PHOENIX -- The last three seasons of basketball for the Phoenix Suns have been massively disappointing.
The Suns peaked this decade with a Finals appearance in 2021 and a franchise-record 64 victories the year after - it has been downhill since then.
Mat Ishbia purchased the squad in December 2022, took over just over a month later, and acquired Kevin Durant via trade.
The move resulted in pushing the Denver Nuggets to six games in the Western Conference semifinals in May 2023, but the moves that have been made since then have largely landed the franchise in no-man's land.
This hasn't changed franchise player Devin Booker's mind about a desire to stay with the franchise long term.
The 10-year vet had much to say about the franchise's future and his perspective on wanting to stay in a talk with Logan Murdock of the Ringer - starting off with addressing criticisms associated with the new governor of the franchise.
“Knowing his character, he wants to win,” said Booker when asked about Ishbia by Murdock. “He’s been around winning, he’s been in the locker rooms of winning, so he knows what it takes.”
Despite Ishbia being an easy target of critiques from the Phoenix fanbase and NBA media world alike, the steward of the Suns is clearly motivated to bring a championship to Phoenix. It's the intention and effort that counts currently in Booker's eyes - the days of winning will return soon.
Booker still wants to play his entire career in Phoenix. He’s seen his peers leave their teams in search of championships, often with frustrating results.
- Murdock on the Suns' franchise player
The four-time All-Star then went to covering the thought process behind potentially asking out of the only franchise that he has ever known - the sharpshooter had some wise words when it came to this.
“It’s not always greener on the other side,” Booker tells me. “People always want to leave their situation and end up in a worse situation and then they go missing. You’ll never have the love like you have by the team that drafted you.”
Many players can attest to this sentiment - both those who stayed with one franchise and those who departed the squad that gave them their first professional home.
Damian Lillard is a phenomenal example. The star - who has been very complimentary of Booker in the past - eventually saw patience run thin in the summer of 2023 after previously staying loyal to the Portland Trail Blazers to a fault - the move to the Milwaukee Bucks has been a mixed bag, re-affirming the adage that the grass may not be greener on the other side.
Booker wrapped up the conversation by talking about the frustrations surrounding how this season has gone - the current 35-40 mark guarantees that Phoenix will finish with their worst record since the shortened 2019-20 season, along with his hope for the future in the Valley.
“It’s upsetting... ultimately when you’re playing with this type of talent, you expect a championship. And our first year linking up together was our best run at it, winning two games [against] Denver. And ever since then, it’s kind of been downhill.”
One thing is for sure - Booker isn't content with how the last several seasons have transpired with the talent and infrastructure in place. The revolving door of coaches certainly have not done the franchise any favors either.
Despite all the frustrations, the Kentucky product remains confident that the Suns are on the correct path and will remain competitive.
“I’ll never be in a rebuild again.” "We’re always going to be competing and trying to get to a championship.”
This coincides with Murdock's report on the possibility that Kevin Durant returns to the franchise next season. The return would signal an effort to continue surrounding Booker with sufficient talent and could make it apparent that the priority would be to move Bradley Beal while potentially making yet another coaching change - read more about that here.
As for the three-time All-NBA selection, he will suit up later today in an effort to take down the Milwaukee Bucks - who he defeated with a game-winning shot last Monday.