Emoni Bates

Emoni James-Wayne Bates was born on January 28, 2004, in Ann Arbor, Michigan. He developed an early passion for basketball, practicing extensively with his father, a former professional player. Bates first gained national attention in early 2016 while playing for the Toledo Wildcats AAU team. By seventh grade, he was already rated as the number one player in the 2022 class by Future150 and continued to excel on the Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) circuit, even playing against older athletes in the Nike Elite Youth Basketball League (EYBL) by 2018.

Bates attended Lincoln High School in Ypsilanti, Michigan, where he made an immediate impact. In his freshman year, he averaged 28.5 points and 10.2 rebounds per game, leading his team to its first MHSAA Division 1 state title in 2019. He was named Michigan Gatorade Player of the Year and MaxPreps National Freshman of the Year, with analysts comparing him to LeBron James at the same stage. His sophomore season further cemented his status, averaging 32.3 points, nine rebounds, three assists, and 2.1 steals per game. During this year, he achieved a career-high of 63 points and 21 rebounds in a double-overtime victory, and became the first sophomore to win the prestigious Gatorade National Player of the Year award in 2020.

After reclassifying from the 2022 to the 2021 class, Bates committed to play college basketball for the Memphis Tigers. As the youngest player in college basketball during his freshman season, he averaged 9.7 points and 3.3 rebounds across 18 games. He later transferred to Eastern Michigan for his sophomore year, where he averaged 19.2 points and 5.8 rebounds in 30 games, earning Third-team All-MAC honors in 2023. Bates was drafted 49th overall by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the 2023 NBA draft, signing a two-way contract, and later signed an Exhibit 10 contract with the Philadelphia 76ers in 2025. He continues to develop his professional career, demonstrating his scoring potential with a career-high 25 points during the 2024–25 NBA season.