RICHMOND, Texas — At only 16 years old and entering his junior year, Tyler Smith has decided to leave Fort Bend Bush High School to immediately launch his journey to the NBA. The 6-foot-9 forward has received several college offers from the likes of Baylor, Texas, LSU, Houston, and Auburn. However, he decided to skip the college route and officially signed a two-year contract with Overtime Elite–a startup basketball league for amateurs that assures each player a minimum profit of $100,000 in addition to bonuses and sponsorships based on their name, image, and likeness as amateurs.

OTE, a year-round intensive program to prepare 16-19-year-olds for the pro league, signed Smith as their 16th signee out of 24 to comprise their inaugural class. The young league, sponsored by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and rapper Drake, will allow Smith to play with many of the top recruits in the nation while taking classes to earn his high school degree. Smith, along with other five-star recruits Amen Thompson, Matt Bewley and Jalen Lewis, began training in Atlanta in September under coach Kevin Ollie, a former University of Connecticut and NBA star.

“My goal wasn’t to play college,” Smith told ESPN. “It’s to play in the NBA. This will get me there faster and make me more ready once I’m there. [OTE] been telling me they have NBA facilities, trainers and nutritionists from NBA teams.”

Smith was only the second signee of Overtime Elite from the Houston area. The 6-foot-9 forward was projected to be the eighth-best recruit in the Class of 2023 by ESPN. However, unless he can graduate a year early, Smith cannot enter the NBA draft until 2024. According to his agent Chris Gaston, the soon-to-be 17-year-old is considered a long-term NBA prospect of his class and has the potential to develop into one of the more prominent names of professional basketball soon.

​​“OTE is thrilled to welcome Tyler to our family and is proud to now be a part of his journey,” OTE’s Brandon Williams said. “Tyler is a versatile talent that exhibits an on-court confidence that stems from a combination of skill, length, athleticism and competitive intangibles. But what impressed us most is his demonstrated work ethic, and commitment to offensive and defensive development and the desire to be great.”

A New Orleans native, Smith has attracted attention since his performance in middle school after garnering his first scholarship offer at the age of 14. Smith has grown leaps and bounds since those days. The left-handed power forward has the height and strength to not only overpower his defenders above the rim but provide a credible perimeter defense to keep opponents on the outside. His all-around skill set continues to improve, granting him the ability to stretch the defense, create openings to score, and grab rebounds more frequently. At 16 years old, Smith’s potential has yet to reach its peak and will undoubtedly begin to improve at an even faster rate at Overtime Elite.

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