Suns' Devin Booker, Kevin Durant in Top Tiers of NBA Player Rankings

There's little convincing you have to do when evaluating Phoenix Suns stars Kevin Durant/Devin Booker and their placement among the league's best. Durant is already one of the league's all-time greats while Booker has cemented himself as one of the best scorers in the NBA. Their respective spots are only a matter of order and shuffling amongst their peers.

The Athletic recently complied their player tiers for the 2023-24 season, and it was no surprise to see Durant and Booker near the top.

Durant - falling just out of Tier 1A that included Steph Curry, Nikola Jokic and Giannis Antetokounmpo - was the first player in Tier 1B (No. 4 overall) ahead of names such as Luka Doncic and Joel Embiid.

Seth Partnow on Durant: "One thing I would like to see from him this season, though I’m not sure if the Suns’ overall roster will allow it, is a little more focus on managing the regular season so we get a better chance to see the best version of Durant come playoff time. If nothing else, getting through the season healthy and relatively rested will give him the best shot at regaining his stature as one of the better playoff defensive players. A 6-foot-9-to-13-inch player with pterodactyl arms, good feet and a great nose for the ball can do some things on that end.

"On the other hand, it is entirely possible Devin Booker stamps his claim as the Suns’ best player. Whether that means Booker gets this spot or Durant ends up tumbling down a sub-tier or three (or both!) would depend on exactly how that came to pass. But much like LeBron James this year, the end of his time at the top will come. We’ll see if Durant can push that reckoning off by another year."

Booker (No. 11 overall) was in the next tier (Tier 2A) under LeBron James, Kawhi Leonard, Jimmy Butler and Jayson Tatum. He finished ahead of Anthony Davis, Ja Morant, Damian Lillard, James Harden, Paul George, Jamal Murray and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to round out the top two tiers.