Devin Booker is so much fun to watch when he’s on his A game. He’s got such a wide array of skills on the offensive end that makes it nearly impossible to guard him when he’s feeling it.
Booker was so dominant in the first quarter that he even had Chicago’s mascot Benny the Bull losing his mind when he went to the free throw line, which was a hilarious sight. Yes, it’s nothing serious and everyone with half a brain knows that it was part of an act, but that didn’t make it any less entertaining.
You can kind of see why Benny was pissed off too, considering Booker torched them for 38 points, four rebounds and five assists while shooting 14 of 23 from the field. He showed off his full arsenal today, too.
He even dropped an alley-oop in transition, sort of helping erase the memory of the time he stole the ball and whiffed on an end-of-game windmill dunk against the Indiana Pacers a few weeks ago.
The Suns’ star guard did take a bit of a spill at one point, which had him wincing, but that didn’t stop him from re-entering the game in the fourth quarter.
His return to the game probably also had something to do with the fact that the Bulls cut what was once a 27-point Suns lead to just 113-101 with 6:04 left in the third quarter. The Suns’ lead was only 15 points when Booker came back in, and his mere threat on the floor was sorely needed.
DeMar DeRozan cut that lead even further to just 113-104 with 5:56 left in the game, but a three from Jae Crowder, followed up by a bucket by DeAndre Ayton from a great dish from Booker gave them back a 118-104 cushion.
Booker’s hot shooting really helped carry the game, especially considering that the Bulls held a massive advantage in free throws, shooting 28 of 31 compared to 17 of 19 for the Suns.
The question now is whether or not Booker will be rested for their next game against the Philadelphia 76ers, which tips off less than 24 hours after the Bulls game ended. It’s tough facing two of the East’s best teams in a back-to-back, so Booker may not be afforded the luxury of taking a rest.
The Bulls didn’t exactly make things easy, either, as their star wing players both had great nights. DeRozan finished with 38 points, five rebounds and four assists along with two steals. Zach LaVine also chipped in a good overall game with 32 points, six rebounds and eight assists.
The duo simply didn’t get enough help from their teammates, especially Nikola Vucevic, who had 13 points and 12 rebounds. They’re not at full strength, still missing key players like Lonzo Ball and Alex Caruso, so you can’t give the Bulls too much grief for the loss.
The game ended up having a bit of a crazy ending, too. Both teams emptied their benches with less than two minutes remaining, but the Bulls went on a 9-0 run to suddenly cut what was a 127-115 lead with 1:12 remaining to 127-124. Rookie Malcolm Hill was the main culprit for this, as he made back to back threes and then a buzzer-beater within the final 46.4 seconds of the game.
Hill may have just earned himself extra minutes in their next game, and some Bulls fans feel he deserves it.
