How Kansas State landed athletic forward Seryee Lewis without a recruiting visit
Now isn’t the easiest time for a college basketball coach to land new recruits that are capable of helping their teams next season.
All traditional in-person recruiting has been suspended until at least April 15 in response to the coronavirus pandemic. And there’s no telling when prospects will once again be permitted to visit campuses on formal recruiting visits
But none of that has stopped Bruce Weber from adding an extra prospect to Kansas State’s 2020 class. Seryee Lewis, a 6-foot-8 and 200-pound forward that played for Compass Prep in Phoenix this season, orally committed to the Wildcats on Thursday with an announcement on social media.
“They always felt like a family since they started recruiting me,” Lewis said in a phone interview. “Coach Weber and his staff always promoted to me that I was the missing piece in the puzzle in their recruiting class. They think I can be part of a Fab Five and we can make history at the school. That was like music to the ears of me and my family. I think I’m really going to love it there.”
Lewis is originally from Chicago and chose K-State over Georgetown and Saint Louis. He also held scholarship offers from a number of mid-major teams and received recruiting interest from St. John’s and Oklahoma, as well as Big Ten teams Wisconsin and Illinois.
He is the nation’s 247th rated player in the 247sports recruit database and a three-star recruit per Rivals.
K-State will hope Lewis can provide depth inside next season following the offseason departures of forwards Nigel Shadd and James Love, who both announced last week they were transferring to new schools.
Lewis will certainly bring athleticism to K-State’s roster. His highlight videos are filled with dunks and aggressive moves toward the basket. He has skill as a finisher and a versatile defender.
“The strengths of my game are that I can play inside and out,” Lewis said. “I’m a four, not a five, but I can play the five. I rebound at a high level. I can guard the perimeter and guard the post as well. What really helps me with my game is I play a lot of big defenders who are a lot slower than me and I am able to take them off the dribble with my speed and athleticism.”
One question about Lewis is his jump shot. Though he is capable of scoring inside the paint, he may need time to develop as an outside threat.
Lewis pledged his services to the Wildcats one week after K-State officially offered him a scholarship. Weber and his coaching staff convinced him to commit without taking a visit to campus.
How? There are some interesting layers in that story.
Lewis says he is good friends with K-State guard DaJuan Gordon. They are both from Chicago and grew up playing AAU basketball against each other. Gordon recruited Lewis as much as Weber did. He also took several online tours of campus and quizzed K-State’s returning players on Manhattan. When all the feedback came back positive, his decision was easy.
“Just the connection I have with the coaching staff,” Lewis said. “It felt like the best fit. I’m not really worried about the campus. I’m just worried about becoming the best player I can be. I feel like Kansas State is going to help me make that happen.”
Lewis is the sixth member of K-State’s 2020 recruiting class. He joins point guard Nijel Pack, wings Luke Kasubke and Selton Miguel, as well as forward Davion Bradford and UTEP transfer Kaosi Ezeagu, who is already on the roster.
It is the best on-paper recruiting class that Weber has lined up as K-State’s coach, ranking No. 14 nationally in the Rivals team database.
With Lewis on board, K-State’s scholarship situation is currently balanced. But the Wildcats are actively recruiting other players as junior guard Cartier Diarra mulls over his decision to test the pro waters.
For now, Lewis is looking forward to join the recruiting class that is already in place.
“I am really excited,” Lewis said. “I loved it when I saw we jumped from No. 22 to No. 14 after I committed. We are going to do something special. I’m positive about that.”
This story was originally published March 19, 2020 at 5:36 PM with the headline "How Kansas State landed athletic forward Seryee Lewis without a recruiting visit."