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Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker has spent eight seasons in the NBA but is just entering his prime.
Booker, who became the first player since Michael Jordan to have 295 points through the first eight games of a playoff run in 2022-23, is 26 years old. He is the Suns' franchise player.
This is the year he can take a major step forward and propel the Suns to their first-ever NBA championship.
Booker said in 2018 the superteam would come to him. It did. Phoenix has Kevin Durant, who is the best scorer of all time to some, and Bradley Beal, who three seasons ago almost won the NBA's scoring title by averaging 31.3 points per game.
The Suns have a coach, Frank Vogel, who has handled championship expectations and delivered on them. He won the 2020 championship with LeBron James, Anthony Davis and the Los Angeles Lakers and had one of the NBA's most dominant playoff runs with just five losses against 16 wins.
Phoenix in the last three years has been the winningest NBA team. Now, it is looking to take the next step and Booker will be a big reason why.
Here are four bold predictions for his 2023-24 season.
Devin Booker will be the lowest-scoring member of the big three, but don't worry
Booker in 2022-23 set a Suns single-season record in points per game (27.8) regardless of games played. In the playoffs, he led all NBA players in points per game (33.7).
Booker is on the upswing of his career and his best days are ahead of him. But the Suns' guard needs to handle point guard duties this year, which is something that is different from the last few years with Chris Paul as his running mate.
Beal can handle point guard duties, but he played fewer than 10 percent of his minutes there in 2022-23. Booker has ran point in the past and in the playoffs averaged a career-best 7.2 assists per game.
Booker's minutes will be something to monitor. He likes to play but the Suns need to have him at a durable level for the playoffs, where he will likely have to play close to the entire 48 minutes each game.
Devin Booker will be first-team All-NBA
Booker in 2021-22 was the Suns' best player on the best team in the regular season. He played 68 games and averaged 26.8 points, 5.0 rebounds and 4.8 assists. Phoenix has two other stars but Booker will receive first-team All-NBA recognition.
This is the first time Booker, who was given the keys to the Suns' offense as a rookie and has had to carry some poor teams, has the superteam he said would come to him. He waited for an opportunity to play with elite players and has a chance to rest.
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Booker will lead the NBA in assists per game this season while earning first-team All-NBA honors.
Devin Booker will be the Suns' leading scorer in the playoffs
Booker led all playoff scorers in points per game (33.7) and was arguably the best player in the world.
He has a chance to do so again and will have gravity, or space around him, with how Beal and Durant will suck opposing defenders away from Booker.
Devin Booker will be in the conversation for best player in the world, IF the Suns win the championship
Booker, in my opinion, is a top-3 player in the NBA now behind the Denver Nuggets' Nikola Jokic and Milwaukee Bucks' Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Booker scored the most points by a player in their first playoff run (601) as a 24-year-old and had epic closeout games against the Lakers and Nuggets, who have won two of the last four NBA championships. He defeated the Clippers in his first-ever conference finals and had a 40-point triple double to start the series.
Booker's best playoff performances have come against three of the last four NBA champions. He had back-to-back 40-point games in the NBA Finals against the Bucks in 2021. Booker is no joke.
There is a narrative about how he should be detracted because of three elimination games. Booker was hurt in 2021 and this past season when the Suns' season ended and the team had a COVID-19 outbreak in 2022.
Booker is a championship away from being recognized as the best player in the world. He's put up incredible playoff numbers against the league's best teams and has been the leader of the winningest team in basketball the last three seasons.
Booker's time is now. We'll see how he does with two elite scorers next to him.
