Booker growing, leading
Star still refining play; now he’s driving Suns’ success
At 5-2, the Suns are the surprise of the NBA, and Devin Booker is the main reason for the success.
Year 5.
Devin Booker often says that when talking about his play, handling situations and leading the Phoenix Suns.
It’s early in his fifth NBA season, but Booker has already shown how much a player can grow and improve — and win.
Phoenix’s 5-2 start has been a collective effort. The Suns have been the surprise team of the NBA so far — and Booker has been the main reason for their early success.
“I’ve said it for a while, he’s a complete basketball player,” Suns coach Monty
Williams said. “He’s competitive, not afraid of the moment, he makes big plays.”
His season-high 40-point performance was the driving force behind the Suns’ 114-109 win over the previously unbeaten Philadelphia 76ers and had the crowd chanting “M-V-P! M-V-P!” on Monday night at Talking Stick Resort Arena.
Booker laughed and said he doesn’t have a real shot at winning the league’s top individual award, but he and the Suns have a city that’s been starving for a return to glory very excited about their future and present state.
“That is the love that I get here,” Booker said. “It has been unconditional since Day 1. I always say it, but it is good to feel the energy in there. The fans are getting what they want, hard-working team coming to push the issue every night. Playing for them, playing for ourselves, playing for this whole city.”
It’s Year 5, but he just turned 23
Booker is still going to voice his displeasure with the referees.
Booker threw a towel after Monty Williams’ challenge of a fifth foul against the shooting guard wasn’t overturned on review. His reaction isn’t surprising.
Those reflexes aren’t going anywhere anytime soon, but Booker has learned to prevent the past from dictating how he plays the rest of the game.
“I didn’t agree with it, but that’s not my job either,” said Booker of frustration with the call. “I have to move on to the next play and do a better job of that. I kind of got out of character of throwing the towel, but you can’t help but to show emotion and passion when you really care.”
He has teammates like Aron Baynes, who remind him to stay focused.
Baynes often talks to Booker after a foul call to keep him as level as possible, even as the crowd is booing and the Suns star is steaming in a boiling pot of frustration.
“He’s feeding off the energy in there and we’re feeding off his energy, but at the same time, you got to look at the bigger picture and we got to make the most of every single possession,” Baynes said. “I think that comes to mind is Coach’s next right play. The next right thing.”
It’s Year 5, but he’s seen as just an offensive player
Booker’s ability to score is among the NBA elite.
He’s 11th in the league in scoring at 26.6 points per game.
“He annually reminds us of how good he is,” 76ers coach Brett Brown said. “He can really score. I think there are some things that we really should have done better, for sure, but he is a very, very gifted scorer for sure.”
However, Booker is taking greater pride in his defense. He wants to be relabeled a complete basketball player.
“He wants to prove that to everybody and I want to help him,” Williams said. “I want to help him get rid of some of these labels that have been put on him. Some I think unfairly. That’s my job as a coach to make him look as good as I can.”
Williams delivers a consistent message that has struck a cord with Booker and motivated him to achieve greatness.
“Monty always says a quote, ‘Everything you want is on the other side of hard,’ “Booker said. “I’ve took that quote and embraced it . ... ”
It’s Year 5 and he knows he has to play defense
This season, he’s playing defense on a more consistent basis and taking pride in it.
“You see Devin going after guys, defensively,” Williams said. “He doesn’t back away from matchups. I watch a lot of teams, their matchup on him doesn’t guard. They put other guys on Devin. Devin guards his position every night and I have to coax him out of it sometimes to keep his energy at a high level and he’s like, ‘Nah, Coach, I want that guy.’ “
Booker’s newfound defensive vigor has led to defensive stops, like when he dug in Monday against Josh Richardson and forced him into a tough shot that misfired.
It’s Year 5, and he’s surrounded by teammates on the same page
This is new for him in the NBA. He’s had five head coaches in five seasons.
Plus, continual roster turnover, but something is different with this collection of players.
From the leadership of Ricky Rubio and Baynes to the relentless energy of Kelly Oubre Jr. to Williams’ coaching, everyone is thriving in their roles.
The Suns aren’t the same team they were for the previous four seasons when they didn’t win more than 24 games.
They are better. And so is he.