Coming into the NBA, Devin Booker was one of many talented players getting drafted out of the University of Kentucky, but few believed he would become arguably the best player among his group of Wildcats.
Karl-Anthony Towns was considered to be that best player coming out of Kentucky in 2015, and as a result, the Minnesota Timberwolves selected him with the No. 1 overall pick.
After Towns was off the board, Willy Cauley-Stein was the next Wildcats star to get drafted, at No. 6, followed by Trey Lyles at No. 12 before Booker was taken at No. 13 by the Phoenix Suns.
Even though Towns has been a star in Minnesota, Booker has been the best player out of this group and now shares the spotlight with Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal in Phoenix.
Former Suns head coach Earl Watson saw first-hand how good Booker was and recently talked about when he realized he’d be such a talented player in the NBA.
“The moment I knew Devin Booker was going to be that guy … at the end of every practice, he would play everyone who was staying, one-on-one, and he would beat them,” Watson said, via FanDuel TV.
“The moment I knew Devin Booker was going to be that guy… At the end of every practice he would play everyone that who was staying, 1-on-1, and he would beat them…”@Earl_Watson has high praise for @DevinBook 🙌
Watch the full @RunItBackFDTV interview! ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/kcNG5gfC6N
— FanDuel TV (@FanDuelTV) August 9, 2024
Currently, Booker is trying to help Team USA win the gold medal at the 2024 Paris Olympics playing alongside fellow NBA stars like LeBron James, Stephen Curry and Durant.
Booker has been an essential part of head coach Steve Kerr’s squad and has received high praise for how well he’s played up to this point.
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Team USA Announces Change In Lineup For Gold-Medal Game