Every August, Devin Booker searches for a few dates when the Phoenix Suns schedule is released. The Phoenix Open’s four days each winter are one of them Chris Paul.

The timing frequently doesn’t work out. The obligations of playing games and travelling make it challenging to attend a midseason golf tournament, even if the Suns are in town for a portion of it. But everything worked out just right this year. Following a Friday night game in Indiana, the squad has three days off before facing the Kings at home.

Therefore, Booker and Chris Paul will be present at TPC Scottsdale during the weekend to take in the show along with thousands of other spectators.

Booker exclaimed, “I’m excited about it. “We haven’t been in town that often. We’ve had the opportunity to experience it a few times. Just the environment to Chris Paul.

On a stage at Chase Field on Thursday, Booker addressed the Phoenix Open Tee-Off Luncheon attendees. He and Paul were the luncheon’s featured guests because they will both be at the competition; in the past, names like Michael Phelps and Larry Fitzgerald have appeared on this list.

The two discussed their shared love of golf early on in the session, which was led by Diamondbacks president and CEO Derrick Hall.

While in town for the 2009 NBA All-Star Game, Paul played the game for the first time at TPC Scottsdale. His visits to Phoenix had always been in and out before that time. But because he was only in town for a few days and didn’t have many basketball commitments, he had time to play 18 holes. His decision to move to Phoenix more than ten years later was influenced more by Booker and the team’s potential to win championships than by the weather and golf he played while there.

Early on in the meeting, which was facilitated by Diamondbacks president and CEO Derrick Hall, the two talked about their shared love of golf. Chris Paul.

Paul participated in the game for the first time at TPC Scottsdale while in town for the 2009 NBA All-Star Game. Before that, he had never stayed more than a day in Phoenix. However, he had time to play 18 holes because he was only in town for a short while and didn’t have many basketball-related obligations. More than ten years later, Booker and the team’s potential to win championships played a bigger role in his decision to relocate to Phoenix than the local climate or golf courses.

“It was primarily to be near my family, but it was also a fantastic academic school. Seriously. I didn’t know I was going to the NBA when I was a college phenom, Paul said.

The large crowd in attendance laughed as Booker cut in, “Same reason I went to Kentucky,” in the middle of his statement.

Paul said, “This guy makes me giggle. He continued, “This man didn’t even —,” but stopped short of accusing Booker. That can wait for another day.

That kind of humour persisted throughout their conversation. Paul once mentioned that he attended the Phoenix Open for the first time in 2020, the morning of a game between the Suns and the Thunder, the team for which he was playing at the time.

Paul said, “He doesn’t really like this story because it happened on gameday.

The insinuation is that Paul believed he could attend a golf tournament the morning of a game since the Suns, coming off a 19-win season, were not a threat to his Thunder, as Booker acknowledged.

Of course, that’s not the case anymore. The Suns are one of the favourites to win the NBA championship with a record of 15-6, leading the Western Conference. The turnaround started in the COVID bubble of 2020, when the Suns went undefeated, as has already been endlessly chronicled. That stretch, which included a victory over his Thunder, helped Paul decide to visit Phoenix in the first place.

Paul and Booker make fun of that game as well.

Let me just add one thing regarding their perfect record, Paul added. “We didn’t play in the second half (the starters). In the bubble, we played them. He frequently reminds me that we lost to them despite not playing in the second half.
Phoenix Open anticipates a robust field

Pat Williams, the chairman of the Phoenix Open, declined to provide specifics about the competitors in this year’s competition. He did, however, mention that he anticipates the field to be the strongest ever due to its increased standing in the PGA Tour’s new format, which was altered in response to competition from the LIV Golf Tour.