NORTH AUGUSTA, S.C. -- University of Arkansas assistant coach Clay Moser's personable touch and NBA resume is connecting with ESPN five-star junior point guard Devin Askew.
Askew, 6-3, 190 pounds, of Santa Ana (Calif.) Mater Dei has a scholarship offer list that includes Arkansas, Kansas, UCLA, Notre Dame, Oregon, Florida, Southern Cal, Ohio State, Louisville, Texas, Arizona and others.
Devin Askew highlights
"I'm talking to Arkansas on a regular basis," Askew said "They help me improve my game. They give me tips. They encourage, and they like me as a player."
With Moser being his lead recruiter, Askew has learned to like the veteran coach, who joined his friend and Arkansas Coach Eric Musselman in late May after being with the Los Angeles Lakers organization since 2011.
"He's a great dude," Askew said of Moser. "He contacts me every day. Really cool guy. He jokes with me, so funny guy. Definitely entertaining."
Moser also worked for the Golden State Warriors, Cleveland Cavaliers, Orlando Magic, Sacramento Kings and San Antonio Spurs. Askew said Moser's resume is attractive.
"Yeah, for sure it helps because my main goal at the end of the day is to play at the highest level and make it to play professional basketball," Askew said. "I want to play in the NBA, but then if I only go to the NBA for a little bit, I want to go overseas to play professional basketball. So I want to play at the highest level and challenge myself."
ESPN rates Askew as the No. 2 point guard and No. 16 overall prospect for the 2021 class. Askew was averaging 9.8 points, 3.9 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 1.8 steals while shooting 46.2% from beyond the three-point line and 76.5% from the free-trow line in the Nike EYBL circuit for Team Why Not before this weekend's Peach Jam Championships.
He had 12 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists in an 87-81 victory over the Texas Titans with Musselman, Moser and associate head coach Chris Crutchfield courtside on Saturday afternoon to help Team Why Not advance to the semifinals later in the evening.
The Razorbacks are recruiting Askew as a point guard, but some see him as a shooting guard.
"They really like me as a point guard," he said. "They like me as a point guard because people think I'm a shooting guard, but no, I'm a point guard. I like running a team. I like running the offense. I like controlling the team.
"I get it, I can score. It's kind of a compliment, but I run the team. I'm a point guard."
He hasn't committed to a visit to Fayetteville, but it is under consideration.
"I'm not too sure where I'm going to visit yet, but they're for sure on my mind on a place to visit," he said.
Askew, who has a 3.7 grade-point average, wants to become a physician.
"I want to go into medicine, follow my mom's footsteps," Askew said. "She's a family medicine physician. She went to Cal Berkley, and after there she graduated and went to med school. She runs an urgent care in Sacramento."
The thought of going to medical school and the workload that comes with it doesn't bother Askew.
"If you put your mind to anything, you can do it," he said. "Manage your time well. School is easy. It's like basketball: If you practice on basketball and work on your game, you get better. If you study, you learn."
Email Richard Davenport at [email protected]
Sports on 07/14/2019