The Phoenix Suns and Milwaukee Bucks’ brawl was intense. There were chippy moments between Giannis Antetokounmpo and Kevin Durant and a theatric ending. Devin Booker rose up for a mid-range with 1.7 seconds left to give the Desert a fourth straight win. The team is starting to click at the right time. However, there’s a huge concern. It’s all happening without the third head of their ‘Big 3’.

Since Bradley Beal’s injury against the Lakers, the Suns haven’t lost a single game. Moreover, they have looked to be more fluent, with Booker and KD alternating turns as the offensive fulcrums. Their on-court synergy had always been impeccable. And after tonight’s enthralling win, Durant even confessed how he has benefitted from having just Book running the show with him.

The Slim Reaper splashed a season-high seven threes tonight, with almost every possession beginning with Booker’s impact. “When Book is drawing two and he has the vision to see on that backside too, the defense is that his mercy. He can shoot the ball, he can make that interior pass, or he can throw out to the wing. With the gravity that he draws, it gives me some open shots,” he said about the prolific shooting guard.

With Beal, though, the defenses should feel more disoriented. However, because it doesn’t often force the double, Booker’s impact as a passer doesn’t reflect the same. Tonight, he drew doubles, made the right reads, and Durant could unleash 38 points. The Suns have also improved to 13-3 without the former Wizards guard this season.

Having high-energy defenders such as rookie Ryan Dunn, Royce O’Neale, and Grayson Allen in short spurts has allowed them to utilize the tandem’s offensive prowess effectively. Budenholzer’s team seems to be settling into the new system with great results. It only complicates matters for when Beal does return.

However, if they can find a way to harness the veteran guard’s defensive potential, it could augment the Suns’ current structure. But if not, his future with the franchise may remain as it is right now—uncertain.

Devin Booker stepped up spontaneously

Durant was the target the Suns looked for all night. He was hitting most of his clean looks. Particularly, in the second half, he hit home on five of his seven threes for the game. Moreover, just moments before Booker hit the game-winner, KD’s triple brought the Suns crowd alive. But still, Budenholzer opted to go to Book. Or did he?

It was after the game that the reality came out. The play was identical to what Steve Kerr ran for Kevin Durant while they were in Paris for the Olympics. “The play was actually for KD, a play that we ran in the Olympics with Steve Kerr. But they denied him. Also set an unbelievable screen and trying to get to the rim,” Booker noted.

The Suns’ all-time leading scorer couldn’t find a way to the rim. So instead he stopped on the dime and hit a picture-perfect mid-range shot to put the game to bed. It wasn’t a particularly great shooting night for Booker. But because the Bucks disrupted the play for Durant, Booker got the space he needed.

No matter how bad a day or how vital the moment, Devin Booker won’t miss those looks often. And with the Suns being on such a roll, Booker and the whole squad are oozing confidence. They are beginning to string together wins at the right time, having gone 6-4 in their last 10 games.

They are pushing the pace of making the Play-In Tournament. With how they are starting to look, it seems the Suns are headed just there. But still, they can’t afford to take a step back at this moment.