Four-star Alabama guard picks up slew of offers after big weekend

Kira Lewis was one of the standout performers at the first stop in the Nike EYBL for the 2018 season this past weekend. The 6-foot-3 guard from Alabama averaged 21 points, 4 assists and 3.8 rebounds per game for the Georgia Stars through four games.

With his success, the four-star prospect in the 2019 class added offers from Florida State, Pittsburgh, Saint Louis, TCU and Virginia Tech in the past few days. Alabama, Auburn, Baylor, Dayton, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Iowa State, LSU and Tennessee are among the schools that have been on Lewis for a while now. He’s been on campus at Alabama, Auburn, Baylor, Dayton, Georgia and Tennessee.

Lewis shared his thoughts on why the new offers came through and where he stands with some of the schools involved with him right now.

“I think me playing well this weekend led to all this. I scored, played defense, shared the ball, and we got a couple of wins and I think that’s what attracted the coaches and offers.”

Alabama: “They are headed in the right direction. They made the NCAA Tournament for the first time in I don’t know how long. They are getting big-time players and getting guys to the League. I like where they are headed.”

Baylor: “They always have had success in the Big 12. They had a down year this year by most people’s standards, but next year they will be better. They let their guards play and have good players.”

Georgia: “Coach [Tom] Crean came over for an in-home visit. He just told me he wanted to play the same way they played at Indiana and that he would let me play freely. He told me I’m a priority for them in the 2019 class.”

Tennessee: “They had a great year. They developed some of their guys from their first year and when I watched them this year a lot of their players had gotten better.”

Ole Miss: “They were recruiting me at Middle Tennessee State so I have known them for a long time. He (Kermit Davis) is saying that he wants to come in have me play in one of the best leagues in the country in the SEC and that he wants guys that can come in and play against Kentucky and all of the top schools. He wants to change things around there and just get great players.”

Providence: “They are different some because it is up north, which doesn’t mean much though, but they are in the Big East and they play a tough schedule. They are telling me that my game is similar to Kris Dunn’s with how I get to the basket, defend, and he (Ed Cooley) wants me to come in and play that type of role and help me get to the NBA.”

Iowa State: “They are telling me it is point guard university there because they use their guards a lot and they let them play freely and fast. They produce pros, too, with Monte Morris and a few others. It is a great school and Coach (Steve) Prohm is turning it into a winning school that gets into the NCAA Tournament.

Houston: “There motto is just to play freely. They told me that with my style of play, if I am not playing free, it is going to be hard, but he wants me (Kelvin Sampson) to play my game and not second guess anything if I were to go to Houston.”

Auburn: “They shocked me this year; they had a great season. The thing about them, they run and they don’t have a big lineup. They ran, shot the 3 and just let them have the freedom to go out there and play. That is going to be big with my recruitment with just letting me be free but also whenever freedom comes, there is more responsibility.”

Lewis maintains that he’s nowhere near making a decision and isn’t ready to admit any schools are separating themselves from the pack yet. However, behind the scenes, most people seem to believe Alabama will be really tough to beat as is usually the case with kids from its own state. Lewis is fully buying into Avery Johnson’s plan and likes the direction of his program.

Baylor is another one that seems to intrigue Lewis. He’s been on their campus already and has built a strong relationship with the Bears' staff. Tennessee shouldn’t be slept on here either as Rick Barnes has done a terrific job recruiting him so far.