Nimari Burnett

Nimari Keith Burnett (born December 20, 2001) is an American college basketball player who last played for the Texas Tech Red Raiders of the Big 12 Conference. He was a five-star and a four-star recruit and one of the best shooting guards in the 2020 class. Burnett finished his high school career at Prolific Prep in Napa, California.

Nimari Burnett
Burnett at the Nike EYBL in 2019
Personal information
Born (2001-12-20) December 20, 2001
Chicago, Illinois
NationalityAmerican
Listed height6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)
Listed weight195 lb (88 kg)
Career information
High school
CollegeTexas Tech (2020–2021)
PositionShooting guard
Career highlights and awards
Medals
Men's 3x3 basketball
Representing  United States
FIBA Under-18 World Cup
2019 MongoliaTeam

Early life and high school career

Burnett played basketball for the eighth grade team at Beasley Elementary for three years and won a city championship.[1][2] In his freshman season, he played for Morgan Park High School in Chicago and was teammates with junior Ayo Dosunmu.[3] Burnett helped his team win the Class 3A state title, scoring 20 points in the championship.[4] He earned MaxPreps Freshman All-American second team honors.[5]

Entering his sophomore year, after initially enrolling at San Joaquin Memorial High School in Fresno, California, Burnett transferred to Prolific Prep, a national program based in Napa, California and began attending Napa Christian Campus of Education.[6][7] He missed five weeks of his sophomore season with a broken hand.[8] On April 14, 2019, Burnett won a gold medal with Attack at the USA 3x3 Under-18 Championship.[9] As a senior, he averaged 25.5 points, 6.5 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game for Prolific Prep.[10] Burnett was named Finals MVP of the Grind Session World Championship after scoring 37 points in a win over Our Saviour Lutheran School in the title game.[11] He was selected to play in the McDonald's All-American Game and the Jordan Brand Classic, but both games were canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[12]

Recruiting

On November 12, 2019, Burnett committed to play college basketball for Texas Tech over offers from Alabama, Oregon and Michigan, among others. He became the highest-ranked recruit in program history. Burnett explained, "I chose Texas Tech because of the winning culture of the program and the coaching staff. It felt like a big family."[13]

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Nimari Burnett
SG		 Chicago, IL Prolific Prep (CA) 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Nov 12, 2019 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN:   ESPN grade: 93
Overall recruiting rankings:   Rivals: 39  247Sports: 38  ESPN: 22
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "Texas Tech 2020 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved September 2, 2020.
  • "2020 Texas Tech Red Raiders Recruiting Class". ESPN.com. Retrieved September 2, 2020.
  • "2020 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved September 2, 2020.

    College career

    On December 6, 2020, Burnett recorded a freshman season-high 12 points and six steals in an 81–40 win over Grambling State.[14] On January 7, 2021, he left Texas Tech due to personal reasons. As a freshman, Burnett came off the bench, averaging 5.3 points and 1.8 rebounds through 12 games.[15]

    National team career

    In 2019, Burnett helped the United States win its first gold medal at the FIBA 3x3 Under-18 World Cup in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia. He accumulated 40 points, the fifth-most in the tournament.[16]

    Personal life

    Burnett's mother Nikki Burnett opened a dollar store and became a real estate broker by the age of 25. Nikki created basketball apparel clothing lines BasketballMom and HoopLegend Apparel. She also helped start the Lifetime reality show Bringing Up Ballers, which follows the lives of several Chicago-based entrepreneur mothers whose children are talented basketball players. Burnett is one of the players featured in the show.[17]

    References
    1. O'Brien, Michael (December 6, 2016). "O'Brien: Ayo Dosunmu, freshman Nimari Burnett help Morgan Park survive Bogan". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved September 10, 2019.
    2. Burgess, Scott (June 7, 2016). "Recruiting Report: Nimari Burnett (2020)". Prep Hoops. Retrieved September 10, 2019.
    3. Disabito, Pat (December 6, 2016). "Fresh(man) face: Nimari Burnett big in backcourt as Morgan Park overpowers Bogan". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved September 10, 2019.
    4. O'Brien, Michael (June 16, 2017). "Star guard Nimari Burnett leaves Morgan Park". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved September 10, 2019.
    5. "2016-17 MaxPreps Boys Basketball Freshman All-American Team". MaxPreps. April 18, 2017. Retrieved September 10, 2019.
    6. James, Marty (May 27, 2019). "Nimari Burnett and Jalen Green to try out for USA Basketball's U19 World Cup Team". Napa Valley Register. Retrieved September 12, 2019.
    7. Anteola, Bryant-Jon (September 16, 2017). "Memorial High's super hoops team suffers blow, but remains a potent squad". The Fresno Bee. Retrieved September 10, 2019.
    8. Stephens, Mitch (January 25, 2018). "Top high school basketball players ready for 'Crush'". San Francisco Chronicle. Retrieved September 11, 2019.
    9. "Champions Crowned at USA Basketball 3x3 U18 National Championships". USA Basketball. April 14, 2019. Retrieved September 12, 2019.
    10. Divens, Jordan (March 25, 2020). "MaxPreps 2019-20 High School Boys Basketball All-American Team". MaxPreps. Retrieved May 4, 2020.
    11. Tomes, Evan (March 24, 2020). "The Grind Session World Championship". NBADraftnet. Retrieved May 4, 2020.
    12. Jordan, Jason (March 12, 2019). "McDonald's All American Game Cancelled Amid COVID-19 Concerns". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved March 30, 2020.
    13. Biancardi, Paul; Borzello, Jeff (November 12, 2019). "Nimari Burnett, ranked No. 19 in ESPN 100, commits to Red Raiders". ESPN. Retrieved May 4, 2020.
    14. "Recap: No. 17 Texas Tech 81, Grambling 40". Texas Tech Red Raiders. December 6, 2020. Retrieved January 7, 2021.
    15. "Texas Tech Nimari Burnett opts out of basketball season". The Athletic. January 7, 2021. Retrieved January 7, 2021.
    16. "Nimari Burnett". USA Basketball. July 17, 2019. Retrieved September 12, 2019.
    17. Monique, Porsha (April 23, 2017). "Nikki B. of Lifetime reality series 'Bringing up Ballers' talks NBA prodigy son". Rolling Out. Retrieved September 13, 2019.
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