Kira Lewis Jr.
Kira Aundrea Lewis Jr. (born April 6, 2001) is an American college basketball player. He played college basketball for the Alabama Crimson Tide.
![]() Lewis at the Nike EYBL in July 2018 | ||||||||||||||
Personal information | ||||||||||||||
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Born | April 6, 2001 | |||||||||||||
Nationality | American | |||||||||||||
Listed height | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | |||||||||||||
Listed weight | 165 lb (75 kg) | |||||||||||||
Career information | ||||||||||||||
High school | Hazel Green (Hazel Green, Alabama) | |||||||||||||
College | Alabama (2018–2020) | |||||||||||||
Position | Point guard | |||||||||||||
Career highlights and awards | ||||||||||||||
Medals
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High school career
Lewis played basketball for Hazel Green High School in Hazel Green, Alabama for three years. As a junior, he averaged 28.5 points, 5.9 rebounds, 4.5 assists, and 3.9 steals per game and led his team to the Alabama Class 6A semifinals. Lewis earned first-team All-State honors for his second consecutive season, was a finalist for Alabama Mr. Basketball, and was named Huntsville Region Player of the Year and Alabama Class 6A Player of the Year.[1] He was originally in the 2019 class but graduated early from high school and reclassified to 2018.[2] On August 10, 2018, Lewis committed to Alabama over several major NCAA Division I offers, including from Indiana and Kansas. He was considered a four-star recruit by ESPN and 247Sports.[3]
College career
In his freshman season with Alabama, Lewis, at age 17, was the second-youngest player in NCAA Division I basketball behind Everett Perrot of Pepperdine and was the youngest player to appear in a game. Lewis scored six points in his first career game versus Southern. The following game, he had 21 points against Appalachian State and followed that up with a season-high 24 points against Wichita State.[4] He tied his season-high of 24 points against Georgia in February 2019.[5] Lewis averaged 13.5 points, 2.9 assists, and 2.6 rebounds per game and was named to the SEC All-Freshman Team. However, Alabama struggled and finished 18-16, losing in the first round of the NIT. Lewis entered the transfer portal before new coach Nate Oats convinced him to return.[6]
In his sophomore season opener, Lewis scored a career-high 30 points in an 81–80 loss to Penn.[7] On February 25, 2020, Lewis contributed 29 points, seven rebounds, and four assists in a 80–73 loss to Mississippi State.[8] At the conclusion of the regular season, Lewis was named to the First Team All-SEC.[9] As a sophomore, Lewis averaged 18.5 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 5.2 assists per game.[10] After the season, Lewis declared for the 2020 NBA draft.[11]
National team career
Lewis played for the United States at the 2019 FIBA Under-19 World Cup in Heraklion, Greece. He averaged four points and 1.6 assists per game and helped his team win a gold medal.[12]
Career statistics
GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
College
Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
2018–19 | Alabama | 34 | 34 | 31.6 | .433 | .358 | .783 | 2.6 | 2.9 | .8 | .3 | 13.5 |
2019–20 | Alabama | 31 | 31 | 37.6 | .459 | .366 | .802 | 4.8 | 5.2 | 1.8 | .6 | 18.5 |
Career | 65 | 65 | 34.5 | .447 | .362 | .793 | 3.6 | 4.0 | 1.3 | .4 | 15.9 |
References
- Boyette, Daniel (March 20, 2018). "Hazel Green's Kira Lewis stepped up as leader, earns Huntsville top basketball honor". AL.com. Retrieved December 3, 2019.
- "Alabama Men's Basketball Signs Kira Lewis, will Enroll in Classes this Fall". University of Alabama Athletics. August 15, 2018. Retrieved December 3, 2019.
- Daniels, Evan (August 10, 2018). "Kira Lewis commits to Alabama, reclassifies to 2018". 247Sports. Retrieved December 3, 2019.
- Walsh, Christopher (January 22, 2019). "The talk about Kira Lewis Jr. is shifting from his age to his consistency". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved December 3, 2019.
- Casagrande, Michael (April 8, 2019). "Kira Lewis is staying at Alabama after flirting with transfer". Al.com. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
- Martin, Tyler (October 25, 2019). "Alabama Will Look to an Older, More Experienced Kira Lewis Jr. for Success Under Nate Oats". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
- "Dingle lifts Penn to 81-80 opening win over Alabama". ESPN. Associated Press. November 5, 2019. Retrieved December 10, 2019.
- Stephens, Hannah (February 25, 2020). "Alabama loses game, John Petty against Miss State". Roll Tide Wire. Retrieved February 27, 2020.
- "SEC announces 2020 Men's Basketball Awards" (Press release). Southeastern Conference. March 10, 2020. Retrieved March 10, 2020.
- Tsoukalas, Tony. "How to watch: Alabama basketball vs Tennessee in the SEC Tournament". Rivals.com. Retrieved March 22, 2020.
- Potter, Charlie (March 24, 2020). "Alabama's Kira Lewis, John Petty to test NBA draft waters". 247 Sports. Retrieved March 25, 2020.
- Villicana, Paloma (July 8, 2019). "Kira Lewis brings back gold to north Alabama". WAFF. Retrieved December 3, 2019.