Now that the 2024 Paris Olympics are a done deal, it’s safe to say few players on Team USA have had as much success as Devin Booker. Not only did he announce his opportunity a year before his team won gold, but he was widely praised for his attitude and play for his country.
When the group needed a player who could both start and finish games, but also cede the spotlight to Stephen Curry in the final two games en route to the gold medal, Booker was the man they needed. In the gold medal game against France, he scored 10 points at halftime, the most for his team before Curry did his thing.
Maybe it’s because the prospect of seeing Curry and LeBron James on the court together makes so much sense that it would be so much fun to watch over an entire NBA season. More likely, though, it can never happen. Not that the Suns would mind, they already have Kevin Durant, who would have easily made this list if he wasn’t already playing for Phoenix. Let’s expand the list beyond Team USA, too.
We’ll start with the easiest – and most painful – pick of the bunch: Tyrese Haliburton of the Indiana Pacers. Easy because, like Booker, he’s what we now call a “movement shooter,” but painful because the Suns could have drafted Haliburton in 2020.
We know that Haliburton also jokes and pokes fun at himself after winning a gold medal despite not being hit twice in the last two games. As funny as that is, that is exactly the attitude that Phoenix was missing last season. Everything seemed very serious and not funny at all, but Haliburton’s charisma alone would change that.
If you don’t do anything on the group project and still get an A🏅 pic.twitter.com/xpshYZhMyA
— Tyrese Haliburton (@TyHaliburton22) 10 August 2024
Of course, he’s also an All-Star caliber player and could be the point guard the Suns so desperately needed last time out. Tyus Jones and Monte Morris are great and all, but a backcourt with Booker and Haliburton would be terrifying.
Haliburton would go a long way in fixing the turnover issues that plagued the Suns last season, while his 20 points and 10+ assists a night would take the team’s offensive game to a whole new level. Just an interesting pairing because Booker and Haliburton would fit so well together. As we’ve seen with Booker’s improved defensive game, it would work on both ends as well.
