Is Stokes the next LeBron or Magic? High school coach praises future Jayhawk
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Mike Bethea praises Tyran Stokes as a unique, versatile 6-7 prospect headed to Kansas.
- Stokes averaged 31.0 points, 13.0 rebounds, 6.0 assists and 4.0 steals in 2025-26.
- Stokes won MVP at the Jordan Brand Classic and golds with USA U16 and U17 teams.
So far, Mike Bethea has coached seven NBA players — including Jamal Crawford, Nate Robinson and Terrence Williams — in his 33 seasons at Seattle’s Rainier Beach High School.
He’s also tutored 170 student-athletes who earned basketball scholarships at the NCAA Div. I level.
His most electric, most talented player of all just might be the leader of his 10th state championship high school team — consensus No. 1-ranked class of 2026 prospect Tyran Stokes, a 6-foot-7, 225-pound Louisville native who on Tuesday announced he’d chosen Kansas as his college destination.
“He has the potential to be the best ever (of any who played at Rainier),” Bethea said Tuesday night in a phone interview with The Star.
“I mean, nobody’s ever seen anything like him up here — a kid that’s that big and yet that agile. They’re usually playing center or something like that, not able to do the things he’s able to do.”
Bethea invoked the name of a future Hall of Famer when discussing the potential of Stokes, who according to published reports averaged 31.0 points, 13.0 rebounds, 6.0 assists and 4.0 steals per contest in 2025-26 for Rainier Beach. He hit 53% of his shots, 41% of his 3-point attempts and 78% of his free throws.
“I think what we are going to see with him ... people always wondered what LeBron (James) was going to be if he would have gone to Ohio State (instead of NBA right out of high school). I think people are going to see that,” Bethea told The Star, “because physically and everything, believe it or not he (Stokes) is 10, 15 pounds heavier than LeBron (at same age).
“I mean, he’s a version of LeBron, but I still like to refer to him as ‘Magic Johnson with a jump shot.’”
Versatility is the name of Stokes’ game. In fact, Bethea said Stokes — who chose KU over Kentucky and Oregon — projects to be a tall guard in college.
“When you look and start thinking about it, he was a guard at 6-7, 235, 240 pounds (last season), built rock-solid, quick, fast, can shoot, but his passing is jumping off the charts with everybody,” Bethea said. “And, I mean, that’s kind of scary. So what you’re looking at is a guy who can come in and dominate at any level he plays at.
“Oh my gosh, his passing is crazy. That’s why I referred to him as Magic. There are a lot of guys who will pass and get their teammates into trouble. He’s one of those guys that all his teammates have got to do is the easy part and that’s make the shot.
“He raises their level of play and he raises their confidence. One thing I loved about him was he was always encouraging his teammates. A lot of people were asking me, ’Man you see him kind of barking out there?’ I said, ‘Yes, he holds his teammates accountable just like we (coaches) hold them accountable.’’’
Bethea added that “some people take him the wrong way, that he is cocky or something. He is so full of energy, a great teammate who wants to make everybody around him better. He’s just a bundle of energy. You don’t want to harness anything like that. People just have to get to know him for who he really is.
“He’s having a good time and having fun out on the court,” Bethea continued, noting, “He even got the other teams’ crowds pumped up and they’re loving him. He’s giving the other crowd high-fives. He’s really bringing the energy to the gym and it’s so much fun. It’s a breath of fresh air to me.”
Bethea said Stokes not only can rattle the rim with spectacular dunks off drives to the basket, but can drill outside shots past the 3-point line. He was a 41% from 3 this past season.
“He can shoot it, but he was so dominant inside,” Bethea said. Stokes had 63 points in one game. “He understands how to get to his spots. He understands the game. If his 3 is falling, he shoots it, but if you double him you are in trouble because he gets the ball to his teammates.”
Stokes, who had narrowed his list of 25 contending schools to KU, Kentucky and Oregon last Nov. 1, produced big numbers immediately. In his first home game of the 2026-27 season he scored 27 points with 14 rebounds, eight steals, seven assists and two blocked shots.
He had several highlight-reel dunks in that home debut, including one that started with the ball between his legs.
“It reminded me of the old (Hakeem) Olajuwon days when he was at the University of Houston,” Bethea told the Spokane Spokesman-Review, referring to the Hall of Famer who led ‘Phi Slama Jama’ in the 1980s.
“The whole crowd, everybody, just fed off the dunks. It took the nation by storm. That team had their own fraternity, Phi Slama Jama. It reminds me of that,” Bethea noted.
The coach in Seattle continued: “When I had the twins (KU’s Rodrick Stewart and USC’s Lodrick Stewart) and Nate Robinson, it was dunk after dunk after dunk. It was a dunk contest during the game with them.
“Fast-forward to 2008 when I had Michael Ladd, Reggie Moore and Aaron Dotson, who all had successful Division I careers. They would average nine dunks a game. It reminds me of those days. But Tyran is putting all of those dunks into one person. He’s averaging seven and eight dunks a game.”
Stokes started his high school hoops career at Prolific Prep. He played at the Northern California school for two years before transferring to Notre Dame in Sherman Oaks, California for his junior season. He led the Knights to the CIF Southern Section open division final and the CIF State SoCal regional final in 2025. He won his first state title this past season at Rainier Beach.
He left Notre Dame last November amid rumors of a possible school suspension. It should be noted Notre Dame has never stated the player was suspended.
According to SI.com Notre Dame’s athletic director said in a statement the school “acknowledges Tyran Stokes’ decision to withdraw and explore new opportunities. We appreciate the contributions he made to our basketball program and community during his time here. We wish Tyran all the best as he pursues his future goals, and we are confident he will find success.”
Bethea said Stokes was ultra coachable and called him “a great kid and leader.”
“I never had that any issues with him, and I grilled him, got on him and everything, which he had never had done before. And he was just like, ‘Coach, I apologize. My bad.’ When he came here, he had to deal with my reputation as being an in your face kind of coach.”
Bethea said he would vouch for Stokes as an outstanding person “in a heartbeat. My wife is a great judge of character and that’s all she talked about, was how high a character kid he was. Everybody loved being around him.”
Stokes has extensive experience with USA Basketball. He won a gold medal with Team USA in the 2023 FIBA U16 Americas Championship and a gold medal with Team USA during the 2024 FIBA U17 World Cup.
This postseason, Stokes won MVP honors at the Jordan Brand Classic, scoring 29 points with eight rebounds, seven assists and three blocked shots in his team’s two-point victory. He hit 9 of 17 shots. He was 2-of-6 from deep and 9-of-13 from the line.
Stokes had 15 points on 6-of-11 shooting in Team USA’s 102-100 victory over the World Team at the Nike Hoop Summit. He also had 12 points and nine rebounds in the McDonald’s game.
He’s had a productive senior season and postseason with those three all-star appearances.
Bethea says Stokes’ body has held up well to this point.
“Tyran is type of guy if he shows up, he’s playing,” he said. “I don’t care if it’s on one leg, he’s going to play. He’s not one of those load management guys. I mean, if he puts on his stuff he’s playing.”
Bethea sees KU as a great fit for his pupil.
“I’m happy for him,” the coach said. “Because of our relationship with Kansas, with coach (Bill) Self and Kurtis (Townsend, assistant), I know that he’s going to be in good hands. Not saying he wouldn’t be in good hands someplace else, but I know he’s going to be well taken care of down in Kansas.”
