Houston Star Kingston Flemings Shares His NBA Role Models
In this story:
It's been the year of freshmen in college basketball this season. The Houston Cougars have significantly contributed to that with two freshman lottery picks in the starting lineup.
While his name was not on the radar early, it is now. Kingston Flemings has taken over and is now a projected top-five pick in the upcoming 2026 NBA Draft. Flemings was not a consensus five-star product, but he has demonstrated over the year why he is one of the top freshmen in the country.
Flemings has earned numerous awards and is the youngest All-American in Houston basketball history. He's a finalist for the Bob Cousy award, on the watchlist for the Wooden Award, and was a unanimous All-Big 12 first team and freshman team selection. Flemings is Houston's leading scorer overall with 16.2 points per game and has led the team in scoring in 21 games.
The San Antonio native has gained significant attention in the NBA scouting world, and Flemings is expected to be a young star in the league. All players typically have someone they looked up to in the NBA, and it is no different for Flemings. In an interview with Maanav's Sports Talk on YouTube, Flemings shared his NBA inspirations.
NBA Comparison For Flemings
Flemings was asked who his favorite player was in the NBA, and his answer makes sense.
"My favorite player was D-Rose, so I looked up to him. I wore No. 1 my whole life up until here cause of D-Rose. He was always my favorite player," Flemings said. "I loved watching D-Rose growing up. I had D-Rose's shoes and everything like that.
Derrick Rose, the 2011 NBA MVP was the first overall pick by the Chicago Bulls in the 2008 NBA Draft. Rose played 15 years in the NBA and quickly rose to massive stardom at the start of his career, including winning Rookie of the Year. You can draw a line from Rose to Flemings in terms of their playing style, which is quite similar.
Both are extremely athletic and possess explosive speed out of the gate. Flemings' first step and elite ability to attack the rim with his quickness is somehting that is similar to Rose. Flemings has been able to have acrobatic layups so far, which Rose did at the highest level. A key factor is also the mid-range game. Flemings' go-to shot has been seemingly the pull-up mid-range shot. Rose had that in his bag as well.
Rose was also known as a clutch scorer, and Flemings is described as Houston's closer. He has already made multiple big shots in the clutch. With all that said, Flemings would not say he directly modeled his game after Rose.
"I kinda play my own game, I watch players, what they do on the court and reads they make, but I don't really model my game after someone," Flemings said.
His favorite player in the NBA right now is Cade Cunningham, who Flemings believes should be in the MVP race. Cunningham is an elite point guard with a high IQ, and Flemings has shown flashes of great point guard play. He has 188 assists, a freshman scool record.
Maanav Gupta is a staff writer for Houston Cougars on SI. He graduated from the University of Houston in the summer of 2025 with his bachelor’s in journalism and a minor in Spanish. Gupta spent three years at the student newspaper, The Daily Cougar, and also covered the 2025 Final Four and National Championship as Houston beat writer for College Basketball Review. He also has his own YouTube channel, Maanav’s Sports Talk, where he has interviewed professional athletes and broadcasters like Jim Nantz, Jose Altuve, J.J. Watt, Rich Eisen, and Alperen Sengun. Gupta was also a contributor to the Houston athletic program as a student. You can find Gupta on X, Instagram and TikTok @MGSportsTalk.