Suns Injury Update: Devin Booker is doubtful for clash with the Celtics

Devin Booker was nowhere to be found during the first half of the Phoenix Suns' victory over the Toronto Raptors on Thursday night. While some members of the media stated that they had seen him before the game, the four-time All-Star was not present on the bench with the team.

Booker hadn’t spent any time on the bench since going down in the late stages of a loss against the Houston Rockets five nights prior. His ankle tweaked as he stepped on teammate Royce O’Neale’s foot. He painfully arose and limped to the locker room.

As the second half began last night, Booker walked out of the tunnel and made his way to the Suns’ bench. There was no noticeable limp as he was sporting his newly released Book 1 Mirage v2 signature Nike shoes.

Booker is on the path to recovery, and on Friday he was getting work in post-practice as the Suns are preparing to host the team with the best record in the NBA, the Boston Celtics, on Saturday.

If you watched the clips, you see that Booker is moving well. His lateral quickness as he gets to his spots looks normal. The height on his jumper? Still elite.

Suns’ head coach informed members of the media, however, that Devin Booker will be doubtful against the Celtics tomorrow. This would make his fourth missed game due to the injury.

With 19 games left to go, this would also mark the 14th missed game for Devin Booker this season. Averaging 27.5 points and 6.8 assists, he is having an All-NBA type of season. The line of demarcation to be eligible to win any awards is 65 played games. Book has played in 50. This isn’t a reason to rush him back from injury, just an observational note.

We should know more tomorrow as tip-off nears. If Booker isn’t good to go, we will see more Point Brad Beal. “I still have the mindset of a scorer,” Beal said after practice today, “and still have that ability, but also understand that I also have to be able to generate shots for us and get us good, quality looks.”

Point Book or Point Beal, the 48-14 Celtics will be a tough hurdle to clear. The Suns play them twice in the three games. Boston is coming off of a loss in Denver last night. Having booker available would be great. But only if healthy.