Devin Booker’s hot streak amid Suns’ woes: By the numbers

OK, maybe this is not the time to cherry-pick positives for the Phoenix Suns.

A favorable January schedule to keep themselves relevant hasn’t gotten off to a great start. The Suns have lost two of the first three games in this five-game homestand featuring five below-.500 opponents. Considering the fashion in which those losses occurred, it’s not good.

But Devin Booker has been beyond good.

“Right now, I am sure he will trade all of that in for a win,” head coach Monty Williams said Tuesday after a 114-103 loss to the Sacramento Kings that featured a blown 21-point Phoenix lead. “I know Book well enough now. That is not what he is thinking about. He wants to win. We need every point as you can see.

“We had an unreal practice yesterday. We just could not bring it all to the game today to sustain it. It is tough. It is hard. I am sure he would trade all of that in for a win.”

Let’s step away from all the problems there to appreciate the one guy who’s doing things right.

Booker is on a tear, both in franchise terms and historically in the NBA.

7

It’s been seven games in a row of 30 or more points scored by Booker, a franchise record.

1

Over a seven-game stretch, only one player in the last 30 years has ever posted better averages of efficiency than Booker’s 34.7 points per game, 54.8% shooting and 92.8% accuracy from the foul line.

Dwyane Wade’s run from Feb. 18 to March 2, 2009, saw the Miami Heat guard average 35.9 points, 54.9% field goal shooting and 92.8% shooting from the foul stripe.

Efficient https://t.co/ZDLGyGDA5i

— DWade (@DwyaneWade) January 8, 2020

9

The efficiency bar is even more impressive even if you bring down the field goal percentage drastically. Nine players in NBA history have combined for 13 streaks of scoring 30 or more with better than 47% shooting over seven games in a row.

Shaquille O’Neal, Amar’e Stoudemire (the 2010-11 Knicks version), Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, Adrian Dantley, Dominique Wilkins, Kevin Durant and LeBron James join Booker in that category.

77

That’s the number of career 30-point performances by Booker after the loss to the Kings. With just one more, he will tie Michael Jordan for the second most before turning 24 years old, according to ESPN Stats & Info.

Oscar Robertson owns the record of 102, and Booker has until his birthday on Oct. 30 to make up ground on the all-time leader.

6

Booker is the sixth player younger than 24 since the NBA/ABA merger (1976-77 season) to put together such a scoring streak.

Per Elias, that list also includes LeBron James (three streaks), Tracy McGrady (three streaks), Kevin Durant (two streaks), Jordan (two streaks) and John Drew (one streak).

4

In the past seven years, only four NBA players have produced such seven-game streaks of 30-plus points. Booker joins James Harden, Russell Westbrook and Kevin Durant in such company.

6.9

It hasn’t just been scoring. Booker’s 6.9 assists per game averaged over the streak is impressive, too. Since 1983-84, five players have ever put together a six-game stretch of 30 or more points and six or more assists, per the Suns’ research: Booker, Harden, Westbrook, James and McGrady.

3-4

Phoenix has gone 3-4 over Booker’s scoring stretch. They’ve beaten the Kings, Portland Trail Blazers and New York Knicks and lost to the Golden State Warriors, Los Angeles Lakers, Memphis Grizzlies and to the Kings in a second meeting with Sacramento over Booker’s streak.

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