Akron, Ohio guard Chris Livingston from Buchtel High School (class of 2022) is returning to the 330 with a gold medal and most valuable player award after leading Team USA to the FIBA U-16 championship on Sunday. The 6-5 guard helped secure the gold with a 23-point effort while leading his team to a 94-77 win over Canada in the title game. Livingston shot 10-of-15 from the floor and collected six rebounds in the championship round while earning a shout-out from LeBron James.
Team USA went 6-0 during the FIBA tournament in Brazil on their way to taking home the U-16 gold medal. Livingston also added 14 points and 11 rebounds in a win over the Dominican Republic along with 16 points and 12 rebounds in the team’s semifinal victory over Argentina. The young baller is currently ranked as the No. 3 overall prospect in the class of 2022 according to ESPN.com.
“Akron boys are just built a certain way!” LeBron James said on Twitter. “Congrats lil bro!”
Team USA coach, Mike Jones from DeMatha Catholic High School in Maryland, described Livingston’s energy and effort as contagious. He also agreed that the Akron native certainly deserved the MVP award based on the impact he had on his teammates throughout the tournament.
“Chris’ motor and his energy and effort were contagious, and we saw that when we got to the tournament,” Coach Mike Jones told USAB.com. “I don’t know who else you could have given that to just because of the way he played and how he affected everyone else’s energy.”
Joining Livingston from Team USA on the All-Tournament team was Jalen Duren who scored 10 points and grabbed eight rebounds in the win over Canada. Duren is a 6-9 center who is currently ranked as the No. 2 overall prospect according to ESPN in the class of 2022.
