Suns guard Devin Booker is one of three players in the NBA to rank in the top-11 in scoring and passing in the 2023-24 regular season.
Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker led last season’s playoffs in points per game (33.7). Booker in his ninth season has a chance to win a championship.
Booker, 27, in the regular season tied for first in scoring on Phoenix (27.1 points per game) with Kevin Durant. He is also one of three players, including Nikola Jokic and Luka Doncic, to rank in the top-10 in scoring and assists per contest.
ClutchPoints examines the case for Booker to become one of the best players in the NBA, if not the best, with another run.
Devin Booker’s NBA player rank
Booker for the last 3 ½ years has arguably been the best player on the winningest team in the NBA, the Suns.
Phoenix guard Bradley Beal, who is in his first year with the team, said this about the 27-year-old.
“It can only just get better, and that’s kind of scary to say,” Beal said. “I’m excited to see that, because I’m going to continue to push him and push him and push him and push him until he can reach that level we know he can tap into, and whatever that is, because he can still be better. He can still grow, he can still improve just like I can, just like everybody can. But I think his sky is unlimited, honestly. And I think he’s just now scratching the surface, and people are really waking up and respecting his game and understanding he can carry a team.”
Kevin Durant came to Phoenix to play with Booker, who to many has shades of Kobe Bryant in his basketball DNA.
“You better watch out for that boy, because he is nice,” Durant said in 2017, when he was with the Golden State Warriors. “He next.”
Booker told ClutchPoints he has fallen short of a championship to this point in his playoff career, which is how he judged his own performances.
“I haven’t won a ring yet, that’s the ultimate goal,” he said.
“Obviously, you have some moments.”
Quick analysis for Suns superstar
We broke down Booker’s game back in the preseason. The Suns’ superstar has become one of the 10-best players in basketball to many with room to grow, according to Beal, who has become the Suns’ defacto point guard. Booker told the role head-on earlier in the season but is now a scorer.
Booker is the best player it seems to the coaching staff, who will go to him over Durant and Beal late.
We said this about Booker and the point stands true:
“This year, Booker can solidify himself as a top-five player in the NBA and perhaps an even better ranking if he takes his leadership to the next level. If the Suns win a championship and Booker is the reason why, there is great reason to believe he can be recognized as arguably the best player in basketball as the league transitions away from Durant, Stephen Curry and LeBron James’ era.”
Booker’s All-NBA case
Booker is one of three players including expected first-team All-NBA honorees Jokic, who is considered the best player in the world, and Doncic, who is considered the future face of the league, to rank top-10 in scoring and passing (assists).
Does that mean Booker is one of the best players in the game, too?
Booker knows an MVP-caliber season is not enough to sway the belief of the public that he is not a top-5 player. Only a championship will solidify what he has already accomplished as the Suns’ franchise player.
Unfortunately for Booker, it seems unlikely he will be selected All-NBA. He missed eight of the Suns’ first 10 games and did not get a chance to perform much with Durant, who himself played 75 games and is an all-defensive potential candidate along with first- or second-team All-NBA.
Booker’s regular-season accomplishments in 2022 earned him first-team All-NBA honors. He is someone who has to overcome a portion of voters who put stock into success consistently. Booker played 68 games and is averaging more points, assists and a better field-goal percentage (49.2) then his season in which he finished fourth for MVP voting.
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