With the news of the Bradley Beal trade yesterday, the Suns lost their only starting-caliber point guard in Chris Paul, but now have three of the best offensive weapons in the entire league. Should Devin Booker run the point or should the Suns look for another option?
Thank you for reading this post, don't forget to subscribe!Booker, Beal and Kevin Durant all are capable of bringing the ball up the court. However, none are really known as floor generals but are all above-average facilitators for their positions.
Throwback to D-Book and Bradley Beal getting buckets together 🔥
(via @Ballislife)
pic.twitter.com/7qwvWCljqM— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) June 19, 2023
Suns fans know that “Point Book” has shown signs of being a bright spot for the team in the past, though the Suns haven’t run him primarily at the point for the duration of his minutes in a long time.
Due to Cameron Payne and Paul injuries during the playoffs last season, Booker showed a lot of promise running the one in times where it was needed.
Devin Booker basically became the Suns Point Guard in Game 5, He and the defensive attention he was getting led to the Suns shredding the Clippers defense. pic.twitter.com/vP5wSBPkdL
— RB (Ringless Bitch) (@RyB_311) April 30, 2023
He averaged 7.2 assists per game throughout the playoffs, as he proved to have the ability to read blitzes teams threw at him and find open teammates.
Kevin Durant even called Booker “an oversized point guard” after Game 2 of the Clippers series in April when Booker recorded 38 points and nine assists.
Kevin Durant spoke postgame about Devin Booker’s brilliance tonight against the Clippers’ defensive coverages.
He called Booker an “oversized point guard” with how well he can make plays for others, too. pic.twitter.com/jiekogAro9
— Shane Young (@YoungNBA) April 19, 2023
Some have even suggested that Booker could put up similar numbers to prime James Harden with Beal and KD by his side if he does run the point, as he averaged 29 points and 8.2 assists in 17 games without CP3 last season.
In 17 games last season without Chris Paul in the lineup, Devin Booker averaged 29.0 points and 8.2 assists on an elite 65.0 TS%.
Booker is more than capable of handling primary ball handler duties while maintaining incredible scoring efficiency.
Phoenix’s offense is now fully… pic.twitter.com/4sChSurLIS
— Evan Sidery (@esidery) June 18, 2023
In the 2018-19 and 2019-20 seasons, Booker averaged 6.8 and 6.5 assists per game, as he started plenty of games at the position and gave Suns fans the first glimpse into all that Point Book could do.
Beal has also shown to be an above-average playmaker, as he averaged 5.4 assists last season and a career-high 6.6 the season prior. Beal averages a career 4.3 assists per game, while Booker averages a career 4.8 assists per game. Durant averages the same amount of assists as Beal for his career (4.3) and averaged 5.5 for the Suns in the playoffs last season.
Because of all that Booker has shown from a playmaker standpoint with KD by his side, I think the best option for the Suns would be having him as the primary point guard and floor general, but having Beal and KD bring up the ball occasionally. However, they could easily pivot to Beal being the point guard depending on how the defense is playing them. The flexibility won’t hurt them, but they need to establish one or the other as the primary facilitator to create the least amount of confusion as possible. Booker has done well in terms of facilitating in what has been primarily Kevin Young’s (still with the Suns) offensive system.
What a pass from Devin Booker to KD pic.twitter.com/OyuLrIz2tU
— andrew leezus (@AndrewLeezus) April 22, 2023
The Suns also still have Payne under contract and added point guard Jordan Goodwin in the Beal trade. Both would be good backup options, and Payne has shown that he could start. However, the most viable option for a different starting point guard (if the Suns choose to go that route) would be to trade Deandre Ayton for one or trade him to free up money to sign one.
The big issue that could arise if the Suns go get another point guard is the lack of size they will have in their starting lineup, as Beal is 6-foot-4 and Booker is 6-foot-5. In my opinion, Booker, Beal and KD have all proven they can facilitate, so the Suns should look to surround their new Big 3 (and whatever center they have) with a 3-and-D player instead of a point guard.
Whatever direction the Suns decide to go, Durant and Booker wanted Beal in Phoenix, so they obviously felt that it could work. Teams will be throwing double teams at them left and right and mixing up their defensive schemes every game, but all three have shown that they are more than willing to find the open man. However, they can all get a bucket as well.
“The Phoenix Suns aggressively went after Bradley Beal… Even Kevin Durant and Devin Booker recruited him – This team is all-in on a championship” 🔥@ShamsCharania on #Wizards trading Bradley Beal to #Suns for CP3, Shamet & picks #RunItBack pic.twitter.com/mP6RC3VnUD
— FanDuel TV (@FanDuelTV) June 19, 2023
There are a ton of question marks for the Suns now and in the future especially regarding the salaries of the three players, but one we will soon see them answer is whether or not Booker will be the future starting point guard of the team.
Isiah Thomas Was Involved in Chris Paul Trade to the Wizards
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Brendan Mau is a college sports insider and general assignment reporter for Burn City Sports. You can follow him on Twitter via @Brendan_Mau
