With the wealth of great guards in the NBA’s Western Conference this season, the Phoenix Suns’ Devin Booker will be hard-pressed to make the All-Star team. However, with his recent performance and scorching hot January, Booker is transitioning into a bona-fide superstar in this league.
Twelve. 12. That’s the number of teams that passed on Devin Booker in the 2015 NBA Draft. It’s also the number of teams that will regret it for the next decade as Booker reigns in Phoenix (Please don’t mess this up Sarver).
Booker has matured into a NBA star quicker than even the most homer Suns fan (I say that with love Phoenix) could have imagined. He was drafted at age 18 and was expected to be stuck at the end of the bench for at least a couple of years. His dead-eye shot was the only asset that was supposed to be ready for the NBA. He was young, he wouldn’t be able to defend NBA players right away, he wasn’t even a starter in college. The list went on and on. The Suns took Booker with the 13th pick and fans settled in for a development project. But then a funny thing happened.
The list was wrong.
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Booker made an immediate impact, scoring 14 points in his first NBA regular season game. Devin did, in all fairness, play sparingly and produce little during most of November and December of the 2015-2016 NBA season. Those months turned out to be the only lengthy stretch that Booker lived up to draft expectations of being a raw 18 year rookie. Booker began starting games at the end of December and never looked back, averaging 18.3 points per game from January until the end of the season.
Fast forward to this season, Booker is the 20-year-old face of the franchise, a future All-Star. After a struggling December in which he shot 39% overall and 30% from 3-point, Booker has turned it on in January, averaging 28 points per game and shooting 52% overall, 55% from 3-point, in the first 6 games of the month. Devin has scored 38 points four times this season, including two games last week against Dallas and San Antonio. Devin is tied for the most 38 point games at his age (4), with LeBron James. He’s tallied 30+ points in 7 games this season. He’s hit circus shots, he’s hit big shots, he’s hit clutch shots. Booker has done everything that has been asked of him, and he’s stayed classy throughout everything. Devin Booker is the next face of professional sports in Arizona and the fans are noticing.
Is calling Booker a superstar premature?
I don’t think it is.
I’ll be the first to admit that Booker has been too inconsistent to be considered for the All-Star team this year. The West is stacked with great guards and there just isn’t a spot for him. However, anyone who has watched Booker when he’s on this year can no longer say he’s a number 2 option on a great team. He has the talent to be the first option on a contending team. As discussed in our first VotS podcast of the year, I think Booker is being held back by playing with a score first point like Bledsoe. I honestly think he would more consistent and putting up even better numbers with a more traditional point guard, and I take nothing away from Bledsoe by saying that, I just don’t think the two are the best fit for each other.
So, with all of that said, what defines a superstar?
The ability to put a team on his back? Devin’s done that.
The ability to absolutely take over a game? Devin’s done that.
The ability to be the face of a franchise and thrive? Devin’s doing that.
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Is he inconsistent? Sure, he’s 20 years old and playing a little out of his core skill set (less catch and shoot, more ISO to drive and create).
Is an inconsistent superstar still a superstar? Of course.
Does all of this translate into wins? Not in this case. His supporting cast outside of Bledsoe and TJ Warren is pretty weak if we’re being honest. Devin’s kept the team in some games, and with a weak team like the Suns are this year, that’s a win in some circumstances.
As we move into the second half of this season, I think you’ll more of the January Devin Booker than the December Devin Booker. I think he’s likely to finish the season around 22ppg, shooting 45% FG and 38% 3PT. He’ll have more 30 point games. He’ll have more games where he takes over in the 4th quarter and wins the game for Phoenix.
Also, since I apparently have no fear of bold predictions in this article, I think you’ll see Booker take the leap into the national spotlight as one of the best guards in the NBA next season. He’ll improve his consistency as he ages a bit and he’ll be in All-NBA discussion next year and for many years to come after that.
For the first time in a while, there is a bright future for the Suns. They have a young superstar. Lets see where he can take them.
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