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Phoenix Suns: Has Devin Booker Made Brandon Knight Expendable?

By Gerald Bourguet

Jan 26, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker (1) dribbles past Philadelphia 76ers guard Ish Smith (1) during the first half at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 26, 2016; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker (1) dribbles past Philadelphia 76ers guard Ish Smith (1) during the first half at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports /
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Phoenix Suns
Jan 8, 2016; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker (1) celebrates with teammate P.J. Tucker in the second half against the Miami Heat at Talking Stick Resort Arena. The Heat defeated the Suns 103-95. Mandatory Credit: Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports /

Devin Booker Is Already An Elite Rookie

The 2015-16 Phoenix Suns season began with playoff aspirations; it has since completely transitioned into an all-out Devin Booker love-fest to help distract fans from how bad the team has been. It’s not just a coping mechanism, however, since the 13th pick of the 2015 NBA Draft has been a revelation among this rookie class.

On the season, Booker is only averaging 10.0 points and 1.9 rebounds per game — numbers that don’t scream “Rookie of the Year” by any stretch. But Booker is also averaging 1.0 made three-pointers per game on superb .465/.417/.814 shooting splits, and his numbers would be much better if had he been receiving the consistent minutes he’s earning now all season long.

Booker ranks sixth among all rookies in scoring, third in made three-pointers (total and per game), first in three-point percentage (among those who have taken at least 50 three-pointers) and sixth in field goal percentage (at least 150 field goal attempts). That’s not bad value for a player taken near the end of the lottery, especially since he’s the NBA’s youngest player at age 19.

Since Bledsoe’s injury, Booker has been the de facto starter at the shooting guard position. Though he’s still experiencing his growing pains on the defensive end, Booker is averaging 17.3 points, 3.2 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 1.8 made three-pointers per game on 44.9 percent shooting and 35.2 percent three-point shooting since the start of 2016.

With Bledsoe and Knight injured, T.J. Warren struggling with consistency and injuries and Alex Len still splitting time with Tyson Chandler, Devin Booker is really the only consistently good thing Suns fans have to be excited about.

Take, for example, his career-high 32-point performance against the Indiana Pacers two weeks ago, which was an NBA season high among rookies. Booker also became the third youngest player in NBA history to score at least 30 points. The only two players younger than him to reach that threshold? LeBron James and Kevin Durant.

There have also been flashes where Booker is not only the best Suns player on the floor, but singlehandedly carries the team’s offense with his own mini scoring runs.

Sunday in Dallas he went on a personal 8-0 scoring run to put Phoenix up five in the third quarter, which brought up memories of a similar 11-0 run against the Miami Heat in early January that brought Talking Stick Arena Resort to its feet.

Devin Booker is not only a foundational piece for the Suns, but it’s starting to look like he has legitimate star potential. Booker won’t win Rookie of the Year, but the fact that he’s been a top-five rookie in a draft class that includes Karl-Anthony Towns, Kristaps Porzingis and Jahlil Okafor is a testament to his status as one of the league’s most promising youngsters.

Following that line of logic, the Suns need to be allocating as many minutes to Devin Booker as possible, even when Bledsoe and Knight are both healthy again.

Next: Other Factors

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