NBA: Devin Booker leads NBA-best Suns to blowout win at Pistons

Devin Booker dropped a game-high 30 points and four rebounds in a 135-108 win for the Phoenix Suns (34-9) over the Detroit Pistons (10-32) on Sunday afternoon at Little Caesars Arena. Phoenix has won four in a row and improved to an NBA-best 34-9 as the All-Star break approaches. Booker had dozens of friends and family in the building as the Grand Rapids-native returned to his home state. The 2x All-Star led the way with a flurry of mid-range jumpers and a fallaway buzzer beater to end the first quarter on another efficient scoring night.

Despite the blowout win, Phoenix leaves the game with injury concerns after starting center DeAndre Ayton exited late in the first quarter with a sprained right ankle. The injury looked to be relatively minor and head coach Monty Williams described it as a "quick twist." According to AZ Central, Ayton will miss the next game at San Antonio. He has missed 14 games this year. Chris Paul was quiet compared to his usual standards but still contributed 10 points, six assists and six rebounds in 27 minutes. Ayton scored six points including a jumper and two-handed dunk from Paul before leaving.

Javale McGee stepped up with 20 points off the bench in Ayton's absence. The Suns led 39-35 after the first quarter and 64-54 at halftime before pulling away in the third quarter. Cade Cunningham had a team-high 21 points before being ejected in the second half. Booker had an eye-opening put back dunk to put Phoenix up 20 points in the third quarter then Cunningham responded with a reverse dunk of his own and a hilarious point at Jaylen Smith, which was apparently enough to hand the rookie guard his second technical of the night. Hamidou Diallo put up 10 points in the loss.

The Suns had two five-point possessions as the Pistons got called for multiple flagrant and technical fouls. Josh Jackson was also ejected later in the game. Detroit is 5-4 since the new year began but sit at the bottom of the Central division at 10-32. Trey Lyles and Cory Joseph combined for 39 points off the bench. Killian Hayes had nine points and five assists. Cameron Payne also added 20 points for the Suns, who shot 58.6% from the field and racked up 50 points in the paint. Additionally, Phoenix is 2-0 against Detroit this season with a 19-point average margin of victory.

Williams has his team operating at an extremely high level right now, giving consistent effort and sharing the ball regardless of who is on the court. With an elite backcourt and depth, the Suns certainly look primed for another deep playoff run after reaching the NBA Finals a year ago. I think Phoenix has a legitimate chance to win the championship but Ayton's availability will play a major role in that moving forward. Ayton is a huge part of why the Suns can challenge for another Western Conference banner but Booker and Paul remain the driving force behind the NBA's best record.

Photo Credit: USA Today.