Overtime Elite roster breakdown for NextGen EuroLeague Finals
OTE will be playing at the Adidas NextGen EuroLeague Finasl for a second straight season, and the Atlanta-based organization will bring a team to Abu Dhabi full of elite talent. Here a team breakdown.
When the top clubs in European youth basketball converge on Abu Dhabi for the Adidas NextGen EuroLeague Finals from May 22 to 25, one of the wild card recipients will be from the United States. Overtime Elite has been invited to the NextGen Finals for a second straight season and once again OTE will have a squad packed with highly-skilled and talented youngsters ready to take on the best that Europe has to offer.
This year’s squad will be coached by Corey Frazier, the head coach of the RWE team, and it features two players returning from the NextGen Finals last season: Adam Oumiddoch and Jayden Wilkins.
The group of 10 players also includes two talents who were among the 2025 All-OTE team - Taylen Kinney and Kohl Rosario. And five of the players are ranked in the ESPN Top 100 of the 2026 class or Top 60 of the 2027 class - (Taylen Kinney/2026 No. 21; Omari Chaudhry/2027 No. 36; Adam Oumiddoch/2026 No. 34; Collin Paul/2026 No. 48; Kevin Savage/2027 No. 40). And there are two players who are not in the Overtime Elite program - consider them invited players (Josh Irving and Kevin Savage).
Here is a list of the 10 players on the OTE squad for the NextGen EuroLeague:
Omari Chaudhry
Asher Elson
Kole Grandison
Josh Irving
Taylen Kinney
Adam Oumiddoch
Collin Paul
Kohl Rosario
Kevin Savage
Jayden Wilkins
0 - Taylen Kinney - G - January 17, 2008
Taylen Kinney was the first pick of the 2024-25 OTE Draft, selected by RWE and the point guard ended up making the 2025 All-OTE team and finishing runner-up for OTE’s Most Valuable Player. He was one of eight players who averaged over 20 ppg (20.1) and also finished top five in assists (5.0 apg) this season for RWE.
This will actually be the second summer Kinney is outside the United States as he participated in the Adidas Euro Camp in Treviso, Italy, where former NBA veteran star Jason Terry was his coach and James Harden was also on hand.
Kinney last summer also participated in the USA Basketball training camp for the FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup 2024. He got to face some of the best young stars in the country such as AJ Dybantsa, the Boozer twin brothers Cameron and Cayden as well Koa Peat and Tyran Stokes. Kinney did not end up making the team though.
Kinney is a big fan of NBA star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and helped his Kentucky high school Newport to back-to-back 9th Region title in 2023 and 2024 before joining OTE.
Kinney is also a social media sensation thanks to his catch-phrase “6-7”, which he says and rocks his hands back and forth. Viral videos of him saying it made him jump from about 60 thousand followers on social media platforms to over 1 million. One mention of “6-7” after the next. Even young children want to give their best impression of his “6-7”.
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1- Omari Chaudhry - G - August 4, 2009
Omari Chaudhry was the youngest player in the OTE this season, joining the program after spending his freshman season at Osbourne High School, where he played alongside Akai Fleming. Due to injuries on the Cold Hearts team, Chaudhry was forced to play a bigger role and he excelled by averaging 17.4 points, 6.8 assists and 4.7 assists in five post-season games.
Chaudhry hails from Atlanta and is a lefty point guard, who plays with impressive poise, can score at will and also generate for others. His description on Instagram says it nice and simple: “shifty”.
3- Kevin Savage - G - January 15, 2008
Kevin Savage is one of two players on the team who are not in the OTE program along with Josh Irving. The 5-9 left point guard helped his Marietta-based high school Wheeler to the 2025 Georgia state championship, hitting the clutch basket to win the crown.
The lefty Savage is a hard-nosed, fearless guard who can stretch the defense with his shooting but also facilitates for others. He’s a born leader who acts like a coach on the floor. He can score in bunches and can get downhill almost at will.
Savage, who goes by “The Future” on Twitter, is ranked 40th in the ESPN 2027 class rankings. He says he watches a lot of Jalen Brunson, Trae Young and Chris Paul.
4- Asher Elson - F - June 5, 2007
Asher Elson is a rare New York City product - from South Shore High School in Brooklyn - to move to Atlanta and play for one of the OTE-home based teams, lining up for Cold Hearts. The 6-10 forward, who averaged 10.0 points and 4.6 rebounds in the regular season, lists Kevin Durant and Brandon Ingram as his favorite players, which helps you imagine his game.
Going by “4thq.ash” on Instagram, Elson said he grew up watching Queens native Rafer "Skip 2 My Lou" Alston and Harlem point guard Isaiah Washington. He has recently published posts on his IG with the messages: “Never Livin In The Moment , That’s Like Livin W No Focus” and “‘Overcoming Adversity’ … Work & Let God Handle The Rest.” Elson’s grandfather was the captain of the Guyanese national team.
Many consider Elson a 6-10 guard with great athleticism and great touch around the rim who is a three-level scorer. Thanks to his size, length and athleticsim, Elson is a great shot blocker and disturber of passing lanes. Elson admitted that he was heavily recruited by the OTE team JellyFam, which is the Our Saviour Lutheran School based in the Bronx. Instead he went to the Cold Hearts in Atlanta to get more focus on his development.
5 - Collin Paul - F - December 20, 2007
Collin Paul played this season with the Fear of God Athletics team in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. He is a 6-6 shooting guard from Clearwater, Florida, who grew up facing the top level players in the state, including the Boozer twins Cameron and Cayden. Paul went to Calvary Christian Academy in West Palm Peach, helping them to their fourth consecutive Florida state championship.
Paul, who averaged 14.4 points, 6.6 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.9 seasons in the regular season, is a floor general who controls the pace of the game with his playmaking and aggressiveness as a presence on both sides of the ball. Paul is fluid and smooth and highly skilled and can play multiple positions all the way to a stretch four, excelling on defense as well.
7 - Adam Oumiddoch - G - June 26, 2007
Adam Oumiddoch is one of two players who will be making their second appearance at the NextGen Finals after he picked up 15.0 points per game last season in Berlin. He was one of the leaders of the Cold Hearts team, leading the team in scoring with 17.1 points per game, including scoring 36 points with 7 three-pointers against Diamond Doves. He also picked up 6.0 rebounds and 3.0 assists.
Oumiddoch, who has Moroccan roots, participated at the USA Basketball Junior National Team Mini Camp at the 2025 NCAA Final in San Antonio. The Arlington, Virginia native moved to Atlanta before his sophomore year to attend Overtime Elite. Last summer he attended the Adidas Euro Camp in Treviso, Italy.
11 - Kole Grandison - F - January 21, 2007
Kole Grandison was one of the leaders of the City Reapers and their drive to the OTE Finals, where they lost to the YNG Dreamerz. He averaged 9.9 points, 5.4 rebounds and 1.6 in the season.
Grandison was born in Canada and started playing basketball at age 4, moving to New Jersey at age 9. He said in an interview that he didn’t start taking basketball seriously until right before high school. And when asked why basketball, the guard said: “It’s an indoor sport. I don’t like playing outdoors. It’s too hot. I don’t like the bugs.”
The City Reapers backcourt ace’s father went to Grambling State, who coached his uncle/godfather, who went to Kentucky and played in the NBA (If anybody can help find out who this individual is, please let me know). Grandison’s mother participated in athletics while his uncle is Delawn Grandison, who played at Liberty and briefly in Iceland.
Grandison, who is one of the few Canadians to have played at OTE, has already played on the international stage, averaging 6.0 points, 2.0 rebounds and 1.0 assists at the FIBA U17 Basketball World Cup 2024.
Kole says he loves defense, adding: “That’s where I show my grit.” He also is a big fan of cars, admitting the Apollo Intensa Emozione (below) is his dream car. He also says he loves to cook and making movies, being really interested in cinematography.
12 - Josh Irving - C - May 14, 2008
Josh Irving hails from Pasadena, California and is one of two players who are not in the OTE program along with Kevin Savage. He is a 6-10 center with an intriguing skill-set including great athleticism.
He possesses a 7-foot-3 wingspan and he grew up watching games of Kobe Bryant with his father. Irving used to play five instruments - cello, violin, piano, trumpet and ukulele - before basketball took over for him. He said in an interview if he were not in basketball he would probably do something in the math or science field or perhaps in business.
Irving says he models his game after Evan Mobley but also watching Nikola Jokic, Chet Holmgren and Victor Wembanyama.
13 - Kohl Rosario - G - January 3, 2007
Kohl Rosario will be coming to Abu Dhabi as an OTE champion in his first season in the competition as he averaged 7.3 points, 4.8 and 1.0 assists for the YNG Dreamerz as they took the crown in four games over the City Reapers - the team’s first OTE championship. During the season he averaged 21.8 points, 7.7 rebounds and 2.9 assists. And in the end Rosario was selected 2025 All-OTE and finished runner-up for OTE’s inaugural Most Underrated award.
Rosario was born in Miami, Florida and has Cuban-American descent. His father Karel Rosario, who was 6-9, played his college basketball at Florida International from 1997 to 2001 and played pro in Spain, Lebanon, Croatia, Venezuela, Puerto Rico and in the ABA.
Kohl is known for his massive bounce with some big dunks and when asked where his bounce came from: “When I was little I would always put a mini-hoop up and dunk. But my mom played volleyball in college so I think I got it from her.”
His mother Christy is 6-0 and played four years of volleyball in college. She is a teacher and Kohl said some of her students know him, something he finds funny.
Rosario said his father instilled in him a tough work ethic, saying his father would wake him up and 6am to work out.
The 6’5 combo guard Rosario, who attended Florida Christian high school, was tested throughout his early days in southern Florida, playing with the Boozer twins Cameron and Cayden throughout middle school on a travel team.
Rosario moved from Miami to North Carolina and starred at Moravian Prep in Hudson. That gave him a different climate and environment to enjoy. He mentioned in an interview that he loves nature and every morning would go outside and enjoy his breakfast. He loves to cook and grill and also took up the hobby of bird-watching - something his family back in Florida did. He would re-fill the bird-feeder every week as well.
In an interview he admitted that he kind of wishes he would have taken basketball a bit more seriously earlier and that he could have been further along. He said: “When I was little, all I wanted to do was go to the beach and fish.”
There is more to Rosario that is out of the ordinary in this day in age with players more worried about posting their highlights and rising up player rankings. Rosario for example posted a photo on Twitter of his Principal’s Honor Roll certificate for maintaining a 4.0 GPA or above for the 2023-24 school year.
Rosario also admitted that before every game he likes to read the Bible to “remind me of what my true focus is”. He says that puts his mindset at ease. In the interview he recited from memory Romans 12:2: “And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.”
He was asked to explain further and said: “Don’t try to do everything that everybody else is doing. Although it might seem normal, the devil is coming out to try and get you. he’s trying to make everything that is right be awkward for you.” He mentioned helping an elderly lady cross the street, or deciding not to go drinking.
21 - Jayden Wilkins - G - April 2, 2008
Jayden Wilkins played this season with the City Reapers and lost to YNG Dreamerz in the OTE Finals. He is one of two players from the OTE team who played in the NextGen EuroLeague Finals last season, contributing 4.3 points, 2.0 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.7 steals in Berlin despite being two years younger.
Wilkins is the son of former NBA player Damien Wilkins while his grandfather is 13-year NBA star Gerald Wilkins and his great-uncle is Hall of Famer Dominique Wilkins. He said in an interview: “My main motivator is I want everybody to know me for me and not just for my family background. I want everybody to know Jayden for Jayden.”
Jayden picked up the game seriously the summer before 7th grade, having played baseball, American football and soccer before that. He said after he is done playing he wants to get into acting and become an action movie star.
(Here is the feature I wrote for the NextGen EuroLeague website about Wilkins last season)
OTE's Jayden Wilkins will be rooting for great-uncle's ex-team, Panathinaikos
One of the young stars of the American team at the ANGT Finals is already living up to his famous surname
Jayden Wilkins bears the name and weight of three former NBA stars in his family, but the young Overtime Elite star will be wearing his famous surname with pride at the Euroleague Basketball Adidas Next Generation Tournament Finals. And he will be rooting for his great-uncle's former team Panathinaikos Athens at the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Final Four.
Wilkins is the son of former NBA player Damien Wilkins while his grandfather is 13-year NBA star Gerald Wilkins and his great-uncle is Hall of Famer Dominique Wilkins.
"It's an honor and a privilege to have the name Wilkins, and I don't take that lightly," said the 2008-born Jayden. "I wear that name on the back of my jersey with pride, and it motivates me on the days where I might be struggling because I know the men before me helped pave the way for me. What I focus on is building a legacy for myself without ever forgetting where I came from – and using the things I learned from them to be the best version of myself."
Wilkins stressed he is not worried about being Damien, Dominique or Gerald. He just wants to be Jayden – and he doesn't feel the pressure some might think he faces.
"I don't feel pressure to be just like any of them because I am my own person, but it's great to have someone to talk to about the challenges I face and I know they will be honest with me about my growth and development. I've been able to see with my own eyes how much work it takes to get to where I want to be, so having them in my corner supporting me means a lot," Jayden said.
His father Damien told a US newspaper that Jayden is probably the best shooter in the family – to which he said: "If my dad says it, it must be true, right? Ha! But that's the part of my game that I have the most confidence in right now, and it's because I'm in the gym every day working at it."
When asked what he would like to have from each of his family member's game for his own game, Jayden offered: "From my dad – his attitude and overall leadership. When he played, he was the guy that everyone looked up to and could count on, so I definitely want that from him. From my great-uncle – his athleticism and consistently playing hard no matter what's happening in the game. From my grandfather – his elite defensive skills."
Jayden has completed his first season in the OTE league, for which his father serves as general manager and head of basketball operations.
"I like OTE because I have all the access and resources to get better at my fingertips every day – the coaching, the weight training, the skills development – everything is customized for me. There's no other place like it where I can have as many coaches and staff dedicated to making me a better player. And the competition is crazy because you have the best high school players in the country all in one place. I'm going against the best guys day in and day out, so I'm really forced to push myself daily," he said.
Wilkins is playing for the RWE team and he won last season's Next Up award as the top underclassman in the league. Wilkins is excited and motivated to be traveling to Germany to face the best Europe has to offer.
"I'm always looking for new ways to challenge myself and get better, and this will be another opportunity to do that. Going up against the best of the best is only going to make me better. Our team is really excited to showcase our own talents as well on this European stage," he said.
Wilkins naturally will be looking to win as many games as possible at the ANGT Finals. But he also wants to experience the rest of the atmosphere around the EuroLeague Final Four – including rooting for Panathinaikos, where his great-uncle Dominique played and with which he won the EuroLeague title in 1996.
"I'm definitely going to be watching and hopefully getting to experience some of the atmosphere around the games. It's my first time in Berlin, and it's going to be cool to see the team my great-uncle played for in the Final Four – definitely going to have to support them," he said.
His surname, Wilkins, comes with pedigree, and Jayden Wilkins is ready to do it justice at the Euroleague Basketball Next Generation Tournament Finals in Berlin.
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