Phoenix guard Devin Booker has undergone surgery to repair an injury to the fifth metacarpophalangeal joint of his right hand, and the Suns say the expected recovery time is approximately six weeks.
That would cause him to miss not only all of training camp but probably the first couple of games of the regular season.
The surgery was performed Monday by hand specialist Steven Shin in Los Angeles. Recent swelling in the hand prompted the decision to have surgery.
Booker, 21, signed a five-year, $158 million maximum contract extension with the Suns in July. He has rapidly developed into the Suns’ cornerstone star and the franchise’s hope to lead it out of the lottery and back to the NBA playoffs.
Booker averaged 24.9 points per game in his third NBA season. He has been general manager Ryan McDonough’s most decorated draft pick in Phoenix, taken as a freshman out of Kentucky who dropped to No. 13 in the 2015 NBA draft.
Booker has been surrounded with three lottery picks in the past two drafts, including this year’s No. 1 overall pick, center Deandre Ayton, No. 10 pick Mikal Bridges and 2017 No. 4 overall pick Josh Jackson.
Marc J. Spears of The Undefeated, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski and The Associated Press contributed to this report.