Devin Booker's bombastic performance during his season debut was an eye-opener for those tuning to ESPN hoping to get a glimpse at two of the NBA's finest rookies of this year's class. While many hoped to see the potential in Dallas Mavericks forward Luka Doncic and Phoenix Suns center Deandre Ayton, it was Booker who stole the spotlight.
Despite being mired in foul trouble, Booker's impressive shot-making was enough to turn a four-point game into an absolute rout, which raises the question — would this be the year Booker makes the jump to the NBA's elite?
The Western Conference is a murderers' row of offensive talent, with shooting guards like James Harden, Klay Thompson, Jimmy Butler and DeMar DeRozan already having etched their names as the creme of the crop — all four were named to the All-Star team this past season.
Meanwhile Booker sits as one of the West's best-kept secrets, a natural-born 20-plus-point scorer who has recently expanded his growth to other areas like rebounding and playmaking.
Will this be the year he finally breaks out as an undeniable All-Star? — We'll look at some aspects to determine if Book's time has indeed come in 2018-19.
Taking a look at the short sample:
Yes, it's only one game — but Booker's 35-point explosion in Wednesday's 121-100 win over the Mavs is the only available proof to go off of, given that he missed every preseason game and all of training camp with a hand injury.
The native Michigander took his first shot eagerly, only 34 seconds into the game, a 26-foot 3-pointer that clanked off the back rim. His next three baskets would come right at the rim — a bona fide scorer's approach, given the fragility of his hand injury, which somehow lingered even after an entire offseason to recover.
Just when fans thought Booker had forgotten about his shot, he buried his first 3-point ball of the season with 20 seconds left in the first quarter — a sign that everything with his shooting hand was truly fine.
Having poured in only seven points between the second and third quarter, mired in foul trouble, the 21-year-old would do most of his damage in the fourth, starting with two hard-charging drives to the basket before pulling out the flamethrower for the last few minutes of regulation.
Booker hit two pull-up treys over Dennis Smith Jr. and another over the taller Dorian Finney-Smith to set the Talking Stick Resort Arena alight.
Since entering the court at the 8:44 mark of the fourth quarter — having sat out for eight-plus minutes since the third — Booker went 6-of-6 from the floor, including four straight threes that wind up duping Dennis Smith Jr. into fouling him nearly 30 feet away from the basket in a heat-check.
Booker's 19 points in the fourth quarter turned what was at one point a four-point game into a 21-point rout — a sign his leadership and innate scoring acumen have come a long way.
The proof is in the pudding:
Booker's improvement has been more than solid after every season, going from a rookie year in which he showed glimpses of stardom quality, enough to make coach Earl Watson put all his eggs in one basket, naming him the team's starting shooting guard the following season after posting only 13.8 points as a rookie during 76 appearances and 51 starts (most due to an injury to Brandon Knight).
His second campaign was enough to warrant the title of the NBA's Most Improved Player (spoiler alert: he didn't win), posting an impressive 22.1 points-per-game average as a mere 20-year-old — improving his 3-point shooting by 2 percent, despite facing more defensive pressure and a heavier offensive load.
The 2017-18 season brought yet another dimension to his game, thrusted into a primary playmaker role after the likes of Tyler Ulis and European stud Mike James simply did not pan out as genuine point guards for the Suns.
Booker posted yet another career-high in scoring with 24.9 points per game, including an average of 4.5 rebounds and 4.7 assists per game, boosting his 3-point percentage an additional 2 percent and shooting a near-automatic 87.8 percent clip from the foul line.
This current campaign only boasts good news for Booker, blessed with a better supporting cast with veterans like Trevor Ariza, Ryan Anderson and now Jamal Crawford — all capable 3-point shooters that can take the perimeter pressure off his shoulders.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vIrUhqU4kYc
Sneaking into the All-Star Game:
Booker's name has already ranked high in ballots, despite not being part of a big-market team — but nothing puts the NBA on notice more than winning — and the Suns are bound to make some waves, if Wednesday's night play was any indication.
The Suns will be much better than their 2017-18 iteration, after all, can't really do worse than having the worst record in the league. But if they can somehow sneak into the playoff bubble, it could be enough to get some eyes on Booker when it comes time to fill in the ballots.
The Kentucky product already sneaked his name into the All-Star history books after taking the 3-point contest crown in 2018 by outshooting Klay Thompson in the final round, burying 20 of his 25 shot attempts for 28 points — an All-Star Weekend record for the contest's 32-year history.
It's not unfathomable to see Booker reach the 40-percent mark in 3-point shooting this season, given his steady improvement after each campaign and the added freedom of having extra shooters around him this time.
The key is staying healthy:
Devin Booker played in only 54 games last season after being tasked with the bulk of action, ultimately missing the team's last 12 games of the season with an injury to his shooting hand, one that carried into the offseason, resulting in his late surgery.
If he can carry a clean bill of health throughout the entire season, it's only a matter of time before the NBA takes notice of his impact on this team. Even averaging 25-5-5 would be a recipe for success — enough to unseat the likes of Thompson, Butler and DeRozan statistically — as Booker came mighty close to that slate with 24.9 points, 4.5 rebounds and 4.7 assists last season.
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