There is nothing but mutual respect between Milwaukee Bucks forward PJ Tucker and his former teammate Devin Booker. Right before their intense NBA Finals match-up, the 36-year-old vet paid homage to his former pupil who he spent years tormenting and mentoring when he was still part of the Phoenix Suns organization.

We all know that Tucker is the ‘King of Kicks‘ and he doubled down on his title by rocking a classic Booker PE on the Bucks' last training day before Game 1 of the Finals (via @NBAKicks):

Aside from this being the ultimate sign of respect from Tucker to Booker – those Nike Kobe 1 Protros are just plain fire.

Tucker and Booker have a very special relationship. The Bucks forward recently opened up about how he would give the younger Booker a hard time during practice back in 2017 when he was in his final years in Phoenix. Booker, who was just starting out in the league, knew he had to go through a baptism of fire and rolled with the punches.

Four years after their intense training sessions in The Valley, both Booker and Tucker are excited to face each other again on basketball's biggest stage. The admiration between these two tough competitors is off the charts and they'll definitely be happy for each other, whatever happens.

That being said, don't be surprised if fireworks go off as these two fierce athletes go toe-to-toe in what's poised to be a very competitive and intense Finals series. And, Tucker wearing Booker's shoes won't slow any of these two down.