Report: Devin Booker Involved in Suns HC Search

Phoenix Suns owner Mat Ishbia has been nothing short of adamant that star guard Devin Booker isn't going anywhere as trade rumors and speculation ramps up.

He wasn't joking.

According to NBA insider Marc Stein, Booker has been involved in the Suns' current search for their next head coach.

"Suns star Devin Booker has had a level of involvement with candidates in this stage of interviews, further illustrating owner Mat Ishbia's loudly stated determination to keep Booker in place as the team's cornerstone," Stein revealed (h/t Bright Side of the Sun).

Phoenix is reportedly down to five candidates to replace Mike Budenholzer: Sean Sweeney, Jordan Ott, Johnnie Bryant, Chris Quinn and Dave Bliss.

All but Bliss (who is still alive with OKC in the NBA Finals) have interviewed in-person with Phoenix according to Arizona Sports' John Gambadoro.

While stars such as Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal are expected to be out of town in one way or another, the Suns are very intent on keeping Booker in the desert and building around him.

“Never happen,” Ishbia said earlier in the year to ESPN when asked about potentially trading Booker. “It’s silly. So here’s what I’ll tell you: I have Devin Booker in the prime. In order to win an NBA championship, you got to have a superstar. You got to have a great player.”

From Booker himself in the same interview:

“I take pride in the community in Phoenix, the people that have supported me since I was 18 when things were ugly. And the people that are with us, we just fell short of accomplishing what we want. So I want to do it, and I want to do it here.

"That’s the responsibility of being a franchise player, and I wear that with honor. So it might not look the most pretty right now, but we got to get it done and I’m going to do it.”

It makes total sense for the Suns to involve Booker in the selection process, especially given their recent track record of coaching hires. Both Budenholzer and Frank Vogel reportedly didn't have the full grasp of the locker room.

Phoenix is expected to make their hire by the end of next week.