Jevon Lewis is always thinking bigger.
When he came to Wayne High School, he always had an eye on ending significant program droughts. Not since 2000 had the team won the Summit Athletic Conference. It had been longer since a postseason crown of any kind – a sectional in 1994.
While with the Generals, he not only wanted to surpass the 1,000-point mark, but break the all-time scoring record for the program, something he did in sectionals against New Haven, passing Justin Mitchell’s old mark of 1,416 points.
And even as he departs Wayne as a senior, he still wants more.
“I tried to show our junior class how to lead for next year,” Lewis said. “It means a lot that people will always remember me at Wayne in helping change the culture to winning.”
All that taken into consideration, Lewis is an easy choice to be the Outside the Huddle 2023-24 Boys Basketball Player of the Year.
Lewis was the clear leader of a team that equaled last year’s success of SAC and regional titles and increased its win total from 21 to 23. For the season, he averaged 19.4 points, 7.6 assists, 3.8 rebounds and 2.3 steals per contest, as dynamic and steady of a player in northeast Indiana this year.
“Jevon came into this season knowing that he had an opportunity to be one of the best players in the state and we could do some special things as a group,” Wayne coach Anthony Brewer said. “He has been a leader for us since his sophomore year. We struggled to collect wins that season but he learned that leaders have to lead all the time.”
As Lewis improved, so did the Generals. Former coach Byron Pickens intentionally went young a few years ago, throwing a bunch of freshmen and sophomores into the fire at the varsity level to sink or swim. Lewis swam as hard as anyone, becoming a rarity – a 10th grader who everyone on the roster looked to for guidance.
He always came through.
“Jevon completely embraced the improvement process before he got to Wayne and he used every resource at his disposal to develop himself as a ballplayer as well as an athlete,” Brewer said.
This past season, Lewis displayed his full abilities. He opened the season with a 32-point effort against Leo that pushed him over 1,000 career points. Nine times he went over 10 assist. In those games, Wayne went 9-0.
Lewis’ skill set is as impressive as his desire to improve both individually as a team. He shot 37 percent from three-point range as a senior and 81 percent form the free throw line. Overall from the field, he connected on 46 percent of his attempts.
Considering the hype coming into the season, Lewis handled it with maturity.
“As a person, Jevon is fiercely loyal and has a good perspective on his goals,” Brewer said. “He also understands that anything worthwhile takes effort and he has never been one to shy away from hard work.”
Lewis surely put in the work throughout the year, not just during the season. It paid off. Wayne came just a single win away from its first-ever state championship appearance. The senior still put up 19 points in a close loss to Fishers, the eventual 4A champions.
Despite falling short, there was plenty to appreciate.
“My favorite part about coaching Jevon was our time together working in the gym,”Brewer said. “From the time he was a freshman he always wanted to stay after practice for extra shots.
“He was always so eager to learn about the history of the game. I always enjoyed the way he appreciated the game as a whole.”
And it’s something Lewis won’t be forgetting anytime soon. After all, he always has his eyes on more.
“My message was to go achieve every goal we put down on the board and fight through adversity,” Lewis said. “I hope I showed them what hard work gets you.”
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