Stephen A.: Devin Booker 'Wants to Be in NY' amid Suns Playoff ...
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The Phoenix Suns were swept by the Minnesota Timberwolves in the first round of the Western Conference playoffs, and the aftermath could lead to some major changes and departures.
Could that potentially include Devin Booker?
"Booker wants to be in New York," ESPN's Stephen A. Smith said on Monday's First Take. "That's what I'm being told. Now, he might deny it, I haven't spoken to him. I'm just telling you the scuttlebutt in the NBA circles is that the brother wanna be in New York. So if you're Phoenix, you've got at least two people—probably three—who are all getting paid about $150 million combined who don't wanna be there."
Phoenix <a href="https://twitter.com/hashtag/Suns?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">#Suns</a> Offseason Notables<br><br>Remaining<br>Devin Booker: 4 yrs, $221M<br>Bradley Beal: 2 yrs, $103.8M<br>Kevin Durant: 2 yrs, $103M<br>Grayson Allen: 4 yrs, $70M<br>Jusuf Nurkic: 2 yrs, $37.5M<br>Nassir Little: 3 yrs, $21.75M<br><br>Free Agents<br>Royce O'Neale<br>Udoka Azubuike<br>Thaddeus Young<br>Isaiah…
Plenty went wrong in Phoenix this season.
The Suns didn't have a pure point guard, any defensive stoppers or much quality depth. Booker and Kevin Durant have never quite found a flow on the offensive end. Injuries limited the trio of Booker, Durant and Bradley Beal to just 41 games together this season, and Beal in particular (18.2 PPG, 5.0 APG) never quite seemed to find his footing. It's possible that head coach Frank Vogel has lost the locker room.
Bradley Beal looked to brush Frank Vogel's hand away while heading to the bench ????<a href="https://t.co/EpFJomRKu9">pic.twitter.com/EpFJomRKu9</a>
But Booker has been the face of the franchise for years, helping to lead the Suns out of 10-year playoff drought and back to the NBA Finals in the 2020-21 season. If he actually wants out—and is eventually granted that wish—it would be a dark day in Phoenix.
As for the possibility of him wanting to go to New York, that could mean desiring to join either the Knicks or the Brooklyn Nets, though the former seems more likely.
The Knicks are currently in the playoffs and up 3-1 on the Philadelphia 76ers. The team has a bona fide star in point guard Jalen Brunson and a solid supporting cast around him. Booker would not only give the team more offensive firepower, but he wouldn't have to handle playmaking duties like he does in Phoenix.
The Nets, meanwhile, have Booker's former teammate in Mikal Bridges, but beyond that only offer a series of role players. The result was a disappointing 32-50 season and the likelihood of a rebuilding effort if the team can't be a major factor in free agency—which probably won't happen given the team's current cap situation—or on the trade market this summer.
So if Booker wants New York, it likely means he wants the Knicks. But time will tell if he has any interest in actually leaving the desert.
