Former Joliet West star Jeremiah Fears goes 7th overall in NBA Draft to New Orleans Pelicans

There’s known to be drama in the NBA sometimes, including the NBA draft, but there was no drama for Jeremiah Fears Wednesday night.

A Joliet native and former star for Joliet West, Fears was widely expected to be a top 10 selection in Wednesday night’s draft. That expectation held true as the former Oklahoma star was selected seventh overall by the New Orleans Pelicans.

Fears spent his first two years of high school playing for the Tigers alongside his brother, current Michigan State star Jeremy Fears Jr. They both earned spots on the 2022-2023 Herald-News All-Area team.

Jeremiah Fears then transferred to Arizona Compass Prep Academy for his junior season before reclassifying to head to college a year early. He was a consensus four-star prospect and ultimately chose to play for the Sooners.

While some expected Fears to take time to develop given his age, he hit the ground running. The 6-foot-4 point guard averaged 17.1 points and 4.1 assists per game over 34 games, leading Oklahoma to an appearance in the NCAA Tournament.

Fears saw his draft stock skyrocket over the season given his high ceiling and young age (he won’t turn 19 until October). He also saved his best performances for the best competition at the end of the year, scoring 29 and 28 points against Georgia and Kentucky in the SEC Tournament, respectively. He finished out his time with the Sooners putting up 20 points in OU’s first round loss to UConn.

He also crossed the 30-point threshold against both Michigan and Missouri.

Fears spent Wednesday night in the NBA Draft green room alongside his mother. He wore an OU-crimson suit with a silver chain that read “Fears 0.″

“It means the world to me just being able to go out here and show the world what Oklahoma basketball can bring and continue in the right direction,” Fears told ESPN.

Fears’ mother Sekia was highlighted during ESPN’s broadcast as she cried tears of joy following Jeremiah’s selection.

Fears now heads to a New Orleans team in need of a scoring point guard. While Dejounte Murray is expected to be the starter upon his return from a torn achilles, reports suggest that he’ll be out until at least January. That will leave veteran Jose Alverado running the point alongside newly acquired guard Jordan Poole, center Yves Missi, forward Trey Murphy III and All-Star Zion Williamson.

New Orleans is coming off an injury-ravaged 21-61 season, giving Fears a massive opportunity for early playing time.