Players who are still in their teens aren't supposed to shoot better than 70 percent from NBA three-point range. They're also usually incapable of turning the ball over just once in over 30 minutes of play.
Then again, Devin Booker isn't the usual teenager.
The Suns' rookie and league's youngest player is garnering more and more attention for his heady play and increasing role for Phoenix. Both factors were punctuated in the Suns' 103-101 win over Chicago, a game in which Booker put up 14 points (6-10 FG), five assists and three rebounds while committing just one turnover in 33 minutes.
Booker Nets 18 at Detroit
In his weekly appearance on the Burns & Gambo Show of Arizona Sports 98.7 FM, Suns General Manager Ryan McDonough admitted Booker has progressed far faster than anticipated.
"We thought he’d be a good player down the line, but he showed on this road trip that despite having just turned 19 years old, he’s a pretty darn good player right now," McDonough said.
The hope is that the youngster's improvement will combine with the return of the team's oldest player to produce more wins. Tyson Chandler sat out the entire six-game road trip in order to rest a strained hamstring.
While Chandler has sat, the Suns' rebounding has dipped by four boards per contest while the defense has given up six more points in the point per game.
"I think since Tyson injured his hamstring against Golden State, our defensive numbers and our defensive numbers have dropped way off," McDonough said. "When we don’t have [Tyson or Alex] on the floor, our defense suffers and our rebounding suffers. I think just their presence and their ability to protect the rim and rebound allows our perimeter defenders to be more aggressive."