3 takeaways from Suns first win of 2023-24
By Justin Lee
1. Devin Booker was the entire offense
For the Suns when Booker wasn’t in the game, the Suns offense struggled to do anything. That could have or would have been fixed potentially had Beal played. But he didn’t, and the secondary lineup with Eric Gordon at point guard was just terrible.
When Booker was in the game, the offense was amazing, as was he. He started off a potential MVP campaign on Tuesday night with his play as both a scorer, scoring 32 points, but also as a point guard, as he finished with eight assists. He finished the game having scored or assisted on the last 15 points of the game for the Suns.
When Booker went out, even when Kevin Durant was in the game still, the offense wasn’t great. In fact, it was kind of bad. However, how many times will Kevin Durant shoot 32% from the field? Not very often, and yet, they still won. Now, you also have to factor in the terrible nights Eric Gordon and Grayson Allen had from beyond the arc, a combined 2-14 from three-point range.
I know it was game one, and there are still 81 games left to be played in the regular season; however, it is clear Booker is the guy for this team.