April 1, 2024

Houston, TX – The Guy V. Lewis Award Committee (GVLAC) announced this evening the winner of the 2024 Guy V. Lewis Award is Chris McDermott — of Booker T. Washington High School — as the Greater Houston Area Boys High School Basketball Player of the Year.  The GVLAC announced the winner at a reception held at East River 9 (65 Hirsch Road, Houston, TX 77020).

The GVLAC defines the Greater Houston Area as Harris County and every Texas County that is immediately adjacent to Harris County.  A player will not be considered for the Guy V. Lewis Award if he has been suspended from school due to disciplinary reasons during the season.

This season, McDermott averaged 20.3 points, 18.7 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.9 steals, and 1.8 blocks per game. He recorded 26 double-doubles, corralled 20-plus rebounds 14 times. McDermott also ranks 2^nd in his graduating class. He helped lead Washington to the Regional Finals 3 years in a row. McDermott was named 4A Region III District 21 Most Valuable Player each of the last 3 seasons as Washington lost a grand total of one district game during those 3 seasons. In 2023, McDermott helped lead Washington to the UIL state tournament for the first time in school history.

This is the thirteenth year of this unique award.  The Guy V. Lewis Award is given annually to the Boys High School Player of the Year in the Greater Houston area.  The finalists for the 2024 Guy V Lewis Award were, in alphabetical order: Anthony “AJ” Bates Jr (Seven Lakes); Just Begg (Episcopal); John Clark (Klein Cain); Michael Collins (Shadow Creek); Shelton Henderson (Bellaire); McDermott; Robert Miller III (Pasadena Memorial); Divine Ugochukwu (Clements); Montana Wheeler (Houston Christian); and Sebastian Williams Adams (St. John’s).

The inaugural award in 2012 was won by Rasheed Sulaimon of Strake Jesuit (Duke). The additional winners were Aaron Harrison, Travis HS (Kentucky) in 2013; Justise Winslow, St. John’s (Duke) in 2014; Galen Robinson Jr., Westbury Christian School (Houston) in 2015; De’Aaron Fox, Cy Lakes HS (Kentucky) in 2016; Nigel Hawkins, Cy Falls HS (UTEP) in 2017; Quentin Grimes, College Park (Kansas / Houston) in 2018; and Kharee “KJ” McDaniel, Klein Forest HS (Stephen F. Austin) in 2019; Tramon Mark, Dickinson HS (Houston) in 2020; Ramon Walker Shadow Creek HS (Houston) in 2021; P.J. Haggerty (Crosby) in 2022; and Jaland Lowe (Fort Bend Marshall) in 2023.

The Award is in honor of College Basketball Hall of Fame Coach Guy V. Lewis (1922-2015), who led the University of Houston program from 1956-1986.  An alumnus of the University of Houston, Guy V. Lewis led the Cougars to five Final Fours, won nearly 600 games and was a pioneer for the game.  One of Lewis’ finest ideas, the 1968 “Game of the Century” pitted his Houston Cougars, with All American Elvin Hayes, against the powerhouse from UCLA, with Lew Alcindor, in the Astrodome in front of a national television audience and a regular season attendance record of more than 52,000 fans.  That attendance number still stands as the fourth largest regular season NCAA game.

“Guy V. Lewis had a keen eye for the local talent in the Houston area and was integral in making Houston the new hotbed for recruiting in the country,” said GVLAC Chair Rob Lopez. “Coach Lewis revolutionized the game and the way it was perceived in the country, and he really put the spotlight on Houston.  And now with Coach taking his rightful place in the Basketball Hall of Fame, this year’s award has even more of a spotlight.” 

A “Watch List” of 25 players was announced in January.  Finalists were announced in February.  Typically, the announcement of the Guy V. Lewis Award occurs during Final Four week, a fitting spot for the award, considering that only eight coaches ever took their teams to more Final Fours than Lewis.

The Guy V. Lewis Award Committee is an organization whose mission is the promotion of the game of basketball at all levels in the greater Houston area.  That area is defined by Harris County and every Texas County that is immediately adjacent to Harris County.  The Board of Directors of GVLAC is comprised of 13 members with an Executive Committee of five members.   The website, GuyVLewisAward.org, is the official website to find more information about the Guy V. Lewis Award Committee. 

“It’s truly heartening to witness the enduring legacy of my father, Guy V Lewis, honored each year through this prestigious award. Houston’s basketball tradition runs deep, and I’m thrilled to see it celebrated in such a meaningful way. ” – Terry Lewis

Inquiries and information for GVLAC can be found at info@guyvlewisaward.org