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Phoenix Suns majority owner Mat Ishbia sat at a podium during the team’s media day and did what he has done since he took control of the franchise:
Ishbia since he inherited the franchise has defied a normal owner. On the same day he was introduced as governor, he traded for Kevin Durant. Shortly after the Suns were eliminated in the playoffs, he fired coach Monty Williams and opened the door for a “transformational” summer.
Following a trade for three-time All-Star Bradley Beal and a free agency class that defied what the Suns should have been able to do given salary restrictions and three max contracts, Ishbia made a claim that will stick with the Suns throughout the season.
“I think we’ve got the best team in the league,” Ishbia said.
The Suns opened their 2023-24 season after a playoff loss. The Suns were expected to win the Western Conference but lost to the Denver Nuggets, who they will have to beat to take the crown as the league’s best team.
“I think you can’t disregard how well the Denver Nuggets played,” Booker remarked.
Booker himself was bold, too. The Suns’ superstar was asked if he has “arrived” as an NBA star. He joked and said he has “been here” since ‘96, or 1996, his birth year.
Booker a summer ago took photos with returning starting center Deandre Ayton and Chris Paul. Monday, he stood next to one of the top-15 players ever, Kevin Durant, and Beal, who has already called Phoenix “Book Nation” and said his co-star is scratching the surface of what he can do.
“It can only just get better, and that’s kind of scary to say,” Beal said.
Booker’s claim as one of the top players of the game should be recognized more. Last season, he averaged the most points by a Sun in a single-season in franchise history regardless of games played (27.8). He became the first player since the GOAT, Michael Jordan, to some to score 295 points through the first eight games of a playoff run.
Before Durant came to Phoenix, he was on pace for the best year of his career. He finished the season shooting 55 percent from the field, 40 percent from three and 90 percent from the free-throw line, which had never been done before in league history.
He now has a roster that includes Booker, Beal and a coach who has three times led a team to the top defensive rating in the NBA since 2011. And that isn’t even the side of the floor where the Suns will be most dominant.
The Suns’ offense lacks a true point guard, but the team is confident Beal and Booker would suffice. Booker played point guard extensively in the past and averaged a career-best 7.2 assists per game in these past playoffs.
Beal played fewer than 10 percent of his minutes this past season at point guard but spoke about the role.
“I’m very comfortable with it,” Beal said. “It’s something that all of us I think, me, Kev, Devin, we’ve all had some ball-handling responsibilities in our career.
“It’s not just going to be one guy. We’re all going to be leading by committee, who’s ever outletting the ball, who’s ever closer getting the rebound. We’re all free to push and get our offense this year.”
The Suns have questions to answer. Phoenix’s depth hurt it in the playoffs and it was eliminated when it was the betting favorite to win the Western Conference.
The Suns also have to answer what happened when they lost a 2-0 lead to the Milwaukee Bucks in the NBA Finals and in their 33-point blowout loss to the Dallas Mavericks in Game 7 of the Western Conference semifinals and prove they can move past that.
Some of those pieces from before are gone, and new ones are in. The Suns feel anything less than a championship would fall short of expectations.
