How much is Devin Booker to blame for the Suns recent struggles and can the Suns build around him going forward?
The “coach killer” label was attached to Kevin Durant’s legacy midway through the 2023–24 season and into the 2024–25 season, as the Phoenix Suns parted ways with Frank Vogel after just one year, followed by Mike Budenholzer. Both coaches struggled to “connect” with the players and created friction in the locker room. However, the noise around Durant being a “coach killer” has since quieted, likely because it has become increasingly clear that it wasn’t Durant, but rather Devin Booker, who had a falling out with Coach Budenholzer, a story that went global over the past week.
The friction between the coach and the players was likely spread evenly across the locker room, but when I looked for a leader to step up, I looked to Booker.
Devin Booker on where he needs to be better next year: “I don’t think I shot the ball well this year. Just win games at all costs, try and empower my will on the other team…being a leader, using my voice more. Pretty much everything when you fall this short” pic.twitter.com/ekxpFR8QtO
— Gerald Bourguet (@GeraldBourguet) April 10, 2025
He was likely quieted by the reports, but with another wasted season now behind us, I’d like to move on, though I also don’t want to forget that this will be Booker’s third coach in three seasons. As the centerpiece of the franchise, the pressure has to start lifting heading into next season, especially with Booker turning 29 this year.
The label “coach killer” and “good stats, bad team” player will surface next year.
So on top of the Suns needing to rebound from a miserable stretch of seasons, Booker will head into next year with even more pressure—not just to keep the Suns afloat, but to also find chemistry with a new head coach, who will likely be someone he had a say in choosing, if the franchise wants to keep him happy.
But isn’t that part of growing up in the league? Adapting, leading, and finding ways to win in any situation? Or was Devin Booker simply unable to wrestle control of the game from Coach Bud and step up as the true on-court leader the Suns needed? I’m just lost trying to understand how Phoenix continues to build around Booker, who, since Chris Paul’s departure, hasn’t led the team to a single playoff series win.
I am not completely out on Booker because I know his stats will say otherwise, and his ties here to Phoenix are tight, but I am completely out in predicting that he will be more vocal and become a true leader.
If Booker is the guy we’re building around, then we’re in serious trouble. A championship won’t be won, and the Suns will likely continue to fall flat year after year.
Some might say Booker deserves better.
The organizational malpractice surrounding Devin Booker his entire career has just been depressing to witness.
He really deserves so much better than this. https://t.co/G9rBc0ofT2
— Suns Are Better (@SunsAreBetter) April 14, 2025
But that would be as the third-best player on a true contender, playing the Olympic Book role. So if the Suns genuinely have championship aspirations here in Phoenix, they need to bring in a real superstar, someone who can lead this team to contend consistently, not just hope for a run.
If Booker wanted to be a leader, he would have shown that by now. A coach can silence a player behind closed doors, but when it comes to being on the court, there should be no stopping the passion and poise of a true leader.
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