug toward an NBA championship.

If he does not, there could be a shake-up in the Valley that he and fans would not want to see.