Devin Booker made ‘very uncharacteristic’ decision after Suns’ season ends in blowout

The Suns were eliminated from the NBA playoffs on Thursday night after suffering a 125-100 loss to the Denver Nuggets in Game 6 of the Western Conference semis.

Playing without Chris Paul (who had been injured since Game 2) and DeAndre Ayton (who missed Game 6 with a rib injury), the Suns were blown out on their home court to the No. 1 seed in the West – ending an incredible run that Phoenix guard Devin Booker had been on throughout the series, in which he scored 83 points on nearly 80 percent shooting in Games 3 and 4.

Booker struggled in Game 6, scoring 12 points on 4-of-13 shooting – and after the game (and the Suns’ season) was over, Booker left the arena without speaking to media.

“This is very uncharacteristic for Booker, who typically embraces the responsibilities that come along with being the face of the franchise,” tweeted ESPN’s Tim McMahon after the game was over. “Local media members couldn’t recall the last time he left arena without fulfilling his media obligations.”

Last year, when the Suns also saw their season end in a blowout on their home floor during the Western Conference semis – a 123-90 bloodbath to the Mavericks in Game 7 – Booker did speak to media, as did Paul.

Perhaps Booker is aware that the team could possibly face a major overhaul in the offseason under new owner Mat Ishbia.

Booker, Kevin Durant, Ayton and Landry Shamet are the only four players under fully-guaranteed contracts. Paul, who is 38, has a team option, as does Cameron Payne.

Ayton, who had an underwhelming series matching up with former MVP Nikola Jokic, has also been consistently floated in trade rumors.

Booker, who is still only 26 and seems to get better every year, will be back in 2023-24, as will Durant.

However, the team that won the first two games of the 2021 NBA Finals before losing four straight to the Bucks seems to be going backwards after back-to-back second-round knockouts.

Perhaps Booker’s early exit could be a sign of some internal frustration for a team that was considered among the favorites to win the NBA championship after they landed Durant in a blockbuster trade from the Nets.

It’s a trade that also decimated the Suns’ draft assets as they now will look for ways to build around Booker and Durant.

They have now been steamrolled in their last game of the season on their home floor for the second-straight year.

“It was pretty much the whole game,” Suns head coach Monty Williams said. “Eighty-one points in the first half. It was deflating to just see them score like that, running down the floor getting easy buckets.”