Phoenix Suns' Devin Booker played quarterback as a youngster. Sunday, he showed in the 2024 NBA All-Star Game in Indianapolis, Indiana, he still has football skills, something Kevin Durant knew.

Booker, who is one of two players to rank in the top-10 in points (27.5) and assists per game (7.0), threw full-court passes to the Timberwolves' Anthony Edwards, the LA Clippers' Paul George and former Kentucky teammate and Timberwolves' Karl-Anthony Towns, who led the game with 50 points.

Although Booker was named an All-Star, he and the other professional superstars were criticized by the audience at-large for the lackluster contest. The East — which scored 211 points, by far the most in the game's history by the winner — beat the West, which finished with 186.

“It was cool,” Booker, the Suns' franchise star, said. “Pickup, friendly basketball.”

Booker also referred to the balance between competition and not getting injured.

“I have no answer for it,” Booker said.

Booker was named a reserve and finished with 15 points, third-most on the bench behind Towns and Warriors' Steph Curry (16).

Booker is one of two Suns who represented the West, along with Kevin Durant.

Booker said the All-Star game weekend was a “great experience” since he, Towns and five others from Kentucky basketball (Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Anthony Davis, Bam Adebayo and Tyrese Maxey) played in the game, and he launched his Nike Book 1 “Mirage” color, which sold out within seconds according to Nike on the SNKRS app.

“Once you get here and start taking it all in with the legends of the game,” Booker told AZCentral's Duane Rankin, “the guys that came before us and started this whole business. It's always an honor.”

Booker's launch

Book, who is one of the 10-best players in the NBA per The Ringer and ESPN's ranking for the league, launched his first color way of his signature shoe, which sold out on SNKRS and is now selling for over $80 of the $140 retail mark on secondary shoe stores.

The launch kept Booker busy, as he launched the shoe with a party, and gave away the sneaker via scavenger hunt. His shoe was also marketed on an Indianapolis billboard.