Phoenix Suns: 5 biggest disappointments from 2017-18 NBA season
3. Booker banged up
No one should be lumping Devin Booker in with other younger, injury-prone stars like Anthony Davis or Kristaps Porzingis just yet, but in a season where Phoenix’s phenom was the lone saving grace for the fanbase, it was disappointing to see him deal with as many injuries as he did.
Thankfully, there were no ACL, MCL or Achilles tears to be found here, but Booker missed 28 games this season, and each one of those was as excruciating for viewers as the first three games of the season under Watson.
The Suns relied on Booker for pretty much everything, and it wasn’t until Josh Jackson was forced into the limelight in the dying stages of the season that fans had any reason to tune in without their franchise cornerstone on the court.
This season Booker has had a right knee thing, a back/hip thing, inflammation in his right big toe, a left adductor strain, a right rib contusion, a possible right hand injury and now a left hip pointer.
— Kellan Olson (@KellanOlson) February 4, 2018
Booker missed time with a variety of injuries, including a sore toe (one game), strained left adductor (nine games), sore ribs (one game), left hip pointer (four games), strained left triceps (one game) and a right hand contusion (12 games).
Booker missing the final 12 games of the season was chalked up as the Suns “tanking” to secure the best odds at the No. 1 draft pick, but he was legitimately injured. A 21-year-old with so few miles on his NBA odometer and so much competitive spirit wasn’t going to be told to sit against his will, especially in as the face of the franchise enduring yet another miserable season.
After playing 76 and 78 games in his first two years, this isn’t anything to be overly concerned about. But in a season filled with disappointments, the best reason to watch Suns games missing 28 of them made an 82-game slog through the mud feel even more onerous.