Devin Booker calls his number, drops season-high 41 in win over Knicks

PHOENIX — Through a season filled with injuries, a 17-game losing streak and a hole at point guard, it’s been rather easy to forget how good Phoenix Suns shooting guard Devin Booker is at basketball.

He is more than capable of taking over games on his own, and when the game is close in the fourth quarter, the expectation is and should be that he will win the game.

That is, when he’s fully healthy.

Booker said after shootaround on Wednesday that this is the healthiest he’s been all season and it showed in a 107-96 win over the New York Knicks.

Booker scored a season-high 41, making the Knicks pay for inconsistently doubling him and giving him enough opportunities to get rolling.

You could see his healthy legs and fresh hamstrings in action with the way he exploded attacking the basket.

🔥 not much can stop our guy @DevinBook 🔥 pic.twitter.com/sAFemILSBm

— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) March 7, 2019

It was the fifth time in his career that Booker had scored at least 40 and the first time at home.

Deandre Ayton told reporters after the game before he began taking questions that Booker called his 40 pregame. He shot down questions a few times before confirming that was the case.

When Booker was asked about it he jokingly said he had no idea what Ayton was talking about before clarifying he was aiming for a number higher than 40.

To no surprise, he first credited his teammates and coaches when discussing the performance.

“We had a lot of good ATOs (plays after timeouts) tonight so shoutout coach for that,” he said. “Again, we had a really good [scouting report] and played well.”

“I mean, we all seen it,” Ayton said of the performance. “I seen every 41. I think I was on the court for most of the 41. Yeah, he couldn’t miss.”

Booker had seven points in the first quarter. He was a perfect 3-for-3 on two-point shots but missed all of his 3-pointers.

That changed in the second quarter when Booker dropped 17, shooting 5-of-6 from the field and making both of his attempts from deep.

💦 s w i s h | @DevinBook 💦 pic.twitter.com/Ni2zJUPWMb

— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) March 7, 2019

If there was any question if he would have the same bounce in the second half, he showed it on the first possession.

Starting the second half off right! 🔥 pic.twitter.com/LikL2EA7jt

— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) March 7, 2019

In the game itself, the Suns got off to a worrying and sluggish start. They shot 0-for-7 from 3-point range in the first quarter and scored only 16 points. The concerns about playing to the level of competition were proving to be true.

But Booker’s second quarter sparked the Suns’ offense to a two-point lead at halftime.

The floodgates opened in a 32-point third quarter and the Knicks’ offense got shut down to only 17 points.

While New York posted 32 points in the fourth, the Suns’ offense was on an efficient crusie control and able to get the win.

The Suns shot 12-for-22 from 3-point range in the last three quarters.

Tyler Johnson continues to look like he’s found a suitable comfort level in a Suns uniform.

With 14 points, four rebounds and six assists against the Knicks, he’s averaging 13.8 points, 4.5 rebounds and five assists per game in his last six. That’s the type of perfectly rock-solid play you’d expect from Johnson.

“He was huge,” head coach Igor Kokoskov said of Johnson’s stability as a veteran. “Again, talk about [not] panicking and being under control and understanding it’s a long game — he was one of the guys.”

The victory, of course, marks four in the Suns’ last five. And for Booker, a three-game winning streak is all that matters to him, no matter if he scored 14 or 41.

“I keep saying after every game (that) every game is a new test for us and we’re moving in the right direction,” he said. “Started off slow today and we brought it together when we needed to.

“If we can keep doing that I think we’re gonna be in good situations going forward.”

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