Devin Booker is averaging 25.7 points with the Suns this season.
The Phoenix Suns have been playing some of their best basketball of the season recently, resulting in a four-game win streak, which is highlighted by a 123-112 victory over Cleveland last Friday. It’s their first streak of at least four games since they won seven in a row from Oct. 26 – Nov. 8. Before last week, they had not even won back-to-back games since the end of January and were just 3-10 in February.
Coach Mike Budenholzer seems to have found something with the starting unit over the last six contests, where his squad has gone 5-1. Rookie Ryan Dunn joined the starters on Mar. 14 and has not looked back, averaging 14.0 points, 6.2 rebounds, and 1.5 steals in 27.7 minutes, scoring at least 10 points in each game.
Dunn hasn’t been the only Sun making an impact with the first five on the floor. Collin Gillespie earned his first career start in a blowout win over Toronto last Monday with Bradley Beal on the shelf due to a hamstring injury.
The counting stats may fly under the radar, but the advanced metrics tell a much different story. In the last four games, Gillespie is averaging 6.5 points, 3.5 rebounds and 4.0 assists in 22.0 minutes, splashing in 42.9% of his 3.5 three-point attempts a night. When you dig a little deeper, the four-player lineups featuring Gillespie, Dunn, and the star duo of Devin Booker and Kevin Durant have been dominant.
Yes, the sample size is incredibly small at just 64 minutes total, but the Suns have outscored their opponents by 22.5 points per 100 possessions with those four sharing the court. Aside from the 40-point win over the Raptors to begin this hot stretch, the three games against Chicago, Cleveland and Milwaukee were physical, playoff-type victories that Phoenix fought hard for.
Much like the 2024-25 season as a whole, Booker and Durant have been the catalysts during the recent run of inspired basketball for the Suns. Durant has been a walking bucket, per usual, combining to score 80 points in his last two outings. He’s averaging 30.0 points over the last four with unbelievable shooting splits of 56.9% FG/57.7% 3PT/92.0% FT, adding 5.3 rebounds, 6.0 assists and a block in 34.5 minutes.
Booker has taken his game to another level, most notably in his ability and focus on setting up his teammates. He’s putting up a career-high 7.1 dimes while still being a lethal scorer in his tenth year in the league, pouring in 25.7 ppg (11th in the NBA). The four-time All-Star has cooled off a little over his last two outings (18.0 ppg), but he hit the game-winning jumper in the final seconds last night to help keep Phoenix’s streak and playoff hopes alive.
It will not be an easy road ahead, though, with nine of their ten remaining games coming against teams projected to be in the postseason. That includes a home-and-home series with Boston, trips to Milwaukee and Minnesota, and a back-to-back at home featuring Golden State and Oklahoma City from Apr. 8 – 9.
The Suns are playing with confidence and urgency during the most important stretch of their up-and-down season. At 35-37 overall, they’re in the thick of the SoFi Play-In Tournament hunt, and they have little room for error with Dallas (35-37) and Portland (32-40) biting at their heels.
However, with Sacramento losing three straight, Phoenix is only a half-game back from them for the ninth seed, and they own the tiebreaker over the Mavericks with a 3-1 series win. The ball is in their court, and it is up to them to make the most of it down the stretch.
