Undoubtably the most frustrating part of the Phoenix Suns’ season thus far has been the injuries to stars Devin Booker and Bradley Beal. After missing the first seven games of the year, Beal finally suited up to beat the Chicago Bulls on Wednesday night.
Booker injured his toe in the preseason, but ended up playing in the season opener and injured his left ankle and foot in the process. He missed the next three games before returning against the San Antonio Spurs when he got injured once again, this time straining his right calf.
This isn’t the first time in his career that Booker returned from an absence and injured something in his first game back.
Suns fans will remember a similar instance last season. Booker had missed the three games leading up to a marquee Christmas Day matchup against the Denver Nuggets while dealing with a groin injury. He played in that game, but re-injured his groin just four minutes into it, leading to a 21 game absence.
Booker may not have re-injured something this time around, but it’s not out of the question that his existing injuries played a part. It’s not uncommon for athletes to injure a different part of their body when overcompensating for an injury, and it’s very possible that was the case here.
Even if these injuries aren’t connected, it’s clear the Suns were careless with Booker yet again. Before the game against the Spurs, Frank Vogel indicated Booker would be on a minutes limit, yet he still played 35 minutes, more than he’s averaged the last couple of seasons.
Not only that, but these were high stress minutes, as he tried to lead a massive comeback while leading the Suns in playmaking and scoring. It’s hard to believe he didn’t go over whatever limit they had set for him.
Frank Vogel wouldn't say Bradley Beal's minute restriction other than to say it's a "range."
— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) November 8, 2023
Devin Booker played 35 minutes in his return from left ankle sprain and it was over the range.
"We're going to be smart with his rotations and not let him have too long of runs." #Suns https://t.co/2wCkfTBoMt pic.twitter.com/WSBJrOwBe5
This was in pretty stark contrast to the way Beal was just handled in his first game back. Beal appeared to have a strict minutes limit, as he only played 24, and didn’t even see the floor in overtime. Vogel and his staff have to enforce Booker’s minutes restrictions the exact same way.
On Booker’s end, he’s got to know how valuable he is to the team, and how missing a few extra games to make sure he’s right is much more favorable than another month on the sidelines. Still, it’s tough to fault him for wanting to be out there.
Booker’s competitive drive is what makes him one of the very best players in the NBA. The fact that he wants to be playing as much as he can is all you want as a fan. We wouldn’t have it any other way.
But that competitiveness does have its downsides as we saw last year. The Suns went 10-11 in that 21 games stretch after losing to Denver. That’s not terrible by any means, but it was enough to keep the Suns from contending for a higher seed than they ended up with.
The Suns also don’t want to put any more pressure on Beal and Kevin Durant than what’s necessary given their injury histories.
Kevin Durant on Alex Caruso:
— Darnell Mayberry (@DarnellMayberry) November 9, 2023
“He’s a phenomenal player. I don’t even want to call him a role player. But just a guy that you can plug with any lineup and he’s going to make the right reads, the right plays on the defensive and offensive side.” pic.twitter.com/nuJWFv8ekl
KD has shouldered an incredibly heavy workload to this point. The last thing the Suns need is for him to wear down and pick up an injury of his own, or Beal’s back issue to creep up again. That likely won’t happen if Booker only has to sit out a few more games, but it could if he rushes back and makes his calf issue worse.
Booker has already been ruled out for Friday against the Los Angeles Lakers. Matchups against LA are always premier games, and it’s possible that the in-season tournament will add even more juice to the game, so Booker would’ve likely pushed to play. It’s a great sign that the Suns have taken that decision out of his hands.
Book’s next chance to play will be Sunday against the Oklahoma City Thunder. If he does play, Vogel has to adhere to the minutes limit that the training staff sets for Booker, even if it’s a close game.
Missing several games in the first month of the season isn’t the end of the world, but turning a minor injury into another major one could put the Suns’ season in jeopardy.