Devin Booker has spent his entire career in Phoenix, which made this media day challenge trickier than it sounds. The Suns asked their franchise cornerstone to name the rest of the lineup from his NBA debut back in 2015, and he worked his way through it out loud.
“Ooh, Brandon Knight,” Booker started, then paused. “Hmm, P.J.” He second-guessed himself on the next one. “I don't think Tyson played that game. Tyson? Oh, man.” He got there position by position. “Who was at the four? Markieff Morris. Yeah!”
A clean sweep. Brandon Knight, P.J. Tucker, Tyson Chandler and Markieff Morris were all on the floor alongside Booker for the opener against the Mavericks on Oct. 28, 2015, at what was then Talking Stick Resort Arena. Chandler did play, despite the doubt.
Booker was two days shy of his 19th birthday that night. He scored 14 points on 6-of-7 shooting in 21 minutes of a 111-95 loss to Dallas, becoming the first player in NBA history to debut at 18 years old after playing a season of college basketball.
None of those four teammates is still playing. Tucker retired in May after 19 seasons, and Morris, Knight and Chandler have all since left the league. Booker, meanwhile, is entering his 12th season with the only franchise he has ever known.
The gap between then and now is enormous. That 2015-16 Suns team finished 23-59, the second-worst record in franchise history. Booker has since become a five-time All-Star, a two-time All-NBA selection, the Suns' all-time leading scorer and the youngest player in NBA history to score 70 points in a game. He also led Phoenix to the 2021 NBA Finals.
The roster around him keeps turning over. Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal were both gone by the summer of 2025, and Phoenix brought in Miles Bridges from Charlotte this offseason. Bridges has already made clear his goal is helping Booker chase a title.
Jordan Ott enters his second season as head coach, and Booker begins another chapter with another new group, more than a decade after that first night in Phoenix.