All three of these players are near the top of each of their respective sports.
Larry 'Legend' has been in football for nearly two decades now - all with the Arizona Cardinals. He has records on top of records. Currently second all-time in catches and receiving yards, 11-time Pro Bowler, and 6th all-time in touchdowns.
Fitzgerald has been a constant leader for the Cardinals on-and-off the field. A work ethic only on-par with the greats, an attitude that exemplifies a winning mindset, and the focus to never deter away from the goal. Off the field, Fitz is always giving back to the community through charitable donations of not just his money, but also his time.
Fitzgerald has been a beacon hope for small-market teams. His commitment to the Cardinals has shown the sports world that not every potential Hall of Famer wants to move to the big city. Fitz has dealt with a lot of mediocrity as a Cardinal. He's had a carousel at the quarterback position, but he's always been stead-fast in his commitment to turning the Cardinals into a contender.
We are on the last few pages of the Fitzgerald story, but the best may be yet to come. Finally on a team with young star-power and forward thinking leaders around him - Fitz is ready to make one final stand before closing the book for good.
Devin Booker has been like a dollar you find walking along the street. But instead of a dollar, it's a $50,000 bill.
Everyone passing over it, without realizing what value they were missing out on.
Booker can be the piece to jump-starting the Suns out of the misery they have been in the last decade. The 13th pick usually isn't looked at as a savior in the NBA, but Booker's talent makes you rethink conventional wisdom.
Unheralded prospects are not suppose to come into the league and drop 70 in a game by their second season, but Book did that.
Booker is an anomaly. The lack of interest and respect Book felt he deserved coming out of Kentucky, all plays a role into the psyche he has now. He keeps a chip on his shoulder because he feels constantly overlooked. He's been around 25.5 points-per-game that last 3 seasons, but no accolades to show for it.
I take that back.
Booker made the all-star game this past season, AFTER someone else stepped aside.
In a sport with only 5 players on the court and no helmets or caps, every Arizona fan knows who Devin Booker is. They acknowledge his status as one of the best pure talents, while still being a baby in the NBA. He's still only 23 with already 5 seasons of NBA experience under his belt.
He has the talent to lead the Suns to greater heights, but does he have the leadership and intangibles to get them their?
He is undeniably the face of the Suns, but he doesn't have calcified relationship with Arizona fans like Larry Fitzgerald. Fitz has been their through all the ups-and-downs. We forget Fitz has only been to the playoffs 4 times in his 16 seasons. Until Booker gets some success, he won't be seen in the same light as Fitzgerald.
One guy who has an even smaller track record then both Booker and Fitz, but the talent to match is Ketel Marte.
As the secondary piece in a trade with the Seattle Mariners, Ketel Marte has left no doubt after his 2019 season that it was a mistake trading him at all.
You can make the argument that Ketel Marte's 2019 season was better than any season by Booker or Fitzgerald. He finished 4th in MVP voting, while Booker and Fitz have never received a vote.
With only 3 seasons in a Diamondbacks uniform, Ketel Marte has quickly replaced Paul Goldschimdt as the face of the team.
During his time with D'backs, Marte has seen the playoffs once, while being on really competitive teams the other 2 years. His short stint has been way more successful than Devin Booker's entire career with the Suns and more successful than Fitzgerald's time with the Cardinals in the same time frame.
So based-off team success and peak performance over the course of a season, Ketel Marte has been the best of the three.
Only problem with Marte is how long it took for him to reach his potential. It wasn't until his fifth season in baseball (third with D'back's) for him to showcase his ability to be the best player on a team. Booker and Fitzgerald showed it by their second season. Marte only has one all-star worthy season under his belt, where Booker and Fitz are like machines. Producing statistically dominant seasons regardless what their team is doing.
Marte needs to be great for a consistently longer period of time before he gets the love and acclaim of a Fitz or even a Booker.
When you factor everything in: team success, statistics, adversity - no player in Arizona means more to their team and city than Fitzgerald. Even though we are in the twilight of his career, no player is more popular still than Larry Fitzgerald.
He has captivated Arizona by making spectacular catches in the Super Bowl to making spectacular catches from John Skelton. Fitz is the manifestation of what a perfect player on-and-off the field should represent.
His Arizona legacy is already cemented. All he needs is a ring for the cherry on top.
