Steve Kerr just piled more pressure on Suns' Jordan Ott without saying a word

Devin Booker will spend his whole career with the Phoenix Suns, right?

Well, if it's ever in question, the Golden State Warriors and Coach Steve Kerr admire Booker so much that they would reportedly be willing to part with a ton to acquire him, according to Bay Area journalist Tim Kawakami. That's not good news for Coach Jordan Ott, who is already fighting a serious uphill battle to win more than 45 games, make the playoffs, juggle new arrivals, and keep Booker happy.

Jordan Ott under huge pressure to win with Booker thanks to Steve Kerr

Kawakami spoke on the Warriors Plus/Minus Podcast recently and revealed that both Booker and Kerr enjoyed working together with Team USA at the 2024 Olympic Games in Paris. Not only that, but he also believes the Warriors are huge fans of Booker's game.

"I forgot about Booker. I think the Warriors like him too much, if you ask me. But they love him.
Steve loves him. Booker loved playing for Steve (at the Olympics)."

What Golden State could actually send to the Suns in return is another story, not to mention the fact that owner Mat Ishbia has already said Booker is not available at any price.

But if the Suns regress from their 45 wins a season ago, Booker could take the decision out of their hands by asking for a trade. He turns 30 next month, and the devastating Mark Williams injury further complicates Phoenix's desire to compete next season.

All of this puts the pressure on Coach Ott to showcase that he can lead the Suns to eventual success down the road, despite having zero experience in doing so. That is not a problem Kerr has, having achieved everything in the NBA and internationally. The Warriors are the most successful franchise of the last decade as well; that speaks for itself.

Phoenix has no more outs, is getting dangerously close to the second apron once again, and has no future picks to get excited about. They are designed to win right now, in much the same way as the Warriors. The key difference there is that they have Stephen Curry, whereas the Suns' big offseason acquisition was... Miles Bridges.

He is definitely going to help the franchise cornerstone win games, but if you're measuring the combination of Coach Ott, Bridges, and the rest of the Suns' roster to that of Coach Kerr, Curry, and the Warriors, it trends worryingly in Golden State's favor.

Suns have no need to worry yet as Warriors don't have assets

Thankfully, there is no reason to sound the alarm just yet, as Booker would have to specifically ask to go to the Warriors for this to happen. The front office would never make him available to only one rival (only the Dallas Mavericks were ever foolish enough to do that), and the Warriors could not compete against others on the open market for Booker's services.

But with Booker being undervalued around the league at this point, knowing he has an admirer in Kerr and could slot in as the perfect co-star next to Curry is worth keeping tabs on.

It would also give him an actual point guard to play next to, and we know how badly Booker needs that to happen again for the sake of his own chance to win a championship. It might be the dog days of the offseason, but this is a concern considering the Suns have to keep climbing the Western Conference to justify the decisions they have made around Booker.

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