Phoenix Suns star Devin Booker made the postseason for the first time in his career this season, and he has taken full advantage of it. Booker and the Suns are on their way to the NBA Finals after defeating the Clippers 130-103 in Game 6 of the Western Conference finals on Wednesday night.
Booker, who had 22 points and seven rebounds in the series-clinching victory over the Clippers, is averaging 27.0 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 4.8 assists per game in the playoffs.
The two-time All-Star has experienced a lot of losing in Phoenix. The Suns averaged 24 wins in Booker’s first five seasons in the NBA. Then, they hired Monty Williams as their head coach last season, and he created a winning culture. While the Suns missed the playoffs last season, they went 8-0 in the bubble. Ultimately, they acquired Chris Paul, and the rest is history.
Following their Game 6 victory, Booker reflected on his journey. He’s happy to be in the Finals, but he wants to win a title.
“Just a long time coming,” Booker said. “That’s what I said to Jay Gaspar, our equipment manager. “He’s the only one in the organization that’s been here longer than me. He’s going on year 30. So, he was here and Julie, so Julie has been here also. But it’s been a long time coming. We seen the bottom, the bottom of the bottom for multiple years, and just keeping our head down. Waiting on this moment right here. Monty(Williams) coming in, building the culture, him leading us with the preparation meets opportunity. That was these moments right here, and we took it, and we ran with it. But we still have work to do. This is nice and all, but we’re going for the Larry for sure.”
Williams added on Booker: “I’m happy for him because I’ve been with him every day now athletically for two years. So, I’ve seen the work. I’ve seen the passion; I’ve seen his family and how they, not just him, but they want it. They love Phoenix. They don’t want to go anywhere. They wanted to just kind of watching it like, wow, this is pretty cool.”
There are a lot of players that would have requested a trade if they were in Booker’s shoes. Credit to him for sticking it through, and now he is four games away from winning an NBA title:
Watch below as Booker talks getting to the NBA Finals, Chris Paul, and more:
