Lewis of Bishop O’Dowd youngest ever to turn pro
Jalen Lewis, a fivestar basketball recruit from Bishop O’Dowd High School in Oakland, is making history as the youngest prospect to turn professional in the U.S.
Lewis, 16, has signed a contract with the new Overtime Elite professional league. A 6foot10 center, he is ranked by ESPN as the No. 2 prospect in the 2023 class. To sign with Overtime Elite, Lewis spurned interest from such college programs as Duke, Kentucky and UCLA.
“Jalen is one of the most exciting young talents in the country, and we are humbled that he has chosen Overtime Elite to elevate his professional development on the court and academically, while building his brand internationally,” Brandon Williams, OTE executive vice president and head of basketball operations, said in a release. “This is a foundational signing for our league and another acknowledgment of the need and desire for our program.”
In recent months, Overtime Elite has raised major capital in hopes of becoming a legitimate alternative for elite high school and international prospects. The league previously announced the signings of fivestar prospects Amen and Ausar Thompson in the Class of 2022, and Matthew and Ryan Bewley in the Class of 2023. Spain’s Jean Montero — a projected 2022 top20 draft pick — also has signed with the league.
All OTE players are guaranteed an annual salary of at least $100,000, per the league. Players also are given up to $100,000 in college tuition if they leave professional basketball. Kevin Ollie — the former Connecticut head coach — is OTE’s head coach and director of player development.
Bishop O’Dowd boys basketball coach Lou Richie opened his phone Friday morning to discover “at least” 50 messages. All were about Lewis’ decision to leave. Richie hadn’t heard the news. It was all over social media.
“We knew it was coming,” Richie said. “We just didn’t know when everything would be ironed out.”
Lewis, his father, Ahlee Lewis, and a number of other O’Dowd players and coaches attended a Fourth of July barbecue at Richie’s home in the Oakland hills. Ahlee Lewis, who played at Oakland High and UC Davis, and Richie go way back to their playing days in the late 1980s.
Richie didn’t talk business — or the pending decision — at the barbecue with either Lewis, but instead asked Jalen, who turned 16 in May, to take a picture with him. He knew the end of their basketball relationship was near. “We had never taken a photo, just the two of us. It was time.”
Richie, an optimistic sort, had mixed emotions about Friday’s announcement. Mostly, he said, “it is extremely positive.”
“But I’ve been preparing for the hurt and pain and disappointment of not being able to continue our goal of winning a state championship,” he said. “I’ll of course miss the opportunity to coach and be around such a positive, grounded, humble, polite, hardworking young man the next two years.
“But taking that out of the equation, how can you just not feel good and root for a father and son who did all their due diligence to make the best and right decision for themselves? He’s the youngest player in U.S. history to play professionally. How can you not feel good about that?”
Projected to be 611, Lewis played against much older kids in the Oakland Rebels’ AAU program. By the third grade, he played center and by the sixth grade, he was 61 and playing in national tournaments.
As a freshman at O’Dowd, he was a 68 post player with guard skills and earned secondteam AllMetro during a 237 season ended by the coronavirus, two wins shy of a state Open Division championship. He averaged about 15 points and 10 rebounds while playing nine of 13 games of a delayed and shortened sophomore spring season.
“Jalen always had a dream and now that dream has presented itself. He’s taking advantage of that,” Richie said. “He came into our program as a 14yearold who took the basketball world by storm. Now he’s 16 and every kid who is 10 or 11 years old wants to follow in his path.
“He’s the whole package. He’s 6foot10 and 235 pounds and wears size17 sneakers. He’s got a great head on his shoulders, has all the basketball skills in the world and a loving father who is behind him every step of the way.”
Reaction around the Bay Area was generally positive, but as Mitty coach Tim Kennedy said, “I feel bad for Bay Area high school basketball because we are losing such a highlevel talent. I don’t know him and his family, so I assume this is the best situation because he has a great mentor in coach Richie to help him navigate this uncharted territory.”
Like Kennedy, who coached a national top10 recruit in Aaron Gordon, Riordan coach Joey Curtin is currently leading elite players as well. Both incoming junior guard KingJhsanni Wilhite and incoming sophomore Zion Sensley have been on national recruiting lists.
“High school basketball has dealt with a lot of changes in the past few years and (Lewis’ signing) is another example of that,” Curtin said. “I’m sure Jalen and his family thought long and hard about this decision. Though it was right for them, it might not be right for all.
“I don’t think this changes my approach to coaching, but it is something high school coaches might have to deal with now if you’re coaching elite talent.”