The Phoenix Suns returned to winning ways in New York on Saturday night, powering past a Knicks team that was without two of their key players.
Many were surprised to see Devin Booker play a massive 38 minutes and post 27 points, both team highs, mere days after spraining his left ankle.
Booker's willingness to play shows how much he believes in Suns
There can be no greater indicator that he thinks this roster has a chance of not only making the playoffs, but winning a series, then by playing through the pain to be out there.
Booker did say in the aftermath that he knew "the adrenaline" would kick in once he got going, but that just proves that he was thinking about his clearly not 100 percent ankle in the first place.
"Having those guys in the building, guys I grew up, inspired by; I've known Gallo since I was 12, him & my dad played together…
— New York Basketball (@NBA_NewYork) January 18, 2026
"All the history here…one of the most famous venues in the world"
– Devin Booker at MSG w Danilo Gallinari, JR Smith, Amar'e, Z-Bo, Novak, Ewing pic.twitter.com/LhI9vDf0Vx
The 29-year-old only missed one game on this six game Eastern road swing, a loss to the Detroit Pistons, having gotten back on the court in the defeat to the Miami Heat having rolled his ankle in that game.
If you go back to the last couple of seasons when Kevin Durant was in town, do you think that would have happened? Is it more likely Booker sees guys like Dillon Brooks and Collin Gillespie give their all every single night, and much like his Team USA days say "I'll do it"?
He wouldn't be risking his body if he didn't think this roster was capable of doing something special this season, and really they've already achieved that by being competitive.
It is surely easier to get yourself hyped up for a game when you've got second-quarter MVP Brooks in your ear, while head coach Jordan Ott has created a team of defensive menaces who care about every possession.
Nobody could have blamed Booker for coasting this season. His second signature shoe just came out, he is beloved in The Valley and he's secured financially thanks to his monster contract.
Yet rather than be happy with the fact this team is more competitive than anybody could have imagined, he is getting back out there as soon as he possibly can to win games.
Booker did also mention after the game that having so many Knicks legends in the house and it being in Madison Square Garden that he had to be out there to feel all of that energy.
That is something that only a true hooper would say, and we know Booker is most certainly that. He's always been there when Phoenix needs him, and is as bought in as ever before.