Kingston Flemings’ Special Impact With the Houston Cougars
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Houston Cougars freshman point guard Kingston Flemings walks inside the Jim Nantz Media Center in the Fertitta Center late after the game against what was No. 14 Texas Tech.
He gets called onto a Zoom on Jeff Goodman’s Field of 68 program to break down his clutch performance to somehow power Houston past their new, biggest rival in the Big 12.
There has rarely been a freshman of this magnitude in Houston, and likely the first time in coach Kelvin Sampson’s tenure of the program since 2014.
Flemings broke down his performance in a detailed manner. His thought process and the way he articulates it is quite unique. The 19-year-old is quick to admit his defense was not at the right level, even calling it horrible multiple times given what he said was a lack of focus. He is aware of his strengths and weaknesses, and Houston was the perfect spot for him given defense is its calling card.
Houston was down 59-55 with 3:38 left against Tech, and Flemings hit the go-ahead three, as well as two more clutch buckets to put the game away. It was 23 points for Flemings, and that was just the beginning of his scoring. The way he took over the game was unheard of from a Houston freshman.
The key for him is his confidence. When it matters, he believes in himself to get it done.
“Just continuing to have confidence, I know the work I’ve put in on my shot,” Flemings said.
An Elite Scorer
The scoring has only increased. He put up a career high 42 points on the road at Texas Tech on 58% shooting along with six assists and four 3-pointers. That was a Houston freshman record. Flemings was the first Big 12 player to put up at least 42 in a game since Trae Young did that in 2018.
Flemings followed that up with 27 and five assists on the road at TCU on 50% shooting.
The freshman point guard mentioned how the 22-point, seven-assist performance against Auburn that put him on the map might have been one of his favorites.
As a result, Flemings has shot up draft boards all the way to being a projected No. 5 pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. His name wasn’t in the top five freshmen when the season began, but you best believe coach Kelvin Sampson knew what he had in the San Antonio native.
There is a reason why he made it into the starting lineup right from the beginning.
“It didn’t surprise me; those are shots he’s been hitting in practice and scrimmages all summer. I knew what type of player he was from the time he got here, so down the stretch we wanted the play in his hands,” senior guard Emanuel Sharp said.
An In-Depth Look at Flemings
“When I recruited Kingston, he never didn’t have the ball in his hands. He was option 1-10. He has elite vision. You can trust him to make the right play. Kingston can get in the paint. I didn’t teach him how to do that. He lives in the paint,” Sampson said.
A four-star product out of Brennan High School, Flemings didn’t go to any flashy tournaments where all the top recruits typically played. He stayed in San Antonio for the most part during his high school career. Flemings was only a five-star recruit according to 247composite.
He wasn’t as highly touted as the two consensus five-star freshmen in center Chris Cenac Jr. and guard Isiah Harwell. However, his impact is high level.
Flemings is naturally good at driving and finishing at the rim. It’s his strength. Cougars fans have already seen the athletic attacks from Flemings.
Sampson described him as fearless, but mentioned that he wasn’t in Flemings’ fan club yet. That makes completely sense for a coach like him to stay hard on Flemings so he can keep improving. The turnovers have been an issue at times, which is expected with a freshman starting.
“When Kingston got here, he thought ‘de-fense’ was the thing that ran around the backyard to keep the dogs and toys in,” Sampson said.
There is one strength Flemings does have on the defensive end. Sampson mentioned how his 6-foot-4 height is key to him being a good shot blocker.
“Kingston is really, really athletic, and he’s a quick thinker, but he’s got miles to go before we confuse him with a good defender,” Sampson said.
There will be inconsistent performances with freshmen, but Flemings is starting to get that consistency at least on the offensive end. He has scored at least 20 in the last three games.
Overall, Flemings has led the team in scoring 12 times and has put up 20 nine times. Houston is 7-2 in games he scores 20+.
Chemistry with his Freshman Big
Being an elite point guard means you have to be a good passer as well. Using his vision, Flemings has made some nice cross-court and bounce passes throughout his time at Houston so far. The connection with Cenac Jr. continues to grow, but there’s history there.
“Chris and I have chemistry. We played at USA mini camp in Arizona, on a 3-on-3 team. I’m a good passer, but I never threw lobs because we never had that on the team. When I was there, I was throwing Chris lobs," Flemings said. "We were getting to it, so I knew we had chemistry there."
Flemings mentioned how Cenac Jr. is a great cutter and can see him cutting when he’s going baseline. He had three assists to him in the game vs. Tech. That’s the key part of building chemistry, knowing their next moves on the court.
“He makes the game a lot easier for us as a big,” Cenac Jr. said. The big man believes he’s the best passer he’s played with.
Additionally, Flemings has done a nice job of creating open shots for the rest of his teammates, including the seniors in Sharp and Milos Uzan.
“When I’m passing them the ball, I have full confidence that they’re going to hit their shots,” Flemings said.
Houston has a new offensive leader, and that’s their freshman phenom point guard. Flemings averages a team high 17.5 PPG and 5.4 APG on 52% shooting overall and over 40% from three. He also shoots 83% from the free-throw line and averages close to two steals per game.
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.