Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker was back to not playing on Saturday afternoon against the Philadelphia 76ers after he returned from a three-game absence on Thursday.
Phoenix had to fly across the country to Philadelphia on Friday morning following the loss at home to the San Antonio Spurs on Thursday night, giving Booker a 36-hour turnaround on his left ankle he sprained in the season opener, forcing him to sit the next three games. Head coach Frank Vogel told reporters pregame attributed the short timeframe/trip to why Booker is out, per azcentral’s Duane Rankin
Phoenix plays the second game of a back-to-back in Detroit on Sunday afternoon. Vogel said Booker “hopefully” can play then, a term that has not been a reliable indicator thus far of whether an injured player will play or not.
On Thursday, Booker had what was only his second scoreless first quarter since the start of 2020 before getting hot in the second half, finishing with 31 points, nine rebounds, 13 assists and five turnovers on 10-for-19 shooting.
Bradley Beal (low back spasms) will miss his sixth straight game to begin the season. The Suns are 2-3 without him and now take on a 76ers team that has won three straight since losing their season opener to the Milwaukee Bucks.