This Suns season has, in many ways, been about turning expectations a little sideways and simplifying the approach to player development. One surprising way that has shown up on the court has been in Devin Booker’s defense.
Throughout the year, coach Jay Triano has emphasized the higher expectations that the coaching staff has placed on Booker this season on the defensive end. In the past, he was able to hide on that end because Eric Bledsoe and P.J. Tucker often guarded the opposing team’s top option. Of course Tucker was traded last February and Bledsoe this November -- that left Booker as not only a more exposed defender but the team’s leader.