The Devin Booker non-appreciation thread.

[1tinsoldier]

Suns PR doesn't control Bickley or that station. If you listen to them on a regular basis you know how absurd that is. However, I agree with the sentiment some are making KD the scapegoat and not willing to hold other players on this team accountable. KD isn't the sole problem by a long shot. There is plenty to go around including Book, including some of the other vets, including the FO who who put the roster together and the strange decisions by Bud. Plenty of blame to go around.

of course the Suns PR doesn't literally control Bickley, but i guarantee you they all know where who butters their toast and act accordingly. It's clear to me the Suns org decided before the trade deadline they were going to double down on Booker for the foreseeable future. That meant throwing anyone else under the bus to preserve their product's (Booker's) image. Divert blame. Promote Booker. Every local tv and radio broadcast cherry-picks Booker's performance and tv is always running little Booker promos. Ann Meyer's is worst. Eddie Johnson has the most integrity.

Because Booker is "the product", Arizona Sport radio and tv knows it's in their best interest to preserve the fan base. They created the Booker myth. Now, if they dared to openly, accurately, criticize Book they know they'd pay a price with their viewers. So the propaganda continues.

and, of course, everyone is to blame for the Suns awful season. But the truth that no local broadcaster will even hint at, is -- the greatest PORTION of the blame belongs squarely on Devin Booker's shoulder. It's HIS team. Built, again, around him.

 

[AzStevenCal]

of course the Suns PR doesn't literally control Bickley, but i guarantee you they all know where who butters their toast and act accordingly. It's clear to me the Suns org decided before the trade deadline they were going to double down on Booker for the foreseeable future. That meant throwing anyone else under the bus to preserve their product's (Booker's) image. Divert blame. Promote Booker. Every local tv and radio broadcast cherry-picks Booker's performance and tv is always running little Booker promos. Ann Meyer's is worst. Eddie Johnson has the most integrity.

Because Booker is "the product", Arizona Sport radio and tv knows it's in their best interest to preserve the fan base. They created the Booker myth. Now, if they dared to openly, accurately, criticize Book they know they'd pay a price with their viewers. So the propaganda continues.

and, of course, everyone is to blame for the Suns awful season. But the truth that no local broadcaster will even hint at, is -- the greatest PORTION of the blame belongs squarely on Devin Booker's shoulder. It's HIS team. Built, again, around him.

Bickley is the furthest thing from a homer you'll find in Valley sports. He is simply not towing the company line.

And until lately, these teams weren't really built around Booker, he was just the only survivor from some very weak lineups. He's not the reason we wasted draft picks on Jackson, Chriss, Bender, Marshall, Len, Ennis, Ayton and Smith. If you're looking for the primary reason we've been a disappointment, it's all those wasted picks from the past dozen drafts. Yes, he's overpaid. Yes, he's had one of his worst seasons. But no, he isn't the problem you make him out to be and there is no conspiracy to blame everyone but him.

 

[Hoop Head]

Bickley is the furthest thing from a homer you'll find in Valley sports. He is simply not towing the company line.

And until lately, these teams weren't really built around Booker, he was just the only survivor from some very weak lineups. He's not the reason we wasted draft picks on Jackson, Chriss, Bender, Marshall, Len, Ennis, Ayton and Smith. If you're looking for the primary reason we've been a disappointment, it's all those wasted picks from the past dozen drafts. Yes, he's overpaid. Yes, he's had one of his worst seasons. But no, he isn't the problem you make him out to be and there is no conspiracy to blame everyone but him.

But...but... He doesn't use his turn signal when he changes lanes! How can you not see Booker is a monster! Not only will the Suns be better, the streets in Phoenix will be safer. This has become a public health crisis.

 

[1tinsoldier]

Yes, he's overpaid. Yes, he's had one of his worst seasons. But no, he isn't the problem you make him out to be and there is no conspiracy to blame everyone but him.

as i said, he's simply MORE of a problem then any other single factor. And no conspiracy is necessary -- it's called a common interest -- for short-term profits for every invested business involved. But it is NOT in the best interest of the community, the fans, or the Suns as a team.

the best interest of the team is to stop hyping one flawed, overpaid player as our salvation and really rebuild -- sacrifice short term profits now for a more physically and mentally healthier, more competitive team with championship potential down the road

unfortunately, today's businessmen don't give a crap about the long term ramifications (like pollution/environmental concerns) when they've got stockholders to satisfy NOW. And, as you can see from the Suns shameless, relentless hyping of their diminishing poster boy, they're not willing to take the short term hit of fan dropout. Arizona Sports radio is precisely in the same position. Fans drank the lemonade they served and they'd tune out now if their broadcast was to diss the home-town favorite.

like politicians focus on saying what it takes to be re-elected, the local broadcasters #1 priority is their own jobs. Sure, their critique is what viewers tune in for -- but there's absolutely an emotional line you can't cross when it comes to local fans -- AND I SPEAK FROM EXPERIENCE ABOUT THAT!

 

[1tinsoldier]

Bickley is the furthest thing from a homer you'll find in Valley sports. He is simply not towing the company line.

i did used to thank Bickley was a very straight shooter. Not anymore. He absolutely is towing the company line now with another Booker promo. 2 days ago his promo totally dissed Durant to set the table for today's propoganda promo.

5K views · 103 reactions | The Suns finally broke through in the standings and maybe on the court. Devin Booker and a youth movement has Bick feeling a little more optimistic. | Arizona Sports

The Suns finally broke through in the standings and maybe on the court. Devin Booker and a youth movement has Bick feeling a little more optimistic..

www.facebook.com

as i predicted, he's reporting Ishbia said he'll "never trade Booker" and Booker is set for a big raise this summer to 70 freakin million per year -- which Bickley says he couldn't be more excited about

-- and to think, 2 days ago he ranted about the "boot-lickery" of Durant when he first got here

i suspect my 30 years of following the Suns will come to an end this season

 

[Hoop Head]

i did used to thank Bickley was a very straight shooter. Not anymore. He absolutely is towing the company line now with another Booker promo. 2 days ago his promo totally dissed Durant to set the table for today's propoganda promo.

So to understand, you believed Bickley wasn't a homer until you disagree on 1 player, right? Spin that how you want. I'm sure you'll justify it.

Your hatred for Booker clearly outweighs your Suns fandom. That might make sense if he had off the court issues like Josh Jackson reportedly getting his infant high or Jason Kidd hitting his wife. Booker on the other hand has had a famous girlfriend, no kids, and hasn't hit her.

 

[Chaplin]

i did used to thank Bickley was a very straight shooter. Not anymore. He absolutely is towing the company line now with another Booker promo. 2 days ago his promo totally dissed Durant to set the table for today's propoganda promo.

5K views · 103 reactions | The Suns finally broke through in the standings and maybe on the court. Devin Booker and a youth movement has Bick feeling a little more optimistic. | Arizona Sports

The Suns finally broke through in the standings and maybe on the court. Devin Booker and a youth movement has Bick feeling a little more optimistic..

www.facebook.com

as i predicted, he's reporting Ishbia said he'll "never trade Booker" and Booker is set for a big raise this summer to 70 freakin million per year -- which Bickley says he couldn't be more excited about

-- and to think, 2 days ago he ranted about the "boot-lickery" of Durant when he first got here

i suspect my 30 years of following the Suns will come to an end this season

Your hatred for Booker is one of the most bizarre things on this board.

 

[Covert Rain]

Your hatred for Booker is one of the most bizarre things on this board.

I actually agree with SOME of the deserved criticism of Booker but he takes it to an unhealthy extreme.

 

[1tinsoldier]

here's the logical timeline:

1. two weeks before the trade deadline, Ishbia makes his decision to double down on Book. He still has a solid fan base with cross-over appeal -- young-old, men-women, black-white, he made a vid-game cover, dated a supermode, and had a good Team USA run, so he won't be moved. But there's a problem -- he's having one of his weakest seasons, the team is colossally under-achieving, he's not an All-Star and his performance is starting to be scrutinized. So PR and timing is key. And Devon's agent knows the deal.

2. Devon does promos talking about how much he loves PHX and wants to stay. AZ Sports TV runs Booker promos cherry-picking his most positive stats and performances several times during every broadcast. Suns radio's avoids criticizing his significant role in the debacle of the past couple of seasons.

3. to divert blame, they scapegoat anyone who struggles and who is not part of the Suns future plans.

4. Devin's agent leaks the story about coach Bud telling Booker to let him call the shots and it's spun as a perfect excuse for why Booker is such a poor leader -- it's because Bud is *holding him back!* Booker's 7th coach in 10 years is in the works.

5. After going 5 for the prior 14 games, a rare blowout 2nd quarter with Booker and young players on the floor is the Suns opportunity to sell their game-plan to the public before speculation about Booker can do any more damage (and before the Suns are eliminated from the playoffs). Bickley accommodates by ripping into Durant this week and follows that 2 days later with the announcement that Ishbia will never trade Booker and he'll even be getting a raise to 70 million per season.

the public strategy is
IF YOU'RE A SUNS FAN, GET ON BOARD AND DON'T ROCK THE BOOKER BOAT BECAUSE BOOKER IS THE CAPTAIN OF YOUR HOME TEAM

anyone who doubts the above is likely any of the following
* naive
* more of a fanboy than a basketball fan
* doesn't know how shrewd today's billionaire owners are (including the NBA (e.g. Luka to Lakers))
* and hasn't paid attention to the ethical collapse taking place in America.

the NBA is not exactly Pro Wrestling, but it's not exactly the NBA anymore either

 

[Hoop Head]

here's the logical timeline:

1. two weeks before the trade deadline, Ishbia makes his decision to double down on Book. He still has a solid fan base with cross-over appeal -- young-old, men-women, black-white, he made a vid-game cover, dated a supermode, and had a good Team USA run, so he won't be moved. But there's a problem -- he's having one of his weakest seasons, the team is colossally under-achieving, he's not an All-Star and his performance is starting to be scrutinized. So PR and timing is key. And Devon's agent knows the deal.

2. Devon does promos talking about how much he loves PHX and wants to stay. AZ Sports TV runs Booker promos cherry-picking his most positive stats and performances several times during every broadcast. Suns radio's avoids criticizing his significant role in the debacle of the past couple of seasons.

3. to divert blame, they scapegoat anyone who struggles and who is not part of the Suns future plans.

4. Devin's agent leaks the story about coach Bud telling Booker to let him call the shots and it's spun as a perfect excuse for why Booker is such a poor leader -- it's because Bud is *holding him back!* Booker's 7th coach in 10 years is in the works.

5. After going 5 for the prior 14 games, a rare blowout 2nd quarter with Booker and young players on the floor is the Suns opportunity to sell their game-plan to the public before speculation about Booker can do any more damage (and before the Suns are eliminated from the playoffs). Bickley accommodates by ripping into Durant this week and follows that 2 days later with the announcement that Ishbia will never trade Booker and he'll even be getting a raise to 70 million per season.

the public strategy is
IF YOU'RE A SUNS FAN, GET ON BOARD AND DON'T ROCK THE BOOKER BOAT BECAUSE BOOKER IS THE CAPTAIN OF YOUR HOME TEAM

anyone who doubts the above is likely any of the following
* naive
* more of a fanboy than a basketball fan
* doesn't know how shrewd today's billionaire owners are (including the NBA (e.g. Luka to Lakers))
* and hasn't paid attention to the ethical collapse taking place in America.

the NBA is not exactly Pro Wrestling, but it's not exactly the NBA anymore either

Tell us again who Sarver's mole is here?

You are incredibly paranoid and I'm concerned for you. You keep creating theories and push them as factual despite no inside sources and labeling anyone who questions it naive, delusional, fanboy, etc. The world isn't black and white yet you refuse to see color.

 

[1tinsoldier]

i can't tell you who the mole is
but there's abundant evidence who the troll is
and i'm positive who the hole is

 

[1tinsoldier]

70 million for Devin Booker?
the top salary in NBA is 63 and Jokic only makes 51 !

in my book, it would be addition via subtraction just to get rid of him

but why rush to judgement right? the season is almost over.
if we get to the Finals and Booker steps up i'll have to re-assess
(even though it was said 2 seasons ago that anything short of a championship would be a failure after giving up our future, and last season we got swept in the first round and Booker showed up one game)

 

[Hoop Head]

i can't tell you who the mole is
but there's abundant evidence who the troll is
and i'm positive who the hole is

I still don't believe you know how a discussion board works. Someone makes a post, others engage occasionally, and there's usually a reasonable discourse. With you, you post paragraphs upon paragraphs assigning views to others and labeling them and anyone who questions your views is also given a negative label by you, like troll or what else you alluded to.

You don't engage with others. All I did was ask a question regarding a position you stated previously, that Sarver had a mole doing PR here before for him and he hid as a regular poster. Now you claim someone else, this case Bickley, who has a different view is hired by Ishbia or Booker directly for PR purposes.

Btw, you don't make the rules here. This isn't your site. You can't tell anyone they can't talk to you. Asking you questions about your stance isn't trolling.

 

[1tinsoldier]

actually, i did answer your question in the first line you quoted, so all i can say to that is -- huh?

and if you think short, snyde insult jokes and sarcasm is "engaging" it's you doesn't know how forums work

i clearly explained that Bickley has a shared self-serving interest in hyping the fans home-grown favorite. You accusing me of saying he is "hired by Ishbia or Booker directly", is not even just your usual distortion. It's a desperate lie!

considering how hard you work to oddly and UN-anyliticaly distort and demonize my criticisms of the Suns' key product and propaganda,
-- and the level to which you keep going back to that Sarver cover-up campaign 4 years ago,

all i can comprehensively say is, "holy molly!"

 

[1tinsoldier]

when Durant is gone next season, Booker's gonna have to do a lot more post-game TV interviews with his shirt off after blow-outs like last night

 

[CardNots]

when Durant is gone next season, Booker's gonna have to do a lot more post-game TV interviews with his shirt off after blow-outs like last night

It’s time to rebuild like OKC did. Unload Booker, Beal and Durant!

 

[AzStevenCal]

It’s time to rebuild like OKC did. Unload Booker, Beal and Durant!

Agreed though our path will be rockier than the one OKC took because of our very weak future pick value.

 

[Cheesebeef]

Agreed though our path will be rockier than the one OKC took because of our very weak future pick value.

If we were to get our picks back in a Booker/Houston deal, I think we’ll be in solid shape with what we could get back for KD. With Beal, we’re just going to have to Jon Walk him because they’d have to give up picks to unload him, even if he waived his no trade clause.

 

[AzStevenCal]

If we were to get our picks back in a Booker/Houston deal, I think we’ll be in solid shape with what we could get back for KD. With Beal, we’re just going to have to Jon Walk him because they’d have to give up picks to unload him, even if he waived his no trade clause.

We'd still be a little light given our lack of depth and young players but yeah, it would go a long way to facilitating our rebuild. But would you give up young players or even just bad contracts plus our picks if you were Houston? I wouldn't and I still believe in Booker (mostly). Houston is on the verge of being great, I wouldn't make any big changes if I were them other than using their draft capital wisely.

 

[Cheesebeef]

We'd still be a little light given our lack of depth and young players but yeah, it would go a long way to facilitating our rebuild. But would you give up young players or even just bad contracts plus our picks if you were Houston? I wouldn't and I still believe in Booker (mostly). Houston is on the verge of being great, I wouldn't make any big changes if I were them other than using their draft capital wisely.

Probably not, but a man can dream!

 

[GatorAZ]

Book is a 35% 3P shooter for his career so it makes sense he’s shooting 34% on career high attempts this year. The sample size is big enough at this point that he’ll never be a high level 3P shooter which would be fine 20 years ago. Instead of lamenting the possibility of trading him we should embrace that in today’s NBA it’s rare you get 10 years out of a great player. It’s time to move on this summer. Thanks Book!

 

[1tinsoldier]

2 games we had to have and both were blowouts with Booker having the worst +/- of both games. A total of -53. I'd like to see Arizona Sports display that stat next game.

 

[1tinsoldier]

this is an article from the Booker Appreciation thread written by a dedicated Booker fan and shared by a dedicated Booker fan:

Real reason Phoenix Suns failed Devin Booker so badly this season is obvious

It wasn't supposed to be like this for Booker in Phoenix.

valleyofthesuns.com

but anyone not blinded by the local media's relentless hype can see that the title could more appropriately be The Real Reason Devin Booker Failed the Phoenix Suns.

"much of the blame will fall on Devin Booker. the 28-year-old has not had a good season by his high standards, and the fact he didn't come close to an All-Star selection"

he says to make Booker effective it took "one of the best point guards of all-time -- [Chris Paul] was the perfect foil for Booker. Who run the offense was clear, allowing Booker to be a scorer first and a playmaker second."

regarding Booker's poor defense:

"This season however the Suns have needed him practically every night to bring it on that end, and he has failed. On the year they're an awful 26th in defensive rating, allowing 116.9 point per game...when Booker is out there that number plummets even further to 117.6 points...he has a net rating this season of minus 2.1"

even the offense is lacking...

"with the Suns scoring the fewest points each night at 115.5 when Booker is out there since the 2019-20 season"

overall -- "52nd in Player Efficiency Rating so far in 2024-25 at 19.2, the lowest mark of his career since 2020-21"

as i said, the season will be over soon, and we can break down the stats further. But we don't have to be locked into a Booker Bubble that relies on the premise that the Phx Suns = Devin Booker and we're obligated to keep building around his flaws. There are no more Chris Paul's to replace Chris Paul and there will be no Kevin Durant we can afford to replace Kevin Durant with next season for offense.

 

[1tinsoldier]

I checked a FB group to see what the opinions are outside this bubble and at least 80% of the comments agreed that the article title is ridiculous. Here's the first six comments (and non of them was me)...

You must be registered for see images attach

 

[Hoop Head]

I checked a FB group to see what the opinions are outside this bubble and at least 80% of the comments agreed that the article title is ridiculous. Here's the first six comments (and non of them was me)...

You must be registered for see images attach

So your argument is what? "Someone agreed with me, look it finally happened!"