Devin Booker surprises Alabama with motivational message, sneakers ahead of first Final Four
Alabama made it to the Valley of the Sun with their Elite Eight win that sent them to their first-ever Final Four. Now, one of Phoenix’s biggest stars has since spoken to the Crimson Tide ahead of their national semifinal on Saturday.
Devin Booker, former Kentucky guard and current four-time All-Star for the Phoenix Suns, met with Alabama on Thursday evening. He also hooked the Tide up while with them as he gifted them with his new sneakers before their game against Connecticut this weekend.
“Understanding that y’all are going to have to do it together. Communication is key in these big games,” Booker said amidst his message. “Just getting to it early and often. There’s no reason to wait.”
“I wasn’t going to leave y’all empty-handed. I got some new sneakers – the Book 1s,” said Booker as he revealed his signature shoe as a gift to the Tide.
Within the video by Alabama, Booker daps up with Nate Oats, Grant Nelson, Latrell Wrightsell, and Aaron Estrada. He also takes several photos with the Tide, including a team shot to end the clip.
Booker made the Final Four himself back in 2015 as a player for the Wildcats. UK was 38-0 going in before losing their only game of the year to Wisconsin in their national semifinal. The Badgers would then go on to lose to Duke in the title game.
Since then, Booker has spent the past nine years with the Suns after being a first-round pick by the franchise. In that time, he has averaged 24.3 points and five assists per game. He has done so en route to four All-Stars, one All-NBA, and one appearance in the NBA Finals.
Alabama is one of three Nike schools, along with UConn and Purdue, in this field at the Final Four. They may have had a soft spot for Booker, though, as members of the Southeastern Conference.
The Tide (25-11) will play in their first national semifinal tomorrow against the Huskies. They earned their spot by handling business against Charleston and Grand Canyon, pulling the upset on North Carolina, and then defeating Clemson in their Regional Final. That has put them in a place that they’ve never been with a chance for even more in Glendale.
Alabama is in the desert on college basketball’s biggest stage in hopes of accomplishing more that they never have before. Booker is supporting them in that too with his words for them as well as the new kicks for the weekend.