Devin Booker has spent his entire NBA career with the Phoenix Suns. And there’s a pretty good chance he’ll spend the rest of his career there as well. The owner of the Suns, Mat Ishbia, has vocalized his admiration for Booker on multiple occasions, however, this week he dropped the most powerful statement to date.
Ishbia, who’s been the majority owner of the Suns since 2023, showed the world just how much he believes in Booker in 2025. Booker signed the highest annual-value-contract in NBA history, completing a two-year, $145 extension through the 2029-30 season.
And while the Suns haven’t made it out of the first-round of the playoffs since 2023, the Suns owner appears to be all-in on Booker being part of the present, and future, of the franchise. Earlier this week, Ishbia was recorded being asked if he would trade Booker to the Detroit Pistons.
The question comes from the fact that Ishbia is originally from Birmingham, Michigan. Booker, ironically, is also from Michigan. He was born and raised in Grand Rapids Michigan. Ishbia, however, provided a final answer, shutting down any hopes and dreams this presumed Pistons fan had.
“Can you trade Devin Booker to the Pistons?” asked the fan.
“When I’m dead,” responded Ishbia.
“When I’m dead… Devin Booker will never be a Detroit Piston.”
(h/t @DowntownDeuce)
Ishbia didn’t stop there. It appears he wanted the fan to understand there’s a 0% chance he’ll ever trade Booker to the Pistons.
“Devin Booker will never be a Detroit Piston,” Ishbia said.
While you’d think Ishbia slammed that door shut on the first attempt, this fan didn’t give up there.
“Do it for the love, you’re from here, come on do it,” the fan said.
Ishbia, again, slammed this door completely shut.
“I don’t care about the Pistons at all,” Ishbia said.
The original clip came from @DowntownDeuice on X.
The request seems to be coming from a Pistons fan, but Booker could be the missing piece for a lot of teams in the NBA. The talented, 29-year-old shooting-guard is one of the best offensive players the league has to offer.
Booker Could Be Missing Piece For Many NBA Teams
Last season, he averaged 26.1 points, 6.0 assists, and 3.9 rebounds in 64 total games played. He was named to his fifth NBA All-Star game of his career. He’s been named to two All-NBA Teams in his career (2022 & 2024), and he finished fourth in NBA MVP voting in 2022. Booker has scored at least 22.0 points per game in every season but his rookie-campaign, but he’s only led his team to the playoffs five times. And Booker has appeared in the NBA Finals once throughout his 11-year-career (2020-21).
The only obstacle to a future Booker-trade would potentially be his contract. His salary would be a lot for one team to take on that’s already in playoff contention. Booker is set to earn $57 million this upcoming season, $61 million in 2027-28, and anywhere from $63.6 to $77.8 million over the 2028-29 depending on final salary-cap escalators.
None of those figures sound like they’ll end up mattering for another NBA team, as Ishbia seems destined to hang-on to Booker for the rest of his NBA career. The Suns owner has created a theme here over the past few months. This was Ishbia’s comments on the future of Booker with the team from April:
“I’ll ride into a fire with Devin Booker, and I’ll do it proudly… Devin Booker is not getting traded. Devin Booker is our franchise player. We’re going to win a championship here with Devin Booker. I’m excited to do it and be next to him when we do that,” Ishbia said.
Mat Ishbia Gives Definitive Answer on Devin Booker Suns-Pistons Trade Proposal