What the coach who wouldn't let Devonté Graham leave App State thinks about him now

Jason Capel doesn’t want this to be the story, yet he understands why he has been contacted.

Nearly every Kansas basketball television broadcast mentions that Devonté Graham was originally committed to Appalachian State. And Capel, now a college basketball analyst, was the coach who secured that letter-of-intent before refusing to let Graham go.

“We were just able to get lucky in the early signing period,” Capel says by email, “and get a kid who later turned out to be an All-American.”

There was anger on both sides back then. Capel refused to budge when Graham wanted out of his pledge during his senior year of high school to pursue bigger programs. Graham’s family made “Free DTae” shirts while trying to start a social-media campaign to raise awareness about Graham’s plight.

ESPN’s Jay Bilas tweeted in Graham’s defense, and Jeff Goodman wrote about it after Appalachian State and Capel released a statement saying they believed other schools had tampered.

“It was never his doing in my eyes. I've always stated that,” Capel says now. “In recruiting him, we were as surprised as anyone that we got a player of his talent. But we worked our (butts) off, and made everyone believe and feel comfortable. And got lucky because he was severely under-recruited.”

After Capel stood his ground, Graham decided to attend Brewster Academy instead of college. The situation eventually resolved itself when Capel was fired after the 2014 season, and new coach Jim Fox gave Graham his release.

A month later, in May, Graham signed with KU.

“He made the right decision,” Capel says. “An opportunity to play for a hall of fame coach, at a place like KU and the Phog, is a dream for any kid. Competing for championships, that's what he's all about, what he deserves.”

Capel still remembers his original recruiting message. The coach believed many North Carolina prep players didn't get enough publicity, and he spoke to Graham about becoming the next Damian Lillard — a small-school guard who worked his way to the next level.

“When my assistant Justin Gainey brought him to my attention, I knew he was a pro,” Capel says of Graham. “For whatever reason, kids fall through the cracks from North Carolina. Still don't understand it, to be honest, but they do.”

Capel saw a player with a quiet confidence. Graham was a good athlete from a great family whose body still needed to fill out, though the talent was there.

Best of all, Capel sensed a player who thrived in an underdog role.

“You get the kid and just hope through the recruiting process you can hold on,” Capel says. “Because you know how good they are and will be, even when no one else does.”

Graham, who has not talked to Capel since he was fired from Appalachian State, chooses to see the positive. If Graham had never asked for his release, he never would have gone to prep school.

And if he didn’t go there, he never would have wound up at KU.

“It’s just like Drake says: 'God’s plan,'” Graham says.

Capel, who also works at basketball camps in the summer (including one in Graham’s hometown of Raleigh), says there’s a bigger lesson to be learned from the guard’s emergence. He says high-major coaches need to stop chasing players from scouting services and instead look for talent they might be missing.

“I'll say again, (Graham) made the right decision,” Capel says. “It just took everyone else a lot longer to figure it out.”

Now, when re-watching games on television, Graham says he likes hearing the mention of App State when announcers explain his past.

“I think it’s a cool story. I like when people bring it up, because there might be a kid out there not getting highly recruited watching the game thinking, ‘Man, this kid Devonté is good,’” Graham says. “Then they tell my story, and it might inspire them just to work hard.”

Graham says the thought both motivates him and keeps him going.

And Capel, from afar, is not surprised that’s taken the point guard a long way.

This story was originally published March 16, 2018 at 6:07 PM with the headline "What the coach who wouldn't let Devonté Graham leave App State thinks about him now."