Brennan retires Kingston Flemings' jersey in surprise ceremony

Kingston Flemings walked into the Brennan gym Wednesday evening, just like he’d done thousands of times before.

But he wasn’t there to get some shots up or work on any drills. The Brennan grad and Atlanta Hawks point guard strolled into his high school gym under the impression that he was shooting extra of B-roll footage for ESPN since the television network had followed Flemings’ pre-draft process before the Hawks selected him in June with the No. 8 overall pick.

The Hawks are currently in town to face the Spurs in a preseason game Thursday night, so it did not sound unusual to him.

Flemings was indeed met with cameras as he swung the facility doors open, but they belonged to the phones of his family, friends, teammates, coaches and other supporters. A large crowd was gathered inside the Brennan gym to retire Flemings’ jersey number in a surprise ceremony for San Antonio’s first top 10 pick in the NBA draft since 1992.

“It’s actually crazy that this many people would keep a secret,” Flemings said. “It’s really a crazy thing, but I had no idea they were going to be here. But I’m grateful for it, for sure.”

Brennan coaches, teammates and staff members were all on hand as Flemings’ No. 1 was officially retired. Flemings joins George King, a 2018 second round draft pick by the Phoenix Suns, and Tanaeya Boclair as the only Brennan basketball players to have their jersey numbers retired.

“He has everything he needs here,” Kingston’s father, Dee Flemings, said. “He had a support system here. He had all the development he could get here. There’s no reason to go chase anything.”

Retiring Flemings’ jersey was an easy decision for the program. Brennan boys basketball coach Koty Cowgill said the program’s criteria for retiring any basketball jersey number is a combination of team success, like making the UIL state tournament, and individual success.

“He just happened to check all those boxes really, really quick,” Cowgill said of the decision to retire Flemings’ jersey a little more than a year after he graduated high school. “You know, like you don’t see that often. A lot of times, it takes a long time to build a career and do those things.”

Flemings led Brennan to the UIL Class 6A state semifinals as a senior. He was named the 2024-25 Gatorade Texas Boys Basketball Player of the Year, becoming the first San Antonio high school player honored with the prestigious award since Shaquille O’Neal was selected in 1989 after his senior year at Cole. A banner commemorating Kingston’s Gatorade Texas Player of the Year award hangs above the doors of the Brennan gym, right next to one for his sister Bella, who’s now a freshman at Duke and Gatorade’s Texas Girls Basketball Player of the Year last season.

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Audience react as Kingston Flemings,Brennan grad/current Atlanta Hawks guard, entered the gym for the ceremony where his high school jersey was retired on Wednesday night on Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026 at Brennan HS (Ronald Cortes/for the San Antonio Express News)

While the focus of Wednesday’s ceremony was Flemings’ impact on San Antonio, those at his post-Brennan stops also made an appearance. Flemings’ new NBA teammates were in attendance for the ceremony.

Also in attendance was Houston men’s basketball head coach Kelvin Sampson, who coached Flemings in his lone season of college ball. Sampson said he made the trip up to San Antonio because of Flemings’ impact on his program in just one year.

“Kingston’s just a great kid,” Sampson said. “He’s such a great kid, you feel like saying that’s not enough.”

The legendary college coach also didn’t seem concerned with how Flemings will fare in his first NBA season.

“I’m just a fan,” Sampson said. “I’m gonna follow him. I may text him occasionally, but if there’s one guy I don’t have to worry about, it’s Kingston Flemings.”

Flemings and Atlanta will return to the Frost Bank Center on Dec. 27 in a regular season matchup. And while Flemings will now be visible on the largest professional basketball stage in the world, the foundation of his NBA dream was built right inside the walls of the Brennan gym. And the No. 1 that now hangs above the bleachers serves as a reminder of where Flemings’ journey began, in what Kingston’s mother, Shayla Flemings, calls a “full-circle moment.”

“This was always home for him,” she said. “Like he said, since eighth grade, he’s been in this exact gym.”