Devin Booker still disagrees with Noah Lyles.

It has been almost a year since the American runner drew the ire of Booker and several other NBA players by mocking the practice of calling the player who wins that league’s championship a “world champion”.

“World champion of what? The United States?” Lyles said sarcastically during a press conference at the track and field world championships in Budapest, Hungary, on August 25, 2023. He had just won his third consecutive world title in the 200 meters, in addition to gold medals in the 100 and 4×100 relays at the same event.

Lyles crossed the finish line in the 100 meters on Sunday to win his first Olympic gold medal, beating Jamaican Kishane Thompson by five-thousandths of a second (9.784 seconds to 9.789 seconds).

Booker, the Phoenix Suns star in Paris who is aiming to win his second Olympic gold medal with the U.S. men’s basketball team, attended the track and field events at the Stade de France on Sunday with Team USA teammates Joel Embiid and Jayson Tatum, assistant coach Tyronn Lue and general manager Grant Hill.

Booker was naturally mesmerized by Lyles’ magnificent finish.

“It was crazy,” Booker told the Athletic. “I mean, it was great for America. Congratulations to him.”

Booker responded to Lyles’ comment last year, “World champion of what?”, with a face-covering emoji.

And now?

“I still don’t agree with the comment,” Booker said. “I think all the best talent in the world is in the NBA, and this is coming from an Olympic gold medalist who probably believes it’s harder to be an NBA champion.”

Booker spent all nine seasons of his NBA career with the Suns, who have never won a championship (they came close in 2021, losing 4-2 to the Milwaukee Bucks in the Finals), so he has some perspective on the matter.

But Booker acknowledged that he understands where Lyles is coming from. The runner was asked about track and field and expressed his frustration that these athletes don’t get enough recognition compared to their counterparts in the NBA and other more popular sports in the United States.

“I think the way it was said — you know, it was just out of context,” Booker said. “I feel like it was something that’s been on your heart for a long time.”

After winning the Olympic gold medal, Lyles made it clear he had his eye on the more popular NBA trophies, telling ESPN’s Coley Harvey that he wanted a shoe deal.

“I want my own shoes,” Lyles said. “I want a pair of sneakers. There’s no money in spikes.”

Lyles took his first step toward winning a bronze medal at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics by winning his heat in the opening heat of the men’s 200 meters on Monday. He will also compete in the 4×100 relay this weekend.

The U.S. men’s basketball team will face Brazil in the quarterfinal round on Tuesday.