Here are several ways to rewrite the title, emphasizing different aspects: Focusing on Devin Booker: Devin Booker inks massive contract extension with Phoenix Suns. Booker secures $145 million payday with Suns extension. Devin Booker signs 2-year max extension to remain with the Suns. Focusing on the Suns: Suns lock up Devin Booker with lucrative contract extension. Phoenix Suns commit to Booker, agreeing to $145 million extension. Suns extend Devin Booker's contract with a 2-year, max deal. More General/Neutral: Devin Booker and Suns agree to $145 million contract extension. Suns and Booker reach agreement on a 2-year, max extension. Devin Booker gets max extension from Suns: $145 million over two years.

Devin Booker has agreed to a two-year, $145 million contract extension with the Phoenix Suns, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania, securing the franchise’s cornerstone through 2030 and providing stability during a period of change in Arizona.

NBA collective bargaining rules dictate that contracts spanning five or six seasons (including options) can’t be extended until the third anniversary of the original signing, and extensions can only cover up to five years beyond the new deal’s signing date.

Booker is currently under a four-year, $224 supermax extension signed in 2022, which he officially signed on July 6. This new extension brings his total earnings to $316 million over the next five years.

Essentially, the Suns are offering Booker the maximum amount legally permissible, at the earliest opportunity. His average annual salary will now be higher than any player in the NFL.

This move aligns with Suns owner Mat Ishbia’s earlier statements about Booker being the team’s foundation, despite rumors of the Rockets’ interest as Phoenix’s standing in the Western Conference declined.

“Never happen,” Ishbia told ESPN’s Tim MacMahon. “It’s silly. So here’s what I’ll tell you: I have Devin Booker in the prime. In order to win an NBA championship, you got to have a superstar. You got to have a great player.”

The extension also reflects Booker’s publicly stated desire to remain with one franchise throughout his career, even though the Suns have experienced limited success during his time there.

“I take pride in the community in Phoenix, the people that have supported me since I was 18 when things were ugly,” Booker told MacMahon. “And the people that are with us, we just fell short of accomplishing what we want. So I want to do it, and I want to do it here. That’s the responsibility of being a franchise player, and I wear that with honor. So it might not look the most pretty right now, but we got to get it done and I’m going to do it.”

After failing to reach the playoffs for the first time since 2020 and trading away one-time-all-in-bet Kevin Durant, the Suns enter the 2025-26 season with significant challenges and a new head coach. This extension signals a renewed commitment to building around Booker.

Booker expressed his disappointment with the Suns’ performance as the season concluded.

“It’s been a slow bleed-out,” Booker told reporters. “I’ve been feeling this way for the majority of the season. I think the small glimpses of good stretches that we’ve played gave me hope, and probably gave everybody else hope. You never want it to be squeezing into the last spot of the play-in in the first place. … I think that’s one of the steps that we skipped: Learning through the wins and the losses. Just continue to get better every day, no matter what the circumstances are. We had spots where we did it, but it has to be something that’s turned on at all times.”

Extending Booker is intended to solidify his leadership role and foster a culture of continuous improvement. It also serves as an apology for the team’s recent struggles, signifying Phoenix’s dedication to rebuilding around a player who has become one of the franchise’s greatest and most beloved figures.

Booker, 28, is Phoenix’s all-time leader in points scored and 3-point field goals. He consistently ranks near the top in franchise history in categories like games played, minutes played, and points per game. He is a four-time All-Star, a two-time All-NBA selection, and a two-time Olympic gold medalist, celebrated as one of the league’s top three-level scorers.

Booker has evolved into a reliable playmaker, joining Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Damian Lillard and Donovan Mitchell as one of just four NBA players over the last five seasons to maintain a usage rate of at least 30%, assist on over 25% of his teammates’ baskets, and keep his turnover rate below 12%. Even in a 2024-25 season considered below his peak, Booker averaged 25.6 points and a career-high 7.1 assists per game on a .589 true shooting percentage, figures comparable to Nikola Jokić, Luka Dončić and Jalen Brunson.

The Suns will rely on Booker’s exceptional performance as their primary option to regain playoff contention. This follows an offseason that included firing its head coach for the third straight spring, trading Durant to the Rockets for Jalen Green, Dillon Brooks, No. 10 overall draft pick Khaman Maluach, and five second-round picks, trading its last two tradable first-round picks to Charlotte for enticing but oft-injured center Mark Williams, adding promising second-round picks like St. Joe’s wing Rasheer Fleming and Kentucky shooter Koby Brea, and reportedly remains at an impasse on The Bradley Beal Situation.

Booker must now align with new head coach Jordan Ott, whose hiring reportedly involved Booker’s input. He also needs to reintegrate with Bradley Beal in the post-Durant era, build chemistry with Jalen Green, and develop connections with new pick-and-roll partners Mark Williams and Khaman Maluach. Moreover, he will be tasked with rediscovering his 3-point shot while serving as the team’s primary playmaker.

If Booker can achieve all of this and maintain his All-NBA caliber performance, the Suns could potentially regain their position in the Western Conference and compete for a playoff berth in the coming seasons. The task ahead of Booker is significant, but he will be handsomely rewarded for his efforts.

Post Views: 19