Phoenix Suns: Devin Booker doesn’t receive NBA All-Star nod, Chris Paul does
Booker #Booker
Phoenix Suns coach Monty Williams was certain Devin Booker deserved to be an NBA All-Star again this year.
“There’s no doubt about it. No one can debate that Book’s not an all-star,” Williams said after Monday’s game. “End of story. The impact on winning, the numbers and we have a few wins. So from my perspective, I don’t think you’ll find any coach in the league that would debate that he isn’t an all-star. End of story.”
The coaches had already voted by then. So when the results were revealed Tuesday, Booker missed out on receiving an all-star nod this year despite leading Phoenix to the fourth-best record in the league, but his new backcourt mate, Chris Paul, was selected.
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Averaging 24.7 points, Booker is coming off a 34-point effort in Monday night’s 132-100 crushing of Portland as the Suns (20-10) have won nine of their last 10 games.
While Booker was left out, Paul made it for the 11th time in his 16-year NBA career as he’s averaging 16.6 points and 8.5 assists in his first season in Phoenix.
The East and West reserves were revealed Tuesday evening’s NBA on TNT pregame show as the 2021 All-Star Game will be played March 7 in Atlanta.
The NBA head coaches voted for the reserves as they had to pick two guards, three frontcourt players and two wildcards, who can be front or backcourt players. Their votes had to be in before Monday’s games as they couldn’t vote for their own players.
Booker said after Monday’s game he’d be honored if voted an all-star, but was cautiously optimistic about the possibly of making it a second straight season.
We’ll see, man,” Booker said. “It’s just something that you never know. I don’t do too much thinking about it. My main focus is getting wins for this team. It’d be an honor to make my second appearance but I guess we’ll see tomorrow.”
Phoenix Suns All-Star Devin Booker’s clutch 3 stuns Dallas Mavericks in 109-108 road win
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Turns out Booker didn’t make it, but with Los Angeles Lakers forward Anthony Davis expected to be out with a calf strain during the all-star break, Booker could easily make it as an injury replacement again as he did last year in his first all-star appearance.
Booker replaced Damian Lillard for the 2020 game in Chicago. NBA commissioner Adam Silver picks the replacement players.
Before the reserves were announced, Suns forward Jae Crowder said Paul and Booker were deserving of being all-stars because of how they’re playing individually and how the Suns are playing as a team.
However, Crowder thought it would be a no-brainer for Paul and Booker if Phoenix hadn’t “dropped some games” as the Suns have lost to sub .500 teams Sacramento, Detroit, Oklahoma City, Washington, Memphis and New Orleans this season.
The Pistons have the worst record in the Eastern Conference.
“If we would’ve not dropped some games earlier in the year and been first or second in the West, you almost guarantee those guys,” Crowder said. “Since we did drop the ball a few games, it’ll be up in the air a little bit, but I definitely feel like they both are deserving just because of the turnaround that we’ve had with the organization and the trend that we’re heading into for the second half of the season.”
Paul and Booker may have split votes. Paul is seen by many as the difference maker for Phoenix in becoming a serious playoff contender as the Suns have the league’s fourth-best record while Booker is considered the team’s best player in his sixth NBA season..
Joining Paul on the West reserves list are Davis (L.A Lakers, eighth selection), Paul George (L.A. Clippers, seventh selection), Rudy Gobert, (Utah Jazz, second selection), Damian Lillard (Portland Trail Blazers, sixth selection), Donovan Mitchell (Utah Jazz, second selection) and Zion Williamson (New Orleans Pelicans, first selection).
Paul became the third player in NBA history to be named an all-star with four different franchises (New Orleans, L.A Clippers, Oklahoma City Thunder, Phoenix), joining Moses Malone and Shaquille O’Neal.
Looking at the West reserves based on how the coaches had to vote, one frontcourt player and one backcourt players was chosen for the two wildcards.
Paul, Lillard and Mitchell are listed as guards while Davis, George, Gobert and Williamson listed as frontcourt players in the voting.
So one of the three guards and one of the frontcourt players made it as a wildcard.
Jaylen Brown (Boston Celtics, first selection), James Harden (Brooklyn Nets, ninth selection), Zach LaVine (Chicago Bulls, first selection), Julius Randle (New York Knicks (first selection), Ben Simmons (Philadelphia 76ers, third selection), Jayson Tatum (Boston Celtics, second selection) and Nikola Vučević (Orlando Magic, second selection) made it as East reserves.
Booker and Paul both made the annual game last season in Chicago as Paul was with Oklahoma City.
It was Paul’s 10th all-star appearance.
Like this season in Phoenix, Paul was viewed as the catalyst for the youthful Thunder, who made the playoffs despite no longer having George or Russell Westbrook.
The Suns waived backup big Damian Jones, the team announced Tuesday afternoon.
This was his first season in Phoenix after signing a two-year deal for $3.7 million in the offseason as a free agent during the short offseason.
Jones averaged just 1.6 points and 1.3 rebounds in 14 games with the Suns as he had five points in Monday’s win over Portland.
The 6-10 center missed four games under the NBA’s health and safety protocols.
The move gives Suns some roster flexibility as they now have 14 roster players with undrafted rookie Ty-Shon Alexander as a two-way player.
NBA teams can have up to 15 roster player and two two-way players.
Damian Jones finding role with Phoenix Suns
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Have opinion about current state of the Suns? Reach Suns Insider Duane Rankin at dmrankin@gannett.com or contact him at 480-787-1240. Follow him on Twitter at @DuaneRankin.
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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Phoenix Suns: Devin Booker doesn’t receive NBA All-Star nod, Chris Paul does