Alvin Gentry Would be 'Shocked' if Devin Booker Wasn't An All-Star

Former Suns coach Alvin Gentry recently weighed in on Devin Bookers season thus far, saying he touched on his improvement as a defender and would be surprised if he wasn't an All-Star.

The Phoenix Suns, through 16 games, are currently 10-6. 

Their floor general Chris Paul has been out for six games with a heel injury, and head coach Monty Williams announced on Saturday that Paul would miss Sunday's game against the Knicks. Phoenix is an even 3-3 without "The Point God". 

“I can’t really speak to that…it’s probably taking a bit longer than people thought it would because we haven’t shared what it is, and it’s just how we operate," said Williams.

Monty Williams on Chris Paul’s nagging sore heel: “I can’t really speak to that…it’s probably taking a bit longer than people thought it would because we haven’t shared, like, what it is, and it’s just how we operate.” pic.twitter.com/JHxGIACg2H

— Gerald Bourguet (@GeraldBourguet) November 19, 2022

In Paul's absence his backcourt running mate Devin Booker has been doing all he can to keep his team in contention in the western conference early on. 

Through 15 games this season, is averaging 28.1 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 6.1 assists per game prior to Sunday's win over the New York Knicks. 

After losing a tough game to the Utah Jazz on Friday night, Booker spoke with reporters and said, "We were fighting uphill all game. I think we gave them a lot of confidence to start the game,” Booker said.

Williams shared that he rode Booker too much despite him having a good game. 

“He had a good game going but I rode him too much,”  Williams said. “That’s not what we want to do for the long term. We’re down a bunch of guys and we needed him to score like that to have a chance. But we’re just putting a lot of pressure on him to carry us offensively because we’re not getting the stops we need.”

Speaking of Booker, in a recent interview with former Suns coach Alvin Gentry, Gentry shared that he would be surprised if Booker wasn't an all-star this season. 

"He is an elite player. He's been an elite player since he walked in the league really, so a tremendous shooter. I think the thing that he's really improved on is his defense he's become a really good solid defensive player. And because of that, I would be shocked if he wasn't an All-Star," said Gentry.

Gentry's spent four seasons [2009-13] at the helm of the Suns before he was let go by the team. Gentry is a free agent after he was let go by the Sacramento Kings and replaced by Mike Brown this past offseason.

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