Mammoth-Garden-804

98 | 5 hours ago

Here’s my hot take. The Suns will never do anything with Book as their No. 1.

kingofnick | Suns

68 | 5 hours ago

The Suns have already made the Finals with Booker as their No. 1?

ThinReply2047 | Thunder

29 | 5 hours ago

Was he really their #1 though? CP3 is a floor raiser and the leader of that offense

CreativeContract2170 | Suns

56 | 5 hours ago

He definitely was.

CP elevated the entire team though

throwawayacct2creep

-1 | 5 hours ago

SGA approved of your comment. CP and Payne played better than booker in elimination games.

DeadDay | OKC

14 | 5 hours ago

Crazy how much Shai learned from CP3 in 1 year vs Booker.

kingofnick | Suns

11 | 5 hours ago

#1 option on offense, yeah.

Adorable-Bike-9689

6 | 5 hours ago

Exactly. This is no different than Amare Stoudemire being the #1 option for the Suns. That doesn’t mean best player or most important player. Means you’re the #1 scorer for the team.

kingofnick | Suns

14 | 5 hours ago

Booker led the team in usage. He was the fulcrum of the entire offense.

Chris Paul 100% raised the ceiling of the team, no doubt about it. But the team doesn’t make the Finals without Booker.

Adorable-Bike-9689

2 | 5 hours ago

Siakam led the Pacers in usage didn’t he?

kingofnick | Suns

11 | 5 hours ago

24% to Hali’s 22%.

Booker had 32% usage that season. That was about the same as guys like Spida, Giannis, LeBron, Dame and Steph.

lava172 | Suns

1 | 4 hours ago

Yeah and it showed, he looked like a grinded down hollowed up version of himself

kingofnick | Suns

8 | 4 hours ago

When he scored back to back 40 point games in the finals?

itsahmemario | Knicks

5 | 4 hours ago

And won East MVP

OffMyEricDickerson | Lakers

5 | 5 hours ago

CP3 was also injured and in COVID protocols for a good chunk of the playoffs

fatkamp | Warriors

2 | 4 hours ago

CP3 was doing a ton, but Booker was the best player IMO pretty easily

cactusmaster69420 | San Diego Clippers

3 | 3 hours ago

Booker was better in the playoffs

Glowwerms | Suns

1 | 4 hours ago

It was a weird situation where CP3 was our best player but Book was the number 1 scoring option

kg005 | Thunder

5 | 5 hours ago

He had CP3, who was more like 1b. But he’s definitely not the ceiling raiser as Luka or Shai or Jokic is. He’s a tier below.

Adorable-Bike-9689

16 | 5 hours ago

Hes definitely not in the Tatum class. He’s more than a tier below top tier MVP class players

callitajax1 | Raptors

3 | 4 hours ago

Great point if we have SGA Luka and Jokic as elite tier. Below them is tatum and maybe giannis if hes still considered that? Who else would we have on the tatum level. And then who do we keep on the booker level? Ant?

Belovy

1 | 23 minutes ago

On Booker level, I have Brunson and Mitchell. 2 other guys who can clearly lead an offense to 50+ wins and the 2nd round but not much further.

kingofnick | Suns

7 | 5 hours ago

Yeah sure, but the comment didn’t say “is Booker a ceiling raiser on the level of Luka, Shai or Jokic?”.

It said that the Suns will never do anything with Book as their no. 1, and my response was that they have been a Finals team with Booker as the no. 1.

Maverick_1991 | Hawks

1 | 42 minutes ago

Duh

Lou_Peachum_2 | Clippers

3 | 5 hours ago

That was an off year, considering every WC team they faced had a star player missing. AD was out for a majority of Lakers series, Murray and pretty much the entire Nuggets supporting cast was out for Denver, and Kawhi was out for the Clippers.

kingofnick | Suns

12 | 5 hours ago

Okay? Does that change the fact that the Suns made the Finals with Booker as the #1 option?

Colour me surprised that the bastions of health that are Anthony Davis and Kawhi Leonard got hurt. CP3 was also hurt during the Lakers series, and although he still played, he averaged 9 points on 38% shooting.

He also missed the first two games of the Suns vs Clippers series… and the Suns went 2-0.

Lou_Peachum_2 | Clippers

-8 | 5 hours ago

Does that change the fact that the Suns made the Finals with Booker as the #1 option?

Sure, if you want to remove all context. Unless we’re hoping the Suns rebuild and enter a WC playoffs with a star player missing from every team, then Booker isn’t capable of being the number 1 option. This was evident the following year, when the Suns ran into a healthy team.

He also missed the first two games of the Suns vs Clippers series… and the Suns went 2-0.

This is a series that went to 6, and was 1 alley oop away from it being 1-1 in the beginning where Reggie jackson was the Clippers 2nd best player.

Also.. he did play the first 2 games? Are you talking about NOLA the following year?

kingofnick | Suns

2 | 5 hours ago

I’m talking about CP3 missing the first two games.

It’s always brought up that Kawhi was out that series, which is true, but the Suns were also missing one of their top two guys for those two games, and the Clippers still failed to win either of them.

They 100% should’ve won Game 2, but PG choked and missed two free throws that would’ve put the Clippers up three. Two possessions later, Ayton wins it with the alley oop.

The series did go to 6, but it wasn’t that close. The Suns won Game 6 by a hundred points.

noonie1

7 | 5 hours ago

Kind of crazy that KD joins every rising team and destroys them.

Low-Conflict9366

3 | 4 hours ago

Booker posting 36 unbothered on instagram after losing the 2023 playoffs was a sign of the KD effect.

EggsInMyToolbox | Suns

4 | 5 hours ago

Y’all had 2 shots to win a game without Chris Paul and went down 0-2

Nobody ever gives af about our injuries lol

kingofnick | Suns

2 | 5 hours ago

No one ever remembers that the reason that the Valley Oop play with Ayton won the game was because Paul George was fouled with 8 seconds to go, the Clippers up by one, and he proceeded to brick both free throws.

But of course, it’s the Suns fault they played injured teams.

Lou_Peachum_2 | Clippers

-2 | 5 hours ago

I think everyone can agree that Kawhi Leonard then was more significant than CP3 being out…

kingofnick | Suns

3 | 5 hours ago

No one’s saying that CP3 was better than Kawhi, but in terms of importance to their respective teams?

EggsInMyToolbox | Suns

0 | 5 hours ago

Well he was our ‘MVP’ in most people’s eyes that year

504090 | Thunder

3 | 5 hours ago

That version of Booker no longer exists

flexingtonsteele | LAL

1 | 4 hours ago

Nah that was CP

InTheMorning_Nightss | San Diego Clippers

-3 | 5 hours ago

It took immense injury luck in their favor with a notably stronger supporting cast with a still very solid Cp3, Ayton playing the best ball of his life, and other great supporting players.

Probably not achieving those heights again with him.

IcyMission3 | Celtics

42 | 5 hours ago

Is that even a hot take

Relatively_Cool | Lakers

24 | 5 hours ago

Booker has been in the league for 10 years without a ring and dude wants to call that a “hot take” lmao

ExpressionAlone5204 | Thunder

8 | 5 hours ago

That’s pretty frigid take I think

Salty_Examination486

6 | 5 hours ago

They reached the ceiling by making the finals in 2021

ddottay | Cavaliers

3 | 5 hours ago

That 2021 run fooled the Suns into thinking there was more to him than what he is.

Early-Candidate5492

13 | 5 hours ago

I don’t necessarily think it fooled the suns.

The following year they won 64 games.

I think it’s more about the roster.

If you meant thinking he can run point yeah I agree with that.

fatkamp | Warriors

0 | 4 hours ago

Just lying in broad daylight. He was electric in the 2023 playoffs too

LumpySpaceGunter | Warriors

1 | 4 hours ago

He is a talented scorer but the dude is a career loser lol that’s not exactly a hot take.

Other_Beat8859 | Suns

1 | 4 hours ago

He can’t be a first option unfortunately. He has to be a second option. If he was someone who purely focused on scoring instead of trying to be facilitator, he’d be great. Honestly, it sucks because I love Book, but if I’m look at everything from a neutral perspective, trading him for the future and going full tank would probably be the best thing for the franchise.

diderooy | SAS

1 | 4 hours ago

will never do anything again

Glowwerms | Suns

1 | 4 hours ago

This is a hot take amongst Suns fans but I agree. He’s still a very good player, has improved a lot as a defender, can playmake and all that but he does it at a full tier below what it takes to lead a contending team

CreativeContract2170 | Suns

55 | 5 hours ago

Well the last 4 was against the fucking Thunder so…

Garginator850 | Suns

31 | 5 hours ago

And 2 of them were against the eventual champion, the Nuggets.

CreativeContract2170 | Suns

13 | 5 hours ago

After CP got hurt. So yeah..

Garginator850 | Suns

9 | 5 hours ago

That game 6 lineup will always be so fucking funny to me. At the time it was tragic but can’t help but laugh now.

CreativeContract2170 | Suns

14 | 5 hours ago

Cam Payne, Jock Landale and Landry Shamet in the playoffs starting against the future champion Denver Nuggets. Yeah I’m not gunna go after Book for that one

tore_a_bore_a | Warriors

4 | 5 hours ago

I at least thought that Jock Landale was outplaying Ayton that series

kingofnick | Suns

2 | 5 hours ago

You or I could’ve checked in for the Suns and outplayed Ayton in that series.

Iggy_Slayer

32 | 5 hours ago

The most ok “star” player in the league. Lets give him another $300m.

Half_baked_prince | Clippers

22 | 5 hours ago

Booker has eaten a lot of shit for his poor shooting this season but I’d be thrilled about the season if I was a suns fan. Basically playing with house money got them as far as the playoffs, which is further than I think anyone preseason would have given them.

Wet-LikeImBook | Suns

2 | 5 hours ago

Only sane take. We were projected to be a bottom team by all experts and played our way up to 7th seed and drafted well. Booker is still a great player but he is out of his Natural position. The olympics have put him in this funk where he is trying to transform the way he plays to where he can get the whole team to play well and has been suffering the growing pains for two seasons. Maybe next season he puts it all together or he says fuck it we ball and demands the front office get him a dynamic facilitator.

Low-Conflict9366

0 | 4 hours ago

House money is all they have for the foreseeable future, there is no point in tanking for them. Still paying Beal, multiple future draft picks gone, Booker on an extensive, expensive contract.

sixth_hokage06

10 | 5 hours ago

It’s all been downhill since that Raptor made him uncomfortable

KaraDealer | Lakers

5 | 5 hours ago

He already got his bag. Only way to progress is to request a trade. 🤪

fenrir1208 | Thunder

6 | 5 hours ago

And it’s all happening against opponents in our division. NW might just be vastly underrated for how competitive it is.

I feel sad for Booker, it looks like his confidence was just shot completely in this series.

THEbaddestOFtheASSES

6 | 5 hours ago

As someone who was rooting hard for the Suns to win a ring back in 20-21. I realized it was never gonna happen if Booker was their #1. Great player. He’s just not THAT dude.

BigBirdsBrain | Vancouver Grizzlies

2 | 5 hours ago

Blame the build more than the player.

AnkitPancakes | Thunder

2 | 5 hours ago

that’s too bad, but i think the suns are in a good spot to improve next year

Lost_Ship_6428

1 | 5 hours ago

Klay Thompson right now: https://i.imgur.com/VPnky1X.png

squamish_shaman | Pistons

1 | 5 hours ago

Hey! He’d fit in perfect on the Pistons!

domrayn

1 | 4 hours ago

Kendall Jenner is the gift that keeps on giving. Notice her whole family dates players that are on the up, sucks their star power and leaves them after they drop off.

LogicalGain6578 | Lakers

1 | 3 hours ago

He needs a change of scenery.

Ok_Delivery_9960

0 | 5 hours ago

Maybe he’ll stop running his mouth now. Most likely not though

Kuntsaw | Suns

2 | 4 hours ago

Worse players run their mouths

throwawayacct2creep

-6 | 5 hours ago

Booker will go down as the Charles Barkley of my era. 0 Ring

brnccnt7

10 | 5 hours ago

Barkley won mvp

Risuna23 | Suns

3 | 4 hours ago

Booker wishes he was as good as Barkley.

Ok_Bug_6890 | Wizards

-10 | 5 hours ago

Poverty

ValleyRalley | Suns

4 | 5 hours ago

Hidden profile

Ok_Bug_6890 | Wizards

-2 | 5 hours ago

Worry about the state of AZ, and how they voted for a dictatorship than my profile status.

ValleyRalley | Suns

2 | 5 hours ago

How much of a pussy do you have to be to hide your reddit profile lol

xzadetechnoHD | Thunder

3 | 5 hours ago

I see him constantly complaining or crying about Shai/okc too. He seems absolutely miserable

Lou_Peachum_2 | Clippers

1 | 5 hours ago

tell ‘em bug

Following the series sweep against the Thunder, Devin Booker has now lost 10 straight playoff games.