Just three games into the team’s regular season, an on-court issue may be leading to growing frustrations in the Phoenix Suns’ locker room according to NBA Insider Chris Haynes.
After one of the worst performances of Devin Booker’s career in Monday’s loss against the Oklahoma City Thunder where he scored just three points, Haynes reports the team’s lack of point guard is causing “growing frustrations,” in the locker room.
Starting Jalen Green and Booker in the back court, the Suns are in the bottom half of the league in assists per game and three-point percentage, two key indicators of the team’s ability to move the ball.
As displayed by his only All-NBA First Team selection back in the 2021-22 season, when Chris Paul was on the team playing at an All-Star level, Booker is at his best when he’s playing alongside a true point guard so he can focus more on his individual playmaking rather than creating for himself and the team. His two most winning-est seasons are two of the three lowest assist per game totals of the past ten years of his career.
While a dynamic scorer, Green has never averaged more than 3.7 assists per game in a season and never more than three in his Suns tenure. Before coming to Phoenix, he played alongside a traditional point guard in Fred VanVleet to set up opportunities for him to score.
With the addition of rim-running and floor spacing forward Miles Bridges in the picture now and first-time starter Khaman Maluach at center, the Suns are having a hard time acclimating their new starters while also keeping their veteran ones productive. Through three games, both Dillon Brooks and Bridges are shooting a career low from the field.
While Haynes didn’t say the team is looking to make a shake-up right now, and the team is the only one in the league to have played just three games so far, it’s something to monitor if Booker and the team continue to struggle sharing the ball.
