The good times kept on rolling for the Phoenix Suns on Friday night, as they went down to New Orleans and beat the Pelicans 123-109 to win their fourth straight game. In doing so, they are now able to look at the teams above them in the Western Conference, and begin plotting a path to the fifth or sixth seed in the next few games.
Devin Booker was also at his offensive best in this one - as he had no less than 52 points while creating a little bit of history - with around 50 of his friends and family in attendance to watch his virtuoso performance. This was vintage Booker, scoring in a myriad of different ways and lifting his team to a win against a team above them in the standings.
In the aftermath of the game, Kevin Durant shared the advice he gave to his teammate Booker, and which it will be hoped Booker can continue to use moving forward.
Speaking to the always excellent Duane Rankin of The Arizona Republic, Durant had this to say about Booker's scoring performance;
"I felt like early on he (Booker) was trying to get everybody involved, and trying to play point guard too much, it was like yo you should have took that shot there. Or you should have drove right there instead of trying to probe and get us going."Kevin Durant
This comment from Durant perhaps best sums up the season Booker has almost been forced to have by the Suns, because they don't have another true point guard who is capable of playing big moments on the roster. Booker has done an amazing job of trying to be this team's floor general, and his career high 7.7 assists per game reflect that.
Devin Booker ( @DevinBook ) 52 burger with over 7 fades on 60 FG% is crazy 🤯 high efficiency game for the cookbook 52 points 5 assists 6 threes 60 FG% breakdown by @JordanRichardSC
— Swish Cultures (@swishcultures_) January 20, 2024
pic.twitter.com/BxiQTUa62t
But in order for the Suns to be the best version of themselves, they need Booker to be the guy who put up 33.7 points per game in the playoffs last season. The return of Bradley Beal has helped some in this area as well, and in the last several games he has taken the ball out of Booker's hands from time to time so that he can focus more on what he does best, scoring.
Durant didn't stop there though, with his comments on Booker's scoring ability sure to fire up his teammate as he said;
"We goin' need that from him, I'm not surprised, I'm not excited, I expect this from him when we go out there. I'm not saying 50 points, but that aggressiveness, the shot making, I expect that from him."Kevin Durant
Durant has said all along since joining this group that this is Booker's team, and so far he has done nothing but back his teammate publicly. He is more than happy to watch as Booker puts up 25 points in the first-quarter - as he did here against the Pelicans en route to a sizzling 41-28 start to the game - while he fills in when needed around those scoring bursts.
Durant knows what it takes to win a championship, and so he is also aware that in order to achieve that goal, Booker needs to turn in the best season of his career. It is hard to say for sure if he is doing that - certainly he was the hardest Sun to grade at the halfway point of the season - but that is because he is being asked to perform a role he never has before either.
Balancing being one of the 15 best scorers in the league - Booker sits ninth at 27 points per game, Durant fifth with 28.9 - while also setting the table for everybody else is a lot to ask of a player who came into the league as a two-guard. The likes of Jayson Tatum and Jamal Murray aren't tasked with doing this, and instead only pop up occasionally to initiate the offense.
But Durant knows that Booker needs to be more aggressive in looking for his own shot, because he can make them in ways that few others in the world can. Again the return of Beal helps to straighten things out, with Grayson Allen and Eric Gordon excellent spot-up shooters to have around these guys. Booker is at his most dangerous when he's hot though, and Durant wants that to continue.