Devin Booker wants No. 15. Mark Williams currently has No. 15. And apparently, the two Suns are treating this like a negotiation at a used lot.
Booker announced this offseason that he’d switch from No. 1 to No. 15 to honor his dad Melvin, who wore it at Missouri. The problem is that Williams, the center Phoenix traded for from Charlotte in the summer of 2025, was wearing that exact number when Booker made the call. Williams was also a restricted free agent at the time, which complicated things slightly.
Booker reached out and basically said he’d make it right if Williams came back. A little while later, Williams signed a three-year, $38 million contract to stay in Phoenix. Now that the paperwork is done, Williams told reporters the two are hashing out specifics.
“We’re in negotiations, yeah,” Williams said, via PHNX Sports. “Think of it as going upstairs and talking. We’ll agree on something here soon. I’m not worried about that. He said he got me and I’m taking his word for that for sure.”
What Number Does Mark Williams Wear Now?
Williams can’t keep No. 15 obviously. But he also can’t take No. 5, which the Suns retired for the late Dick Van Arsdale. The No. 15 he wore at Duke is taken. So he needed options.
He wore No. 7 and No. 12 in high school. Both are in use right now by Haywood Highsmith and Collin Gillespie. So Williams landed on No. 25, the same number Mikal Bridges made famous during his time in Phoenix.
Booker has been a Suns lifer and is arguably the best player in franchise history. So Williams was never going to win this one. But Booker, to his credit, isn’t just taking the number and moving on. He’s treating this like a team-first move, which matters when you’re the guy everyone looks to in the locker room.
The exact compensation between the two remains unclear. Williams didn’t specify whether it’s cash, a watch, dinner for a year, or something else entirely. But considering Booker reportedly promised to take care of him, expect something a little more creative than just a handshake.
Williams is 24 and now locked into a multiyear deal. Booker is 29 and chasing a ring. A jersey number swap is a small thing. But in a league where egos and details matter, the fact that both sides are joking about it in public says a lot about the vibe in Phoenix right now.
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