OKLAHOMA CITY – Phoenix Suns star guard Devin Booker has been ruled out for the Wednesday, Dec. 10, NBA Cup quarterfinal game against defending NBA champion Oklahoma City at Paycom Center after previously being listed as questionable.

“He’s continuing to make progress,” Suns coach Jordan Ott said pregame. “We checked in with him after his work there in (morning) shootaround. He’s making great progress. We just need a couple of days. We’ll be smart with this thing. It’s a long season.”

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Booker will miss his third straight game with the injury suffered in the first quarter of Phoenix’s 125-108 road victory Dec. 1 over the Los Angeles Lakers.

He was scheduled for an evaluation this week. Booker leads the Suns in scoring at 25 points per game.

“Definitely wants to play, definitely wants to play in a game like this,” Ott said. “We want him to play, but we also want to be smart. He’s been through some of this and he knows his body as well as anyone.

“Again, he’s incredibly stoic and thoughtful and intentional about what he does, including how he feels. We’re going to rely a lot on him exactly where he is on this process.”

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Ott noted Phoenix’s being on the road when asked if Booker has yet to participate in any 5-on-5 action. Teams typically like to see players play full court before putting them in games.

“When he needs 5-on-5, he’ll get to 5-on-5,” Ott said. “He just hasn’t been out that many days.”

Booker has a history with groin injuries. He missed 21 consecutive games in the 2022-23 season after aggravating a left groin injury.

Phoenix’s next game could be as early as Dec. 13 or as late as Dec. 15.

If the Suns defeat the Thunder, they will advance to the NBA Cup semifinals Dec. 13 against the San Antonio Spurs-Los Angeles Lakers winner. The Spurs and Lakers are playing the second NBA Cup West quarterfinal matchup Dec. 10 in Los Angeles.

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If the Suns and Lakers lose in the quarterfinals, Phoenix will play Los Angeles on Dec. 14 at home to give both teams an 82-game schedule.

If the Suns and Spurs lose, Phoenix will play Dec. 15 in San Antonio for the same reasons.

Have opinions about the current state of the Suns? Reach Suns Insider Duane Rankin at dmrankin@gannett.com or contact him at 480-810-5518. Follow him on X, formerly Twitter, at @DuaneRankin.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Suns rule Devin Booker out of NBA Cup matchup at OKC with groin injury