The Phoenix Suns are off to a solid 2-1 start this season - and even though unwanted rumors around one of their stars annoyingly persist - they are undoubtedly in a better spot now compared to a season ago. Head coach Mike Budenholzer can take some credit for this, as his rotations, game plan and general vibe seem to suit the franchise much better than Frank Vogel.
The addition of Ryan Dunn and Oso Ighodaro has also helped to bring more energy to the early goings of the regular season. Both already miles ahead of the realistic development plan the Suns would have had for both, with fans already calling for Dunn to start more games having done just that in the recent win over the Dallas Mavericks.
Superstar Devin Booker is also clearly improved in one area as well.
It's been a relatively quiet start to the campaign for the soon to be 28-year-old, one that has seen him average 19.7 points per contest. The lowest output since his rookie season, although you can bet that number is going to continue trending upwards as the season continues.
This isn't even a bad thing either, with Kevin Durant giving the Suns 30 each night and the team winning games, Booker is evolving his "I'll Do It" persona from the Olympic Games, to include doing a bit more of whatever it takes to win. With Bradley Beal also looking as good as ever in The Valley, some nights just won't be Booker's to score in bunches, and he seems totally cool with that.
One interesting and brilliant wrinkle he has added to his game early though - which has already benefitted the whole group massively - is his newfound love and consistency with his 3-point shot. Again we know the sample size is small - but given the output is as high as it has ever been - it is still worth talking about.
“Congratulations sir! It’s nice in here, I’m intuit”- devin booker to steve ballmer pic.twitter.com/rrEfVprFVd
— Jamal Cristopher (@JamCristopher) October 28, 2024
So far this season Booker is taking a career high 7.7 attempts from deep per game. Only in two previous seasons has he landed on or gone beyond the seven mark, and on both occasions he ended up shooting 38.3 percent on these efforts. In each of those seasons, Booker only played in 54 games (2017-18) and 68 games (2021-22).
So to be taking more shots than ever before from deep, but also be making a fantastic 43.5 percent of those, is exactly how Booker can thrive with this team. Coach Budenholzer preached the need for more 3-point efforts going back to media day, and already at just over 38 each night the team are hoisting up five more than they did last season.
Durant himself recently said that the team could be getting "at least 10 more 3-pointers up" per game, and Booker has clearly taken that instruction onboard. The best part about this shooting from the Suns' superstar is how - more often than not up to this point - the shots have not felt forced and have very much been within the flow of the game.
An important part of this is the introduction of point guard Tyus Jones, who has so far been everything he was promised to be and more for the franchise. Outside of an ugly run when the team reverted back to isolation plays when up big against the Los Angeles Lakers - before ultimately losing the game - the Suns have hummed nicely on the offensive end.
If Booker continues to be cool with letting Durant have the bigger scoring nights - while also deferring to Beal when he's going off from time-to-time - then the Suns are going to be in a good spot this season. Becoming truly elite from 3-point range looks like the final piece of the puzzle for Booker, and once he combines that with his own huge scoring games, we'll see this team at their peak.