Suns Need to Exercise Caution in Devin Booker's Return

The Phoenix Suns are concerned about their current positioning in the Western Conference, yet that shouldn't alter their process in bringing Devin Booker back from injury.

It's winter time, and despite the lack of snow in the Valley, the Phoenix Suns have endured some tough sledding. 

Jae Crowder has yet to be traded. Cam Johnson is still not practicing with the team after tearing his meniscus in early November. A slew of other injuries have seemingly impacted a team that - all things considered - has held its own. 

Phoenix received some good news on Sunday when the Suns listed both Landry Shamet and Cam Payne as probable to return for their Monday meeting with the New York Knicks. 

They'll need all the help they can get with their recent form, as the Suns have emerged victorious in only one of their last six outings. They've fallen to the No. 7 seed in a tough Western Conference. 

That last sentence might frame things as if the Suns can't recover with the start of the new year. They're just four games back from first place. 

At the time of publish, this is how the West currently stands:

A big reason for Phoenix's recent form is the absence of Devin Booker, who is currently out with a groin injury and will again be evaluated in four weeks. 

Booker missed three games with the same groin strain before attempting to come back on Christmas Day. Booker himself wanted to play on the special holiday, and the opponent (Denver Nuggets: see in standings above) was worthy of a potential battle. 

Yet four minutes through the opening stages, Booker was forced out of action and never returned. Now, Phoenix will navigate a tough January slate with their best player sidelined for the majority - if not all - of that action. 

In Bleacher Report's recent piece going through New Year's Resolutions for each team, Grant Hughes landed on a point all of the Valley can agree upon: Take your time with Booker's groin.

"The Suns have dealt with Jae Crowder's absence all year, plus injuries that have knocked Chris Paul and Cameron Johnson out of action for long stretches. You could forgive Williams for wanting his best player on the floor, and it's understandable that Booker would want to be out there to carry his short-handed, banged-up team," said Hughes.

"But the Suns have to prioritize April, May and June over December and January. If that means making sure Booker gets extra rest so he can get back to 100 percent, maybe at the cost of a slide in the standings, so be it."

The balancing of winning in the short term to set yourself up for the big picture is one that is juggled nightly by Suns coach Monty Williams. He commands a team that has proven capable of winning regular season games like clockwork, but Phoenix's empty trophy cabinet speaks for itself. 

In due time, Booker should get healthy. From there, the Suns should be more than capable of finding themselves in postseason position. 

With how the West is shaping up, there's no running from dangerous teams. A Suns championship will have to go through the likes Denver, Dallas, New Orleans, Memphis, etc. no matter what round you catch either of those teams in. 

Losing in the playoffs doesn't get any easier no matter the round of departure - if your fingerprints aren't on the Larry O'Brien trophy, none of it matters. 

The Suns know they'll need Booker in order to make that happen.