22 shots, 40 points! Crushing the top team in the East! The Rockets really shouldn’t have traded him.

You really think you’re the best in the East?

The heavily shorthanded Suns protected their home court with a 114-96 victory.

Here are the Pistons’ statistics:

In this game, Dillon, carrying the team solo, was unstoppable—making 13 out of 22 shots at nearly 59% shooting, racking up 40 points plus 8 boards and 4 assists, as if Jordan’s spirit was with him, hammering the Pistons to the point they couldn’t resist.

It’s worth mentioning that in the last three games, both Booker and Jalen Green have been sidelined due to injuries,while Dillon scored 26, 26, and 40 points respectively, averaging 30.7 points, 5.3 rebounds, 3 assists, 1.3 blocks, and 1 steal per game, with shooting percentages of 54%, 47%, and 90%, entering the 180 club.

So far this season, Dillon has started all 42 games he’s played, averaging 31.1 minutes on the court, putting up 21 points, 3.6 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 1.1 steals per game, with shooting splits of 44.5%, 35.2%, and 86.1%. His scoring average is a career high, proving he is Booker’s best teammate and can even take on a leading role.

Last offseason, the Rockets traded Jalen Green, Dillon, the 2025 first-round 10th pick, and five second-round picks to the Suns in order to acquire Durant.

Looking at the current situation, compared to Jalen Green, Dillon appears to be the biggest asset the Suns gained from that deal.

Of course, from a future perspective, 23-year-old Jalen Green has more upside than 30-year-old Dillon.

Seeing Dillon’s increasingly impressive performance with the Suns, many outside observers lament that the Rockets should never have included him in the trade; he is crucial on both ends of the floor and mentally. Unfortunately, there’s no “what if,” and discussing it is pointless.

Dillon was born on January 22, 1996. He is a 2.01-meter tall wing player with a 1.98-meter wingspan, drafted 15th in the second round of 2017. His current contract runs through summer 2027, with a salary of $21.18 million this season and $19.99 million next season.

So far,the Suns hold a 29-19 record, ranking seventh in the West, 2.5 games ahead of the eighth-seeded Warriors, having caught up with the sixth-place Lakers, and trailing the fourth-place Rockets by just one game.They are just a step away from the playoff zone, even though last season, with a star-studded lineup (Durant, Booker, Beal), they still missed the playoffs.