Phoenix Suns: Devin Booker is the Best Player Left in NBA Playoffs

Phoenix Suns: Devin Booker is better than Paul George

Still unbeknownst to when Kawhi Leonard might return, Paul George stands alone as the best player for Phoenix’s current opponent: the Los Angeles Clippers.

Illustrated best by how often his nickname shifts from “Playoff-P” to “Pandemic-P,” inconsistencies during big time games remains George’s biggest flaw. We saw this come into play already this postseason, as George and the Clippers struggled early against the Dallas Mavericks, even falling into an 0-2 hole.

Los Angeles managed to fight their way back to a Game 7, winning and then moving onto the next round. But to start off against the Jazz, George struggled again, shooting 34.3 percent from the field with the Clippers digging themselves into another 0-2 deficit.

George found his grove shortly after, scoring 31 points twice, then 37, and finally 28 to close out the Jazz after six games. But Sunday afternoon, he looked shaky once again, scoring 34 points, but going only 10-26 from the floor and dropping the game 114-120.

But even with the distrust which George carries into every game unaccounted for, Booker still seems like a more adept player right now. PG13’s playoff averages currently sit at 26.6 points, 8.9 rebounds, and 5.3 assists per game. Booker’s 29.0 points and 5.4 assists per game both surpass that, with George only putting up better numbers as a rebounder, doing so by 1.5 boards per game. George’s rebounding numbers lead his entire team right now, but although he might carry an advantage on the glass, Booker’s numbers nearly surpassing everyone across the entire Clippers roster even as a guard make them impressive nonetheless.

Strictly offensively speaking though, George might wield an ability to score at all three levels like Booker, but still does so while averaging less points per game, and at a much less efficient rate, more like Antetokounmpo. George’s shooting splits go .444/.375/.892, again behind once compared to Booker’s .491/.382/.924 marks.

Defensively, George seems to have fallen off a bit from his form a few years ago. Out of all 236 playoff participants this postseason, George owns the 170th worst defensive ranking, with Booker treading water at 95th best. This lifts Booker’s net rating far beyond George’s, clearly identifying him as the more efficient player across the board.

No matter what direction one looks from, Booker collectively beats George. The numbers back this up, as do his team’s top playoff record at 9-2.

Showing no signs of slowing down, enjoy Booker’s excellence while you can. Even if he leads his team all the way to an NBA championship, that only leaves a few games left to continue watching this absolute spectacle. Hopefully by that time though, his stance as a true NBA star will come as knowledge far less concealed.