People around the Valley are well aware of the attention Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker has earned but not always received in his career.

With five games remaining in the season, ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith on NBA Countdown Sunday picked the star guard to win the NBA’s Most Valuable Player award.

Stephen A. Smith goes on an epic Devin Booker for MVP rant.

Also says Monty should be COY and Mikal should be DPOY. pic.twitter.com/a8Mn8TupLb

— andrew leezus (@AndrewLeezus) April 3, 2022

Phoenix clinched the No. 1 overall seed in the league for the 2022 playoffs with Booker averaging 26.6 points, five rebounds and 4.9 assists per game.

There have been 12 players in NBA history that averaged 25 points, five assists and five rebounds or more per game on the team with the best record in the NBA.

All 12 of those players went on to win league MVP.

FanDuel Sportsbook currently has Booker tied for the fourth-best odds to win the award at +12000, meaning a $100 bet would net someone $12,000.

Booker sits behind Denver Nuggets big man Nikola Jokic (-240), Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid (+240), Milwaukee Bucks big man Giannis Antetokounmpo (+550) and is tied with Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Doncic (+12000).

Just last week, Smith opened up to the idea of Booker being in the conversation for the league’s MVP when he mentioned that Booker should finish in the top two or three.