Dai Dai Ames

Dai Dai Ames
No. 7 – California Golden Bears
PositionShooting guard
LeagueAtlantic Coast Conference
Personal information
Born (2005-06-02) June 2, 2005
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Listed height6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Listed weight190 lb (86 kg)
Career information
High school
College
Career highlights

Darrin "Dai Dai" Sylvestor Ames, Jr. (born June 2, 2005) is an American college basketball player for the California Golden Bears of the Atlantic Coast Conference. He played his freshman season for the 2023–24 Kansas State Wildcats men's basketball team and sophomore season for the 2024–25 Virginia Cavaliers men's basketball team before joining the 2025–26 California Golden Bears men's basketball team as a junior after attending Kenwood Academy. Ames attended Kenwood after transferring from Morgan Park as a sophomore. As a high school senior he was a 2023 Jordan Brand Classic All-American selection. He was a point guard until late in his sophomore year at Virginia when he was switched to a shooting guard.

Life and career

Darrin Sylvestor Ames, Jr. was born on June 2, 2005 in Chicago as the fourth child and fourth son to Darrin and Juanita Ames.[1] He was in the Morgan Park High School basketball program as a freshman before transferring to Kenwood.[2] As a junior, he posted a game-high 25 points in the IHSA 2022 Class 4A Sectional championship victory against a Morez Johnson-led St. Rita team.[2] That year, he was named to the 2022 Associated Press Class 4A First-Team All-State along with Braden Huff, Owen Freeman, Nick Martinelli and AJ Casey.[3] The team lost to Chicago Public League crosstown rival Whitney M. Young Magnet High School in the Class 4A UIC Supersectional (quarterfinal) despite 21 points and 5 assists from Ames. Kenwood finished with a 26–9 record.[4] During the summer he committed to Kansas State over offers that included Marquette, Illinois, Arizona State, Appalachian State, LSU, Maryland. At the time, he was ranked as the 60th best player and 10th best point guard in the national class of 2023. He was ranked the number 1 player in the Illinois class of 2023,[5][6] but he was not a serious contender in the 2022 Illinois Mr. Basketball voting.[7]

In the December 2022 Proviso West Holiday Tournament, Ames scored 65 points in a 122–47 rout of Southland College Prep.[8] The team returned to the Class 4A UIC Supersectional again and again fell short of making the school's first state final four tournament in boy's basketball after losing to Downers Grove North 67–47.[9] He was a 2023 AP Class 4A First-Team All-State selectee along with Jeremy Fears Jr., Freeman, Johnson and Cam Christie. Although the top 3 scores of the AP Class 4A All-state voting was close (Fears, 105; Freeman, 102; Ames, 100),[10] 2023 Illinois Mr. Basketball voting was another story with Brock Harding (275 points/46 first place votes) being followed by Fears (203/23) in second and Freeman (104/11) in third, while Ames was a distant seventh (33/1).[11]

As a senior, he averaged 21.4 points, 4.3 assists, and 2.4 steals.[12] He was one of 32 2023 Jordan Brand Classic selectees. He was the third in Kansas State basketball history, joining Curtis Kelly (2006) and Wally Judge (2009) and one of four incoming Big 12 Conference honorees, joining Omaha Biliew (Iowa State), Brandon Garrison (Oklahoma State) and Ja'Kobe Walter (Baylor).[13] Ames finished his career as the #83-ranked player and #13-ranked point guard in the national class of 2023 and #2-ranked player in the state of Illinois class of 2023.[6]

College recruiting information
Name Hometown School Height Weight Commit date
Dai Dai Ames
#16 PG 		Chicago, IL Kenwood Academy High School 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 170 lb (77 kg) Jul 20, 2022 
Recruit ratings: Scout: 4/5 stars   Rivals: 4/5 stars   247Sports: 4/5 stars   ESPN: 4/5 stars   (85)
Overall recruit ranking:   Scout: NA    Rivals: NA    ESPN: 85, 16 (PG)
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, On3, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2023 Kansas State Basketball Commits". Rivals. Retrieved July 1, 2023.
  • "2023 Kansas State Basketball Commits". Scout. Retrieved July 1, 2023.
  • "2023 Kansas State Basketball Commits". ESPN. Retrieved July 1, 2023.
  • "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout. Retrieved July 1, 2023.
  • "2023 Team Ranking". Rivals. Retrieved July 1, 2023.

College

As a true freshman at Kansas State, Ames was listed at 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) and 185 pounds (83.9 kg). On November 17, 2023, Garwey Dual of Providence and Ames had an altercation that led to Ames being punched in the face and Dual being ejected from the opening round game of 2023 Bahamas Championship.[14] He started 16 games including the final 13 games of the season. He posted two double digit scoring efforts:[1] on January 27, 2024, he posted 11 points against the No. 4 ranked Houston Cougars;[15] on March 19, he tallied a team-high 16 points along with 5 assists against Iowa in the 2024 National Invitation Tournament.[16] Ames finished his season with 45% (15–33) three point shooting in his final 16 games.[17][a] Ames entered the NCAA transfer portal on April 28, after averaging 5.2 points and 2.0 assists.[18] He visited Virginia on May 6.[12] On May 15, he committed to Virginia.[6] As the fifth transfer, he claimed the school's final scholarship offer.[19]

At Virginia, sophomore Ames started in 26 of 32 games and posted double digit scoring efforts 14 times, including 10 consecutive 2024–25 Atlantic Coast Conference season games from February 1, 2025 — March 8, 2025,[20] when he tallied 59.5% overall field goal percentage (59 of 99) and 44% from three point range (16 of 36).[21] He posted a career-high 27 points on February 3, 2025 against Pittsburgh, despite entering the game with a 6.2 scoring average.[22] He also had 2 18-point performances in this stretch:[21] On February 8, he posted 18 (14 in the second half) in a 75–61 wind against Georgia Tech;[23] On March 4, he posted a game-high 18 points, including 2 free throws with five seconds left, in a 60–57 win against Florida State.[24]

Following the season, he entered the transfer portal on March 19, 2025.[25] It was speculated that he was disappointed that Virginia failed to make the tournament and that the team had released coach Ron Sanchez, who had recruited him. He was expected to be considering Virginia Tech, Arkansas, Tennessee, Oklahoma State, Texas.[26] It turned out that the leading programs with interest in him included Seton Hall, Clemson, Florida State, and Nevada. He took a visit to Cal.[27] On April 1, he committed to Cal.[28] The assessment of Ames at the time was that he had shooting guard skills in a point guard body based on measurements of 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) and 160 pounds (72.6 kg) and had been misused at the point at Virginia, but his late season success was due to a transition to the shooting guard position.[29]

On December 2, 2025 Ames had a game-high 25 points, including 6 consecutive free throws in the final 50.3 seconds,[30] against Utah to lead Cal to a 79–72 victory and the school's first 7–1 start since the 2016–17 Bears team.[31] Ames contributed 20 points in the December 13 victory over Northwestern State that gave Cal its first 10–1 start since the 2014–15 team.[32] Ames posted 21 points in the December 21 victory over Columbia to reach 12–1.[33] The last time the school started 12–1 had been the 1959–60 team that entered the 1960 NCAA University Division basketball tournament with one loss and were national runner-up.[30] At the time of the hot start, Ames led the team with a 17.7 scoring average at the time of the hot 12–1 start.[34] On January 2, Ames made two three point shots in the final 11 seconds, including a four-point play with 5 seconds left as part of a game-high 23-point performance to lift Cal to a 72–71 victory over Notre Dame.[35] On January 17, Ames posted 19 points in a victory against No. 14-ranked North Carolina.[36] On February 4, Ames tallied a career-high 29 points during a 9-of-13 shooting night in a 90–85 victory over Georgia Tech.[37]

Notes

  1. ^ a b "4 Dai Dai Ames". Kansas State University. Retrieved December 17, 2025.
  2. ^ a b Vorva, Jeff (March 5, 2022). "Illinois recruit Morez Johnson throws down gauntlet for St. Rita in looking toward next season: 'We're not losing to anybody.'". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved December 18, 2025.
  3. ^ "Illinois Boys All-State Basketball Teams". Associated Press. March 9, 2022. Retrieved December 18, 2025.
  4. ^ O'Brien, Michael (March 7, 2022). "Dalen Davis dazzles as Young knocks off Kenwood". Chicago Sun-Times. Retrieved December 19, 2025.
  5. ^ Tipton, Joe (July 20, 2022). "4-star Dai Dai Ames commits to Kansas State". On3. Retrieved December 18, 2025.
  6. ^ a b c Kelleher, Trey (May 15, 2024). "COMMITMENT: UVA basketball picks up Kansas State guard Darrin "Dai Dai" Ames". SB Nation. Retrieved December 19, 2025.
  7. ^ Millar, Steve (April 27, 2022). "2022 Mr. and Ms. Basketball of Illinois winners: Braden Huff of Glenbard West and Sophie Swanson of Barrington". Chicago Tribune (Online). ProQuest 2655611777. Retrieved December 20, 2025.
  8. ^ Tate, Melvin (December 27, 2022). "Ducree's three takes Fenwick over Farragut at Proviso West". Oak Park Journal. Retrieved December 18, 2025.
  9. ^ Wojtychiw, Michael (March 2023). "Kenwood Boys Basketball Falls Short In IHSA Super-Sectional, Finishes One Of Best Seasons In Program History As Sectional Champions". Chicago Public League/Chicago Public Schools. Retrieved December 19, 2025.
  10. ^ "Illinois AP names All-State boys' basketball teams". Associated Press. March 9, 2023. Retrieved December 18, 2025.
  11. ^ Millar, Steve (May 7, 2023). "2023 Mr. and Ms. Basketball of Illinois: Moline's Brock Harding and Benet's Lenee Beaumont step up when it matters most". Chicago Tribune (Online). ProQuest 2810357389. Retrieved December 20, 2025.
  12. ^ a b "Report: Virginia Hosting Kansas State Guard Transfer Dai Dai Ames". Yardbarker. May 6, 2024. Retrieved December 19, 2025.
  13. ^ "Ames Named Jordan Brand Classic All-American". Kansas State University. June 23, 2023. Retrieved December 19, 2025.
  14. ^ Gaydos, Ryan (November 18, 2023). "Providence's Garwey Dual throws punch at Kansas State player". Fox News. Retrieved November 21, 2023.
  15. ^ "No. 4 Houston beats Kansas State 74-52 for its fourth straight victory". ESPN. Associated Press. January 27, 2024. Retrieved December 17, 2025.
  16. ^ "Sandfort's 30 lead Iowa past Kansas State 91-82 in NIT". ESPN. Associated Press. March 19, 2024. Retrieved December 17, 2025.
  17. ^ Istvan, Ben (October 30, 2024). "Get to know Dai Dai Ames, the Kansas State transfer dubbed 'the closer'". The Cavalier Daily. Retrieved December 17, 2025.
  18. ^ GPC staff (April 28, 2024). "Kansas State guard Dai Dai Ames to enter transfer portal". 247Sports. Retrieved December 19, 2025.
  19. ^ Istvan, Ben (May 17, 2024). "Men's basketball fills last scholarship, adds Kansas State transfer Dai Dai Ames". Cavalier Daily. Retrieved December 22, 2025.
  20. ^ "7: Dai Dai Ames". California Golden Bears. Retrieved December 19, 2025.
  21. ^ a b "Dai Dai Ames Signs With Cal". Cal Athletics. April 29, 2025. Retrieved December 18, 2025.
  22. ^ "Dai Dai Ames scores career-high 27 to lead Virginia to 73-57 victory over Pittsburgh". ESPN. Associated Press. February 3, 2025. Retrieved December 17, 2025.
  23. ^ "McKneeley scores 20, Ames adds 18 to help Virginia beat Georgia Tech 75-61". ESPN. Associated Press. February 8, 2025. Retrieved December 18, 2025.
  24. ^ "Ames, Rohde carry Virginia past Florida State in frantic fashion for a 60-57 win". ESPN. Associated Press. March 4, 2025. Retrieved December 18, 2025.
  25. ^ Kelleher, Trey (March 19, 2025). "BREAKING: Virginia basketball's Dai Dai Ames reportedly enters transfer portal". SB Nation. Retrieved December 18, 2025.
  26. ^ Segun, Ajayi (March 20, 2025). "Dai Dai Ames Transfer Portal Targets: Top 5 Landing Spots for the Former Virginia Guard". College Sports Network. Retrieved December 18, 2025.
  27. ^ Branham, Travis (March 28, 2025). "@TravisBranham_ status update". X.com. Retrieved December 19, 2025.
  28. ^ Samra, Steve (April 1, 2025). "Virginia transfer Dai Dai Ames commits to Cal". On3. Retrieved December 18, 2025.
  29. ^ Graham, Chris (April 1, 2025). "Report: Dai Dai Ames appears to be headed to Cal off the transfer portal". Augusta Free Press. Retrieved December 19, 2025.
  30. ^ a b Faraudo, Jeff (December 3, 2025). "Dai Dai Ames, Justin Pippen Power Cal to its Best Start in Nine Seasons". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved December 17, 2025.
  31. ^ "Ames scores 25 and Pippen adds 23 as Cal holds off Utah, 79-72". ESPN. Associated Press. December 2, 2025. Retrieved December 18, 2025.
  32. ^ "Camden scores 25 points, Cal pulls away late to beat Northwestern State 79-70". ESPN. Associated Press. December 13, 2025. Retrieved December 18, 2025.
  33. ^ "Dai Dai Ames scores 21 and California defeats Columbia 74-56". ESPN. Associated Press. December 21, 2025. Retrieved December 22, 2025.
  34. ^ Couch, Darcy (December 27, 2025). "Cal Kicks Off ACC Action At Haas Pavilion". California Golden Bears. Retrieved February 6, 2026.
  35. ^ "Dai Dai Ames' four-point play in final seconds lifts Cal to 72-71 victory over Notre Dame". ESPN. Associated Press. January 2, 2026. Retrieved January 5, 2026.
  36. ^ "California hands No. 14 North Carolina its second straight loss in Bay Area, 84-78". ESPN. Associated Press. January 17, 2026. Retrieved January 26, 2026.
  37. ^ "Dai Dai Ames scores career-high 29, Cal beats Georgia Tech after blowing 15-point lead". ESPN. Associated Press. February 4, 2026. Retrieved February 5, 2026.

Footnotes

  1. ^ coincidentally, Ames would also shoot 45% (19–42) on his three point shooting over his final 12 Atlantic Coast Conference regular season games the following year for Virginia.
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