On May 1st the NBA’s Board of Governors voted to postpone the Draft Lottery and Draft Combine in Chicago due to an abundance of caution regarding the coronavirus pandemic. In addition to all of the seniors who have wrapped up their college careers, the early-entry deadline for underclassmen was August 3rd and the NBA deadline is approaching on August 17th. The lottery has been postponed until August 20th and the draft itself is scheduled to take place virtually on October 16th. We will spend the upcoming months interviewing as many members of the 2020 draft class as possible. HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel continues our coverage by chatting with Prairie View prospect Devonte Patterson about winning back-to-back regular season championships and what it would mean to him to get drafted.
You were was home-schooled during junior high school: how did you like it, and what was it like to enroll at Bridgeport High School after moving in with Neal Hawks (Mark Cuban’s brother-in-law)? Being taken in and homeschooled by the Hawks family essentially saved my life. I grew up in a bad neighborhood with really hard family circumstances. Most days I either did not go to school or would get into trouble at school. Once I started homeschooling with the Hawks I realized that school was not as impossible as it had been for me in the past. The one-on-one attention I received with homeschool was what I needed to become successful in my studies. I learned differently than others and through homeschool I was able to learn more efficiently with teaching that was specific to me. Through that environment I learned more than I had ever given myself the chance to be taught. That situation taught me a lot of things about life and how to make something of myself: it gave me control of my life in a way I never had before. After enrolling at Bridgeport I still was able to study with a personal tutor and the size of our school helped me in not feeling lost in the classroom.
In 2015 you helped led your team to a Class 4A state championship: what did it mean to you to win a title? Winning state that year meant everything to me: especially to do it with my brothers. That is what we had become: all of us had sacrificed so much and worked so hard, and having all of that come to fruition through a state title was incredible. At that point I did not realize just how much we all had worked for that moment. Looking back now I can see how all of the practices/games/conscious and unconscious decisions we made led us to that win.
You began your college career at Ranger College: why did you decide to transfer to Prairie View in 2018? When I went and visited I spoke with head coach Byron Smith and assistants Landon Bussie/Wendell Moore, I realized these guys wanted to win and wanted to establish a legacy not only for PVAMU but for HBCUs across the country…and we knew that it would all come from hard work. I wanted to go somewhere where people recognized and appreciated the fight I had in me for the game, and they did. It meant a lot to me to go to an HBCU and I have a lot of pride when I look back on my time at PVAMU.
You were named 1st-Team All-SWAC as a junior: how were you able to come in and contribute right from the start? Hard work and dedication. No matter how many minutes I played or what end of the court we were on I played every moment as hard as I could, and doing that resulted in every accolade I received. I did not play for the good of myself and my stats: I played for the good of the team and played to win more than anything.
In the 2019 NCAA 1st 4 you scored 17 PTS in a 6-PT loss to Fairleigh Dickinson: how close did you come to winning your only NCAA tourney game? That win felt really close, but ultimately it did not happen and was devastating to me. However, I took that loss and used it as a lesson and fuel for my fire for the next season. I wanted redemption: I wanted to get right back there and change the outcome.
Last March you scored a career-high 33 PTS and had 10 REB in a 9-PT loss to Alcorn State: was it just 1 of those situations where every shot you put up seemed to go in because you were “in the zone”? For me that was a moment that I knew I had to get up on another level. In that game my teammates needed me to do more so I did. It was a moment where I knew this was the time that I had to go even harder. Ultimately my career-high was bittersweet: adding to the win column was my biggest concern.
You finished last season (your 2nd straight year on the all-conference 1st-Team) by being named SWAC POY: what did it mean to you to receive such an outstanding honor? Awards are nice for your own personal work but to me what mattered most was that we had maintained our back-to-back regular season championships. We as a team were still the best in the SWAC. Obviously being POY meant a lot to me but it did not happen without my team doing all that we did together to be the best as a whole and myself as an individual. Every time that I stepped onto the court I worked hard in playing the most unselfish ball I could. I played for the whole rather than the part, and I think that is what made it happen.
In the 2020 SWAC tourney you scored 15 PTS in a 4-PT win over Alabama A&M in the 1st round but had your postseason cut short after your semifinal game against Jackson State was canceled due to the coronavirus: what was your reaction when you 1st heard the news, and do you think that it was the right decision? It was really hard that it was cut short. I was very excited to play and to take another run at March Madness, but ultimately after the NBA shut down I knew it was serious/necessary. Now that I have seen all that has happened I do believe it was the right decision. As much as I wanted to play I would never want to jeopardize the health of others. Once again, no part is greater than the whole. Just like with any loss I took the season being shut down as an opportunity to keep going, keep studying, keep working hard, keep practicing, keep shooting. In a time that it would be easy to slack off, I took it as my time to get better, get a leg up by doing the work and working when maybe other people were not.
What is it like to be an African-American man/basketball player in 2020? Being a Black man who plays basketball comes with a lot of expectations/scrutiny. However, it comes with so many opportunities that mean a lot to me and my bigger purpose. Basketball is a tool that I can use to do good and make a difference off the court. I want to help the ones who need it and inspire those who think it cannot happen for them. For young kids it is important to realize that it is not where you are currently: it is where you believe you can go. I want to instill being a good man and working for your future: choosing it rather than letting circumstances choose it for you. That is what being a Black man/basketball player is like for me: it is about giving back to our communities and helping kids just like myself realize that whatever dream they have is not bigger than their current situation.
What would it mean to you to get drafted, and what is the plan if you do not get drafted? Getting drafted would be a big moment for me and a huge accomplishment. Getting recognized for me is not a pat on the back, but more of a nod that what I have done and how hard I have worked has been seen/noted by others. Getting drafted is not my end game and is not the biggest thing that will happen to me in my basketball career. I know that, which is why I know I will be successful, because I am working towards more. I am working on beating every single odd that is against me: I have so far and will continue to do so.