Media Day in Phoenix on Monday had all the usual stuff.
New faces, fresh photos, and big hopes for the season. But for Suns fans, one look at Devin Booker felt different.
For 11 seasons, one number sat on his back through it all. The 70-point night in Boston. The 2021 Finals run. His jersey was all over the arena on game nights. Letting go of that isn’t easy.
ClutchPoints shared a clip on X from Suns media day, where Booker was asked about finally switching from No. 1 to No. 15.
“I just feel like where it all started, it’s not a foreign number to me. Even walking around downstairs at one saying it’s gonna take some time to get used to. When I look in the mirror, the first pictures I’ve seen of me wearing it, I feel back at home. It feels like where it first started,” Booker said.
The Suns made it official on Father’s Day in June, posting a video of Booker sitting down with his father, Melvin, to explain it.
Melvin wore No. 15 at Missouri and was named Big Eight Player of the Year in 1994. Devin later wore it with Team USA, winning Olympic gold in Tokyo and Paris.
No. 15 was always the plan. In Kentucky, Willie Cauley-Stein had it. In Phoenix, Marcus Morris wore it when Booker was drafted in 2015. So he took No. 1 and became the Suns’ all-time leading scorer in it.
Now, the 12th-year guard gets a fresh start. Phoenix went 45-37 last season before Oklahoma City swept them in the first round. Booker led the way with 26.1 points a night.
Phoenix added Miles Bridges from Charlotte this offseason, and the goal is clear. Give No. 15 the kind of nights No. 1 had, and maybe the one thing the old number never got. A title.