Where Does The Phoenix Suns Backcourt Rank Among the NBA’s Best?

The Phoenix Suns smacked around their opponents with ease and whimsicality during nearly every game last season, largely thanks to their near unstoppable backcourt. The Devin Booker and Chris Paul duo primarily fueled Phoenix’s dream run to the NBA Finals, and their front office surely took note, extending a $120 million dollar contract Paul’s way this summer.

The pair averaged collectively 42.0 points per game, coming as the team’s second highest by a starting backcourt since the 1973-74 season. They also contributed together with 13.2 assists and 8.7 rebounds per game, while finishing with solid combined shooting splits at .490/.362/.888.

Needless to say, the Suns hold two massive weapons at their team’s helm, likely to terrorize their opponents once again during the 2021-22 season.

But across today’s guard-centric league, almost all NBA teams have made strong efforts to assemble stars at the top of their key. With the Los Angeles Lakers trading for Russell Westbrook a few weeks ago, this year’s free agency marks the third straight summer in which a guard has seemingly “ignited” the the NBA offseason shuffle, with Kyrie Irving and Paul doing so during each year prior.

Additionally, shooting guards became the most popular position picked during the 2021 NBA Draft with 19 total selections. Point guards tied centers as the second most popular option with 13 selections.

With all this emphasis on assembling strong backcourts, several other ball-handling duos have also emerged with some serious talent, allowing them to at least keep stride with the Suns. While ranking them all into four select tiers though, here’s how the Suns shape up.