With the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris now in the books, it is safe to say that few players on Team USA saw their stock rise like Devin Booker. Not only did he call his shot a year before the team would go on to win gold, he's been widely praised for his attitude and play for his country.
When the group needed both a player capable of starting and closing games - but also one comfortable letting Stephen Curry get the limelight in the final two contests on the road to gold - Booker was the man for them. A team high 10 points at the half in the gold medal game versus France, before Curry went and did his thing.
These good vibes have got us thinking about which Olympians we'd love to see team up with Booker in The Valley.
Maybe it's because the prospect of Curry and LeBron James on the court together made so much sense that it would be so fun to see across a whole NBA season. More likely again is the fact this can never happen. Not that the Suns will care, they've already got Kevin Durant who easily would have made this list if he didn't already play for Phoenix. Let's expand it beyond Team USA as well.
3. Tyrese Haliburton
We'll start off with the easiest - and most painful - selection of the bunch in Tyrese Haliburton of the Indiana Pacers. Easy because like Booker he is what we're now calling a "movement shooter", but painful because the Suns could have drafted Haliburton back in 2020.
We know that Haliburton has got jokes as well, poking fun at himself in the wake of winning a gold medal despite getting a pair of DNPs in the final two games. Funny as that is, that kind of attitude is exactly what was lacking in Phoenix last season. Everything seemed very serious and not at all fun, but Haliburton's vibes alone would fix that.
When you ain’t do nun on the group project and still get an A🏅 pic.twitter.com/xpshYZhMyA
— Tyrese Haliburton (@TyHaliburton22) August 10, 2024
Of course he's also an All-Star level player, capable of being the point guard that the Suns so desperately needed last time out. Tyus Jones and Monte Morris are great and all, but a backcourt featuring Booker and Haliburton would be fearsome.
Haliburton would go a long way to fixing the turnover issues that plagued the Suns last season, while his 20 points and over 10 assists per night would bring the team's offensive play to a whole other level. Just a fun pairing to think about, because of how well Booker and Haliburton would fit together. As we saw from Booker's improved defensive play, it would work on both ends too.