John Beilein and Bacari Alexander stop in on Devin Booker

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2014 Michigan prospect Devin Booker of Moss Point High School in Mississippi has seen his fair share of success this season. The sophomore, who grew up in Grand Rapids and moved to Moss Point last year, averaged 24 points and 8.5 rebounds per game as a sophomore. Booker scored over 30 points several times during his sophomore campaign and notched 54 points in game against Northeast Jones. Booker’s success has caught the eye of Michigan’s coaching staff and both John Beilein and Bacari Alexander made the trip down to Mississippi last night to catch the sophomore in action.

Devin’s success shouldn’t come as too much of a surprise as his father, Melvin, was an All-American guard at Missouri and played in the NBA. Melvin also played at Moss Point in high school and now serves as an assistant coach for the team. Devin moved back in with Melvin this past summer after previously living in Grand Rapids with his mother.

“It’s going real good,” Melvin said of Devin’s transition to Moss Point. “Devin always came here for the summertime and stayed with me, so it’s not like it’s his first time here. He’s been here, he has friends here, so it’s been an easy transition for him. It was a lot easier than I expected. Being able to be on the bench with the team and kind of help guide Devin through the situation was a help for him as well. But I just put it all in Devin’s hard work because he has worked hard since the beginning.”

While the transition has been smooth and Devin has thrived at Moss Point, he and his team struggled in last night’s 57-37 playoff loss to 28-1 Wayne County, one of the favorites to win the state title. With Michigan head coach John Beilein and assistant coach Bacari Alexander in the stands, Devin faced double and triple teams all night and tallied just one point and grabbed nine rebounds. Despite Devin’s tough night offensively, Beilein and Alexander are very interested in the 6-foot-4, 183-pound guard.

“It was good to see that Beilein was there,” Melvin said. “He could’ve been anywhere on a Tuesday night, but he chose to watch Devin play.”

Beilein first met Devin at Michigan’s College Practice Camp last summer. Alexander, on the other hand, has had his eye on Devin for even longer.

“Bacari’s a guy who’s looked at Devin even before he ever even moved here,” Melvin said. “He’s one of the first guys that saw the skill level in Devin. That says a lot. They have developed a relationship and I guess Bacari likes Devin a lot.”

Michigan certainly isn’t the only school looking at Devin. According to Melvin, Devin hasn’t received any official offers yet but has garnered plenty of interest from several big-name schools, including Missouri, Georgetown and plenty of SEC teams. But even with all the attention, Melvin, who knows plenty about how the recruiting process goes, makes sure Devin doesn’t lose sight of what he thinks is most important.

“The first thing I tell him is to enjoy it,” Melvin said. “You only get to be a kid once, and a lot of kids don’t get the opportunity to go through this process. So enjoy the process and continue to work hard, even though you’re getting attention and interest from colleges.”

And while Devin is currently leaving his options open, there’s one school that he’s always been a fan of.

“He grew up a diehard Michigan fan,” Melvin said. “Still down here, he’s a Michigan fan even today. He’s been impressed by Michigan. Michigan has made a great impression on Devin. He’s aware of that, and he’s most definitely open to looking into Michigan.”