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It was a fun week, wasn’t it? The Suns clinched a playoff spot, earned the #1 seed in the Western Conference, and now All Star guard Devin Booker is taking home some hardware.
The Suns began the week in Madison Square Garden with am 8-point win over the streaking Knicks. That was followed by two monumental back-to-back wins over the (then) top-seeded Utah Jazz and the Los Angeles Clippers. He had his viral moment in the victory over Utah when he put two-time Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Golbert on skates:
Que joya la jugada de ayer de Devin Booker a Rudy Gobert. Lo sacó a bailar pic.twitter.com/kcS0da1AG5
— (@tbywiththeblues) May 2, 2021
How do I get this NBA Top Moment?
It was more exciting than it needed to be, but the Suns finished the week on Sunday evening by downing the Oklahoma City Thunder by 3. 4-0 on the week for the Suns and 46-18 on the year.
Booker shined throughout, displaying his ability to make tough shots while maintaining efficiency. For his efforts this past week, Devin Booker was once again named the Western Conference Player of the Week. It is the third time this season he has earned the honor.
Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker and Boston Celtics forward Jayson Tatum have been named the NBA Western and Eastern Conference Players of the Week, respectively, for Week 19 of the 2020-21 season (April 26 - May 2). pic.twitter.com/FcHlnxFdmB
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) May 3, 2021
The six-game stretch prior to his award, from April 13 to 22, was the most challenging of the season for Booker. He averaged 18.0points a night on 37.5/17.9/86.2 splits. The efficiency the we know and love hit an understandable lull. The long season coupled with pesky defenses designed to negate his skill set equated to less-than-stellar performances.
The Booker response? In his last 5 games (four of which earned him the POTW award) he has averaged 30.6 points on 53.6/37.5/83.9 splits. He added 3.0 assist and 3.8 rebounds to help Phoenix go 4-1 in those games.
There has been plenty of Chris Paul talk relative to the MVP conversation — rightfully so — but Devin does deserve some love as well. Four other players have achieved Player of the Week honor three times this season, two of which have a case for MVP:
This is Devin Booker's 3rd Conference Player of the Week nod this season, tying him with Nikola Jokic, Luka Doncic, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Jayson Tatum for the most.
— Kellan Olson (@KellanOlson) May 3, 2021
Expect the Suns to receive more hardware as the season wraps up. Teams with the best record in the NBA typically do. The awards are nice, yes, but not the ultimate goal. The playoffs are on the horizon and, although I am sure Booker appreciates the acknowledgment, he has bigger goals in mind.
Congratulations to Devin Booker on another well deserved nod. We’ve being watching him play out of his mind for years. It’s nice to see him receive the recognition for it.