Clippers @ Suns Tuesday game thread 2-15- 2022

[1tinsoldier]

I think Book focuses but like many young players, he wants to win and shoot the team to victory and forces bad shots/turnovers sometimes that he doesn’t have to. When he plays within himself, he’s the best 2 guard in the league. But I don’t see him not focused just because he’s missing shots or turning the ball over. That’s ball sometimes.

i think the problem is him being focused on the wrong things
sometimes he gets focused on being the hero instead of making the best play, which sometimes should be a pass
sometimes he gets focused on a bad call he got, and he forces the action instead of making the best play
(it's usually towards the end of the 3rd, when he's been on the floor a while and the defenses are getting on his nerves. He gets a T and his teammates usually get in a funk)

sometimes, he just starts chucking shots towards the end of the 3rd if we're up by around 20 and he knows he might not see the floor again in the 4th

Monty and Paul need to get through to him. We're on pace for the best Suns record ever and teams on this kind of pace win championships

he plays like he's always got something to prove
but if his focus -- his eye stays on the prize. he'll get all the recognition he deserves

 

[95pro]

Sometimes the suns just need to reset booker and turn him back into a catch and shoot guy. When he starts getting the ball then he starts forcing a lot of things: contact, ref issues, shots and passes. Take the ball out of his hands, run a play for him to catch and shoot.

 

[Germz249]

We thank you for your sacrifice.

Payton was in the game when I turned it on lol

 

[TJ]

Suns are 17-1 in their last 18 games.

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Is that good?

 

[Finito]

Is that good?

Not according to Shaq or Steven A Smith

 

[Finito]

Gil pre-locker room antics is not an awful comparison

I always viewed him as a senseless chucker. Booker is way more efficient and well rounded

 

[AzStevenCal]

I always viewed him as a senseless chucker. Booker is way more efficient and well rounded

I think you're selling him short. It's too bad he didn't have his head on straight and come into the league a couple years ago because his game was made for today's NBA.

All high volume scorers get called chuckers, egotistical, selfish, stupid and so on (except for maybe Larry Bird). I think fans see a few minutes of perfect and subconsciously start to expect that same thing every time from a player and it just doesn't work that way.

 

[Mainstreet]

Not according to Shaq or Steven A Smith

It's to the point I have my television on mute when there is not game action.

 

[JCSunsfan]

Not according to Shaq or Steven A Smith

They cannot get over that Christmas Day loss to the Warriors. Until the Suns dominate the Warriors head to head the respect is not coming.

 

[JCSunsfan]

Booker is what Brandon Roy might have been.

 

[TJ]

I always viewed him as a senseless chucker. Booker is way more efficient and well rounded

Yeah Book is more efficient than Gil ever was, but Gil could light up a scoreboard. Apples and oranges comparison by Shaq, but had Gil not gotten in his own way, he would be one of the best scorers in league history

 

[Cheesebeef]

One thing that hasn’t been mentioned about Book by the media is how much better he’s gotten on D. And it’s not just like he’s making a better effort and gets points there.

He’s a legit GOOD defender now. It’s a huge part of his overall evolution as a great basketball player and All-Star lock at this point.

 

[Covert Rain]

Not sure they showed this on TV but during warmups? Booker rolled the basketball cross court to CP3 like a bowling ball. CP3 in one motion ally oops it from the ground and Booker slams it. The crowd was just as loud for that then at any point during the game.

 

[SirStefan32]

I'm just gonna say it- Book is turning into some combination of less athletic Kobe Bryant and Tracy McGrady (during his peak). Better than T-Mac, not as good as Kobe. He is not nearly an athletic freak that Kobe was, and he is probably not as good of a defender, but in my opinion, he is closer to Kobe than Arenas and Roy are to him at this point. For me, the biggest surprise has been Booker's defense. He is flat-out not a liability on the defensive end anymore.

 

[Cheesebeef]

I'm just gonna say it- Book is turning into some combination of less athletic Kobe Bryant and Tracy McGrady (during his peak). Better than T-Mac, not as good as Kobe. He is not nearly an athletic freak that Kobe was, and he is probably not as good of a defender, but in my opinion, he is closer to Kobe than Arenas and Roy are to him at this point. For me, the biggest surprise has been Booker's defense. He is flat-out not a liability on the defensive end anymore.

I bump on the comparison to those guys simply because their athleticism was so much a part of their game, being able to take guys to the basket at will at the end of games. Book doesn't quite have that burst or handles (yet) to do that.

He's really an interesting player... kinda defies comparison with anyone I can think of. Which is kinda cool. He's his own thing and that's what I think will eventually make him stand out when we win the title and are good, year in, year out. He's a bit of a 1 of 1.

 

[Hoop Head]

I think you need to go farther back to find a comparison for Booker. Roy is a good comparison but injuries ended his career too early. I think Allen Houston is a decent comparison and Mitch Richmond is another. Booker is a better ball handler than Houston and a better defender than Richmond.

 

[CardsSunsDbacks]

I bump on the comparison to those guys simply because their athleticism was so much a part of their game, being able to take guys to the basket at will at the end of games. Book doesn't quite have that burst or handles (yet) to do that.

He's really an interesting player... kinda defies comparison with anyone I can think of. Which is kinda cool. He's his own thing and that's what I think will eventually make him stand out when we win the title and are good, year in, year out. He's a bit of a 1 of 1.

I think Kobe in his 30s is a decent comparison. Obviously prime Kobe was on a different level athletically, but when Kobe started to slow down a bit he was a pretty similar player. Though Booker is without a doubt a better shooter than Kobe ever was.

 

[Cheesebeef]

I think Kobe in his 30s is a decent comparison. Obviously prime Kobe was on a different level athletically, but when Kobe started to slow down a bit he was a pretty similar player. Though Booker is without a doubt a better shooter than Kobe ever was.

Kobe could still get any shot he wanted at any time into his early 30’s, whether that was on the post or because his handles could get him a little better breathing space. Book isn’t quite there yet, IMO.

 

[JCSunsfan]

Kobe could still get any shot he wanted at any time into his early 30’s, whether that was on the post or because his handles could get him a little better breathing space. Book isn’t quite there yet, IMO.

No. He isn't quite there yet, but it's still the best comparison.