Since the Phoenix Suns made the 2021 NBA Finals, they’ve been a massive disappointment despite the continual investment in top-end talent to get back to that point. They traded several supporting pieces from that 2021 Finals team to get Kevin Durant to pair with Devin Booker. Then they added Bradley Beal to the mix to provide more shooting. But while trying to acquire flashy names, the Suns simultaneously emptied their asset chest, leaving them with a top-heavy, exorbitantly expensive roster that amounted to just one playoff series win in the last three years.
After falling short of those championship expectations in the last few years, the Suns finally waved the white flag and hit the reset button — or rather retooled — by trading Durant to the Houston Rockets this summer and agreeing to a contract buyout with Beal, who, in turn, signed with the Clippers. The Durant trade didn’t land the Suns the type of haul they wanted, but it did net them Jalen Green and Dillon Brooks to pair with Devin Booker, the franchise star who has stayed loyal to Phoenix despite the many ups and downs over his 10-year career.
Booker could’ve left when the Suns were basement dwellers and lottery regulars early in his career, or asked for a trade when he reached All-Star status and one of the top 25-30 players in the league. Instead, he’s remained the constant sun that Phoenix orbits around. Though that doesn’t mean it’s been easy for the four-time All Star.
“A lot has to go wrong for it to fall off that drastically,” Booker said. “But I think it makes you appreciate more the details of the game, the chemistry of the game, the relationships that matter off the court. You’ve seen with our Finals team the vibe and the energy was totally different. I don’t want to thrash the last couple years, but they have been the hardest of my career.”
Since that Finals run, the Suns roster has been a constant turnover of players. They’ve tried to accumulate as many stars — and former stars — thinking that was the formula to win a championship. That obviously didn’t pan out the way new owner Mat Ishbia thought it would, and now the Suns have to navigate this new era where they’re further away from winning a title than they’ve ever been in the last five years.
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With this new core of Booker, Green and Brooks, it should be solid enough to contend for a play-in spot, but when you have a franchise star in Booker who has reached the mountaintop of getting to the NBA Finals, will fighting for a play-in spot be enough? Booker signed a two-year max extension with Phoenix this summer, basically confirming his commitment to the Suns, something he reconfirmed at Media Day.
“From being at the bottom and almost getting the job done — I have unfinished business here,” Booker said. “I know how much [a championship] would mean to this city and this organization.”
Booker’s contract takes him through the 2029-30 season, by which time he’ll only be 33 years old. If the Suns can’t help Booker get back to the Finals by installing quality talent around him, it’s fair to wonder if that loyalty will remain when it comes time again to think about another extension.