Suns’ fans have not gotten the chance to watch the team’s Big 3 of Kevin Durant, Devin Booker and Bradley Beal as much as they have hoped this season.

The trio played in only their 24th game together in last night’s 117-111 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Suns are now 15-9 when all three stars share the court. Phoenix is 38-27 on the season and in sixth place in the Western Conference.

In Booker’s first game back from injury, they did not skip a beat.

Kevin Durant had his personal-best fourth straight game of scoring 35 or more with 37 and eight rebounds. Booker had 27 points and seven assists, while Beal added 24 points and five rebounds.

In total, the three combined for 88 of the Suns’ 117 points on 35-of-67 shooting from the field, 20 rebounds and 17 assists. Even though the Cavs were shorthanded, the three stars made this offensive outburst look effortless against the NBA’s No. 3-rated defense.

An even more telling stat is that the Suns are now 5-0 when all three score 20 or more points in the same game. (h/t @DevinBookerMuse/ X)

Stats like these beg the question of just how dangerous the Suns will be come playoff time. If they can stay healthy.

With 17 games left in the season, how many more games will these three play together?

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By record, the Suns have been nearly twice as good with the superstar in the lineup this decade.

It feels like the days of people not understanding the positive impact of Devin Booker on winning basketball for the Phoenix Suns are more or less gone, but the latest check-in on the evidence should take care of the last few stragglers.

Using the bubble as the turning point in organizational success in Phoenix, the Suns are 170-69 (.711) since the 2020-21 season with Booker in the lineup. Without him, they’re 28-34 (.452) over the same timeframe.

Over the same period, the difference in net rating with him is +6.2 and without him is -1.1.

Because he’s the team’s best point guard option (team-leading 6.8 assists per game this season) and arguably the best defender at the point of attack, his difference-making is clear to the eye.

And since he serves as the franchise’s savior of sorts after being drafted in the thick of The Dark Times, his returns have always been a sigh of relief to me when watching the team.

Over Booker’s career, the Suns are 8-1 in games where Booker is returning after missing more than three in a row.

• Dec. 26, 2017 after the Suns were 3-6 without him: 32 points (9-of-21 FG, 11-of-12 FT), five rebounds and six assists (also fouled out) in 34 minutes; a +10 in a two-point win over the Memphis Grizzlies.
• Feb. 14, 2018 after the Suns were 0-4 without him: 28 points (8-of-20 FG, 6-of-14 3P), five rebounds and three assists in 36 minutes; a -10 in a 10-point loss to the Utah Jazz.
• Dec. 15, 2018 after the Suns were 1-5 without him: 28 points (10-of-16 FG, 3-of-6 3P), seven rebounds and seven assists in 36 minutes; a +2 in an eight-point win over the Minnesota Timberwolves.
• Feb. 1, 2021 after the Suns were 2-2 without him: 24 points (9-of-19 FG, 4-of-8 3P), one rebound and one steal in 31 minutes; a -1 in a one-point win over the Dallas Mavericks.
• Dec. 19, 2021 after the Suns were 5-2 without him: 16 points (6-of-15 FG, 4-of-8 3P), six rebounds and five assists in 26 minutes; a +32 in a 31-point win over the Chicago Bulls.
• March 9, 2022 after the Suns were 3-1 without him: 23 points (7-of-12 FG, 4-of-7 3P), eight rebounds, nine assists, two steals and two blocks in 33 minutes; a +31 in a 21-point win over the Miami Heat.
• Feb. 7, 2023 after the Suns were 10-11 without him: 19 points (6-of-15 FG, 5-of-7 FT), four rebounds and six assists in 26 minutes; a -3 in a four-point win over the Brooklyn Nets; he then missed the next game but the Suns won again when he came back the following game.
• Nov. 15, 2023 after the Suns were 2-3 without him: 31 points (12-of-22 FG, 5-of-5 FT), four rebounds and five assists in 26 minutes; a net-0 in an 18-point win over Minnesota.
• March 11, 2024 after the Suns were 2-2 without him: 27 points (11-of-22 FG, 4-of-4 FT), six rebounds and seven assists in 38 minutes; a +12 in a six-point win over the Cleveland Cavaliers.

I didn’t count the first game of the 2018-19 season after he missed the final dozen games of the 2017-18 season because I didn’t feel that fit the true criteria of the search, but the first game of the 2018-19 season was a win.

It was, of course, that 21-point win over Dallas, the first game of Deandre Ayton and Luka Doncic’s careers. Booker had 35 points on 12-of-19 shooting (6-of-10 3P) and seven assists in the blowout win. So if we were counting that game, it would be 10-2 in his returns.

For this team, Booker’s return to the lineup signifies another poison for defenses to pick from, less strain on rotational staggers and an alpha back at the front of the pack. The return of a cold-blooded killer who can make any shot, throw any pass.

While the Suns are capable of winning some regular season games and even some playoff games if Booker isn’t in the lineup, there’s nothing to be truly afraid of as an opposing team unless Booker is there to complement the other pieces and bring them out to their fullest.

Booker gives teams a reason to fear the Suns.