Devin Booker delivered the vintage performance Phoenix had to have in

Devin Booker is into nostalgia. He likes vintage cars, vintage fashion and, when one considers his festering rivalry with contemporary star Luka Doncic, even some vintage NBA bad blood.

Nike, seizing on his fast-growing popularity, has started selling a Booker-themed version of its Zoom GT Cut 2. He thinks they’re pretty nice and has been wearing them in warmups. But for Phoenix Suns games, he’ll be wearing his long-preferred vintage Kobes (thank you very much).

Booker likes to immerse himself in the past. He speaks about his own recent history frequently, though not always with fondness. He smiles when he thinks back to being drafted by the Suns in 2015; he had never spent appreciable time in the desert and knew nothing about the city. But many of those memories don’t come with smiles.

He spent most of the first four years of his pro career in a morass, cycling through coaches and averaging a measly 22 wins a season. The Suns were worse than a laughingstock; they were irrelevant.

The most glorious moment of that span came when Booker had a magical night in Boston in March 2017, scoring 70 points in a brilliant playmaking display. He and his teammates, thirsty for anything to grab on to, joyously celebrated around him and it left Booker awkwardly having to defend his historic night — the Suns still lost that game by 10 points.

Booker can’t clear those scars and doesn’t want to.

But that seems like a lifetime ago now. Booker added another file to his elite playoff résumé Friday night, saving the Suns’ season for the moment with one of those near flawless offensive games that have developed into his trademark.

Booker, clearly sensing the moment with the Suns down 0-2 to the top-seeded Denver Nuggets and guard Chris Paul out with a groin injury, poured in 47 points on 20-of-25 shooting Friday night…