Phoenix Suns big Khaman Maluach just acted on an observation that led him to valuable offseason workouts with his All-Star teammate, Devin Booker.
“We would end up being in the gym at the same time, late night, and then one time, he just texted me and was like, can we get some work in together,” Booker said on Phoenix Suns media day, Sept. 28. “I think that guard-and-big relationship is super important.”
Maluach has been appreciative and in turn is learning how to play with the team’s leading scorer and top facilitator.
“He has done this for a long time, and he has a lot of tools or a lot of stuff that I can learn from him as a center,” Maluach said at media day. “As a young center, just being able to go to him, and just ask him what I should do in this situation
because he's that type of player in the NBA that will see different coverages every day or will get blitzed every game. So just being able to be there and make his job easy for him. Ask him 'Where I should throw you the ball, what you want me to do in this situation?'”
"He sees things the coaches don't see."
— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) September 28, 2026
Suns big Khaman Maluach on Devin Booker as the two have worked out together this summer.
On competing for a starting spot: "I don't see it like that. I'm looking to do whatever the team needs." #Suns pic.twitter.com/AbBIHGtV04
Entering his 12th NBA season, Booker has played with his share of lob-threat big men, starting with Tyson Chandler and Alex Len early in his career to Deandre Ayton when the Suns reached the 2021 NBA Finals and won a franchise-record 64 games in 2021-22.
Now Booker has Maluach, who greatly respects his high basketball IQ and wants to soak up as much knowledge as possible to improve as a player and help the team succeed.
“He’s kind of like a coach himself,” Maluach continued. “I get to learn a lot from him, a lot of stuff that the coaches don't see that he sees as a player when he gets blitzed. So just being able to reach out to him and learn that and have more knowledge.”
With starting center Mark Williams expected to miss several months with a left shoulder injury, Maluach will not only play more minutes after hardly seeing any action last season as a rookie, but he’ll play more minutes with Booker.
Last season, Booker and Maluach played just 17 games together for a total of 194 minutes.
The two are speeding up the process of developing chemistry with these workouts.
“Multiple times, Devin Booker gets a hold of Khaman and they come back at night and work on stuff, just the two of them,” Suns general manager Brian Gregory said at media day.
Booker has noticed Maluach’s growth. The 7-footer was the 10th overall pick in the 2025 NBA Draft, but he averaged just three points in his 46 games played last season.
“He's way ahead of the curve just to be going into his second year,” Booker said. “He's asking a lot of questions, but you can tell he's asking them when he already knows the answer and he knows what to do. It's been a pleasure to watch him grow. I'd say he's taken the biggest leap out of anybody that I've seen this summer and with the unfortunate injury to Mark, I think (Maluach is) going to be thrown into the fire a lot more, and we'll get to learn through experience. All these moments matter.”
Have opinions about the current state of the Suns? Reach Suns Insider Duane Rankin at dmrankin@gannett.com or contact him at 480-810-5518. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter, at @DuaneRankin.
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: How a text led to Suns' Devin Booker, Khaman Maluach summer workouts
