The Phoenix Suns did the unthinkable on Sunday evening, handing the Oklahoma City Thunder only their sixth loss of the entire season.
A feat made all the more impressive by the fact that the San Antonio Spurs account for half of the Thunder’s defeats up to this point. Make no mistake, this was a big deal.
Devin Booker rediscovers old confidence in win
There is no doubt that Devin Booker is locked-in with this unlikely roster of playoff hopefuls this season. No longer is he trying to make it work with another superstar in Kevin Durant.
Despite this Booker still hasn’t shown that level of confidence we saw during the run to the 2021 NBA Finals. That all changed when Booker was asked postgame about being guarded by Alex Caruso for what was the winning shot.
“That's Alex Caruso guarding you — I mean, that's one of the best perimeter defenders in the league. What's your confidence level that you can get up a good look against that level of defender in that situation?"
— Booker Muse (@DevinBookerMuse) January 5, 2026
Devin Booker:
“Yeah, pretty confident.” pic.twitter.com/svwTsOSxMX
The delivery of that “yeah, pretty confident” says it all. Caruso is one of the best on ball defenders in the world, but Booker didn’t seem even a little bit phased by that fact as he let it fly for the win.
Dillon Brooks deserves a ton of credit at this point, because his 3-pointer leading up to Booker’s shot put the Phoenix Suns in position to win the game and improve to 21-14.
The fit next to Booker has been excellent because he can both step up when required but also clearly understands this is Booker’s team. Durant and Booker used to say all of the right things about being on the roster, whereas this new tandem is just standing on business.
This was on full display in the fourth of their most impressive win of the season, with Brooks chipping in alongside a brilliant Booker performance.
Perhaps no moment sums up the change in mentality for the franchise cornerstone than a drive with just under four minutes to go. The Thunder were guarding Booker well throughout, and at this point looked to have trapped his effectively with a double team.
Only Booker created some space, drove from the baseline and earned himself a trip to the free-throw line, handing Lu Dort is fifth foul in the process. The Booker of the last two years may well have settled for a jumper in that moment, or else looked for Durant.
Of course Booker made both to keep themselves to within four, before going on to snap an eight game losing streak to the Thunder, at that point their longest active losing streak. Not anymore, and it was thanks to the return of the Booker we know and love.