The Final All-Star Case for Suns Star Devin Booker

PHOENIX -- Tonight is yet another huge night for the Phoenix Suns.
Not because it's another game day - they are set to travel to San Fransisco to face the Golden State Warriors tomorrow night.
It's due to the All-Star reserves being announced on TNT's "Inside the NBA" ahead of the doubleheader on tap tonight.
Suns four-time All-Star selection and franchise cornerstone Devin Booker is looking to make the games for a fifth time while also joining teammate Kevin Durant - who was selected as a starter last week.
Many publications list Booker amongst the most glaring absences from the ultimate lineup in either conference, so the belief seems to be that this isn't the year for the superstar 2-guard.
Despite this, a strong January along with consistent support from players and coaches around the league has left some hopeful that the franchise legend will ultimately get a bid - including head coach Mike Budenholzer, who made his final plea in his post-game press conference last night.
"Book’s one of the great two guards in our league right now. What he's done this season as a scorer, as a playmaker, as a leader. He's clearly in our minds an All-Star and hopefully the other coaches see and respect what he's done. This season, it's never easy, but that guy, he's one of the best players in our league, so I don't see how he's not an All-Star."
Coach Budenholzer put forth a very concise, compelling case without diving deep into stats or film - here we will take a deep dive to make the case for Booker to ultimately be selected based off of a myriad of factors.
Playmaking Chops on Display
Booker's evolution as a playmaker has been many years in the making - and he just might be peaking in that department currently.
The Suns' offense has seen a resurgence ever since the two-guard has taken on more of an on-ball role at the turn of the new year - posting a 118.3 offensive rating, which ends up placing comfortably inside the top 10 in the NBA.
Booker's 29.4% assist rate is lower compared to last season, but his progression as a full-picture facilitator has improved this season - and that can be seen beyond the stats.
The former lottery pick has a combination of shrewd eye manipulation, a precise sense of timing with the ball in his hands, and an incredibly under-appreciated ability to thread the needle to stationary shooters when in traffic.
Booker truly is one of the most underrated playmakers across the league - and that inherently makes him one of the best overall offensive players in the game.
Scoring on Par With Previous Seasons
The narrative that the 10-year vet has taken a step back in the scoring department is true - to an extent.
His 58.2 true shooting percentage is the lowest mark in three seasons. The three-point efficiency is down as the volume has risen. The volume of attempts at the rim have gone down by around 4 percent compared to last season.
However, Booker still remains among the elite in the league in the scoring department - ranking 11th in raw PPG while also still posting an above league average profile efficiency wise.
The 27.1 PPG figure in January is the Booker that is All-Star caliber - and the overall body of work has to be strongly considered, even with inconsistencies along the way.
Impact Stats
Booker is currently posting 4.3 win shares, a 3.3 offensive box plus/minus, and a 1.3 VORP (value over replacement player) thus far.
These marks are relatively low within the career of Booker, but remain more than All-Star worthy. The Suns' 22-9 mark when both Booker and Durant play is also an indication of the game-changing talent both possess - the coaches shouldn't be fooled by Booker's negative net rating and Phoenix's 24-22 record.
The full offensive arsenal and impact stats point towards Booker being worthy of being an All-Star for the fifth time.
Time will tell if the coaches around the league feel the same - the reserves will be announced at 4:30 P.M. Arizona time on TNT.