Some love stories are meant to last forever. Others? They just stay expensive. Devin Booker and the Phoenix Suns have been together for nearly a decade, and now they’re doubling down. Again. The Suns just extended Booker’s contract by two more years and a jaw-dropping $145 million, bringing his total deal to a colossal $315 million.

It’s the richest per-year contract in NBA history, at least for now, and it comes with a side of fresh headaches for team owner Mat Ishbia. Because, here’s the thing that’s getting everyone worked up: no one forced Phoenix to do this.

“Devin Booker has three years left on his contract that take him into his early 30s,” one analyst on the Open Floor podcast pointed out. “They did not need to do this.” And they really didn’t. This wasn’t some desperate plea to keep your star from bolting. Booker was already under team control until 2028. But the Suns’ front office handed over the keys early, locking themselves into an even longer, riskier ride, with no title in sight. Why?

Well, according to the podcast analyst, it’s not that you’re missing anything. “You’re making decisions in a way that Mat Ishbia does not.” Translation? This wasn’t basketball logic. It was billionaire bravado. A flashy move from an owner who’s treated this franchise like his personal project since taking over.

Booker is an All-NBA talent. That’s not up for debate. But what is being questioned is whether the Suns have any realistic shot at building a championship-contending team around in the next five years. And the critics? They’re not holding back. “Devin Booker will never win an NBA championship in Phoenix,” the analyst added. “It doesn’t mean Devin Booker won’t win a championship… But in Phoenix, with Devin Booker as the alpha on that team, it’s not going to happen.” That’s the reality check. But it doesn’t stop there.

Devin’s deal, Ishbia’s dilemma

The sobering admission no one in the Phoenix Suns’ front office will make out loud. Booker’s contract might just be the most untradable in the NBA. Not because he’s not worth it… he is, but because it handcuffs Phoenix financially in a way that screams second apron purgatory. No wiggle room, no draft picks, no flexibility. And yet, Mat Ishbia has gone all-in like a Vegas high-roller on his fourth espresso shot.

Kevin Durant. Bradley Beal. Big names, big salaries, bigger risks. None of it has worked. What else can he do? The extension sends a message that the Suns are committed to Booker. But it also broadcasts something more troubling—they have no plan B. No reset option. No parachute. And this isn’t just an emotional choice.

It’s a gamble that the current structure, somehow, will work. That Booker can defy age curves, injury history, and cap constraints long enough to pull off a miracle. Problem is? Miracles don’t show up just because you overpay for them. Now, Devin Booker will be making nearly $73 million in a single season by the time this extension kicks in. And if that number sounds wild, that’s because it is.

It’s the kind of salary that makes it impossible to trade without swallowing another bloated contract or offloading multiple assets just to make the math work. And should things collapse in Phoenix? They’re stuck. You can’t rebuild when the face of your franchise is too expensive to move, and too expensive to keep. Booker’s contract is both a golden throne and a golden cage. So what now?

For Ishbia, the gamble has already been placed. For Booker, the challenge is now existential. He’s rich. He’s loved in Phoenix. But can he ever win here? Because if he can’t, this $315 million love story might go down as one of the NBA’s most painful and expensive what-ifs.