Yes, Devin Booker is doing well.

In case your fool needed more than the reassurance a decade-long resume should provide, Booker’s 31 points in the Phoenix Suns’ 120-112 victory over the Utah Jazz on Tuesday were proof that his slow start meant nothing is something to worry about. Even a little bit.

Fifteen of those 31 came in the fourth quarter, including two 3s and an assist on another in the final four minutes, to push Phoenix’s lead to 14 with 1:27 remaining.

Booker, who at one point won Western Conference Player of the Week, by the way, recorded 42.6% shooting and 32.1% from 3-point range through 10 games entering Tuesday. An illness that likely left him off the injury report for Friday’s win clearly still hampered him in Sunday’s loss, with his play in Utah indicating he’s now back in a good place health-wise.

In what is often forgotten by many, Booker has traditionally been a slow starter. His monthly point spread per game really starts to increase once the new year rolls around. As a power back who wears down a defense as the game goes on, he gets better as the season goes on.

Phoenix led 64-49 at halftime in a solid enough effort to take advantage of how awful the Jazz looked before a 30-23 Utah third period saw the Suns squander their best chance in this stretch of games to get a blowout and get some rest. . Tuesday is game No. 7 of 12, with the Suns playing at least every other day, with a few back-to-backs as well.

Utah pulled within six points early in the fourth quarter before a 7-0 Suns spurt led by two Bradley Beal players extended their lead to 13. Utah continued to make stingy moves to get into the game before Booker put the lead away .

Beal had a very good night with 24 points, three rebounds, four assists, two steals and a block in 29 minutes, but did not return to the game after checking out at the 7:19 mark due to left calf tightness. There was no apparent moment during his final minute of play where he appeared to injure himself.

This is another nickname for Beal. He rolled up his left knee in the previous match and also sprained an ankle. Additionally, he has been dealing with a problem with his right elbow.

Booker also took a rough knee-to-knee collision later that certainly looked like it was bad. He stayed in the game. Needless to say, Phoenix can’t afford to be without it while Kevin Durant (left calf strain) and Jusuf Nurkic (left ankle soreness) get healthy.

The Suns’ supporting cast has been stellar for what feels like the 11th straight game of a 9-2 start. Mason Plumlee contributed 15 points and 14 rebounds in Nurkic’s place, while it was a necessary rebound effort for Grayson Allen with 15 points. Rookie center Oso Ighodaro added six points and 12 rebounds in 21 minutes.

This marked the start of NBA Cup group play, which will consist of a total of four games over the next three weeks to determine who will advance to the final eight teams. Making the bracket guarantees a minimum of $50,000 for each player. That, plus the competitive aspect of a tournament format, proved to be a success in his debut last season.

One dynamic in last year’s group play that the teams took some time to get used to was that the points difference played an important role in determining the rankings, given the chances of tiebreaks. Teams are motivated to run up the score during what we normally call garbage time. However, Phoenix plays in Sacramento on Wednesday, so there was another incentive to draft key players late. It did not have that luxury on Tuesday.

Phoenix’s next NBA Cup game is Friday in Oklahoma City against the Thunder, the favorites to win Group B even though they don’t currently have a healthy big.

Utah All-Star Lauri Markkanen clearly hasn’t been himself this season due to past issues, shooting 36.4% from the field in Tuesday’s nine games and once again looked away with a pedestrian 17 points. He has been phenomenal over the past two years and has developed into one of the best wings in the NBA. But whatever happens to him physically also leads to a distinct lack of aggression, with the latter being a problem for him as a goalscorer early in his career. With Markkanen in this state, the Jazz will be a train wreck.

John Collins took over Utah’s center spot with Walker Kessler (right hip soreness) and produced 29 points, 11 rebounds, four assists, three steals and a block.

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