Sand runs through the hour glass for Booker

It’s not who starts a game, it’s who finishes that truly matters…

The predictable piling on of Devin Booker has been in full force since the Suns were kicked to the curb by Oklahoma City earlier this week. “He’s lost his edge”, “he cant make a three pointer”, “he’s overpaid”, etc, etc etc. Yes, my inbox has been looking for a someone to blame after the Suns first round exit. Booker is that guy. I’m sure in Denver today, fans are doing the same to Jamal Murray and Jokic. Part of the territory.

It’s easy to point out that Booker was more of a rim orange paint chipper and glass breaker from the three point stripe shooting just 25%. I will also give OKC credit for being a very good defensive team. Crushing Booker for that one stat is no way to judge the series. He could’ve shot 45% and the Suns would’ve still lost. You can’t lay it all at the feet of the star player. 

Here’s the thing about Booker that no one seems to want to acknowledge, he has played A LOT of basketball and while the age says 29(30 in October) there is only so much sand in the hourglass. Two Olympic Gold Medal appearances aren’t just a fun little hobby over the summer. Playing on teams that didn’t have much in the way of talent or were just bad chemistry(Durant in purple and orange) takes tread off of the tire. I remember watching the painful ending of Steve Nash in his second act with the Suns. Father time had taken it’s toll on his back. He didn’t look like the same player at 40 when he retired as he did when he was 30. Booker started his NBA run when he was only 18. He’s rolled up a terrific 12 year run which has been a joy to watch, but the miles on the body will ALWAYS win out. 

“What’s wrong with Devin Booker?”, shouldn’t be a question, The Suns would better off  considering how to have him fresh for the 2027 playoffs. Sure, he can be the last guy introduced off the bench when the score is 0-0 or he can be on the floor with two minutes to play in a tie game having played 25-30 minutes a game(he averaged 33.5 minutes per game this past season). There’s nothing wrong with evolving into a sixth man role AT SOME POINT. James Harden, Manu Ginobili, Payton Pritchard, Tyler Herro and many more have thrived in that role. Booker could do the same as he starts the backend of his career. 

Predictably, Suns Owner Mat Ishbia shut down any trade talk around Booker.

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Devin Booker is going to lead us to a championship here in Phoenix. That’s what he’s going to do.”

Suns team owner Mat Ishbia when asked about the idea of trading Booker.

“Devin Booker is not getting traded. Devin Booker is our franchise player. We’re going to win a… pic.twitter.com/tH9SqfLnja

— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) May 1, 2026

That all sounds good, but remember this is the same owner that tore apart the franchise with the failed Kevin Durant trade. This is the same owner who went from Monty Williams to Frank Vogel to Mike Budenholzer, to Jordan Ott as the head coach in less than four years. It looks like he nailed the fourth attempt, but to say he’s missed more than hit on big ticket items, would be accurate.

If it’s my team, I trade Booker now. The Suns are in no-mans-land as they are currently constructed and the balance of power in the Western Conference has OKC, San Antonio, and Minnesota all rising with your stars. A nice 45-50 regular season team will put butts in seats and make the bottom line look good, but do you see a path where Booker is starting and leading the team to a NBA Title in the next 2-3 years? Meantime, the sand drips through the hourglass…