Booker T has some advice for WWE‘s developing talents.
Last weekend, WWE released a number of developmental talents from the NXT, Evolve, and WWE ID brands. One of the names ousted from NXT was former NXT North American Champion Wes Lee, who first signed with WWE in late 2020. On The Hall of Fame podcast, WWE Hall of Famer and NXT commentator Booker T weighed in on Lee’s departure and his potential next steps outside of WWE.
“Wes Lee is a guy that’s highly, highly talented,” Booker said. “Wes Lee is a guy that I would have thought would have been safe. But I think also about what this thing is all about, NXT, being a developmental system. Wes Lee’s been there for, what, five years. When you’ve been in the developmental system five years and you’re not looked upon as being someone that’s gonna make it on the main roster, you could be one of the guys that’s gonna get cut.
“That’s what I think about when I look at a lot of this young talent out there. If they’re just happy being a part of it…and I don’t think that about Wes Lee at all. I really feel like this guy, his talent was extraordinary, one of the best North American Champions in NXT, if not the best. A guy who could go out there and fight, and then he could fly and do all of that stuff too. Of course there’s a place for someone like Wes Lee. Of course he could go to TNA, of course AEW would pick a guy up just like that, just because he’s very, very highly talented. “
Booker Has Advice For Other WWE Developmental Talent
For the remaining talents in WWE’s developmental system, Booker stresses the importance of staying motivated and working with urgency, rather than operating at a laxed speed.
“As far as this developmental system, I would implore guys to think that they’ve got maybe two and a half years at that,” Booker said. “So you better be motivated to try to figure out what this thing is about. You might not wanna act like the elder statesman like myself, but you better. If you want to know what it takes to make it to that next level, you better be asking everybody you possibly can who’s been there and done that what it is that’s going to take for me to get [there]. Don’t cruise. Don’t put it in cruise control, because you can find yourself being one of these guys getting released.”
Booker reiterated his belief that Lee, despite being recently released from WWE, was not working under cruise control during his time in WWE. Still, he wants the active WWE talents to realize that their time is precious, especially when looking to prove their main roster potential.
“I want to let these guys know that the clock is ticking,” he said, “and they’re watching to see if you are one of the guys perhaps that could make it on the main roster and make it to SummerSlam and WrestleMania and all the big events.”
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