COLUMN | Tyran Stokes Ignites Rainier Beach Opener With 31-Point Dunk Fest

Tyran Stokes, Rainier Beach's 6-foot-7 transfer from Sherman Oaks, California, has a unique talent for inspiring the people around him.

Like the home crowd on Wednesday night at Renton High School. From tip-off, they serenaded him with chants of "O-ver Ra-ted," and the No. 1 college prospect in the country acted like it was music to his ears. After one of his nine dunks during the Vikings' 81-60 season-opening romp, he turned to the Redhawks student section and gestured for them to keep bringing it.

By then, Stokes, en route to a head-spinning, gym-rattling 31 points, had induced everyone in the building into silent awe.

The highly anticipated unveiling of Stokes and the latest edition of the Vikings drew a full house at Renton High School — about 2,000 people, according to a school official, where games tend to draw 400–500. That throng included NBA super agent Aaron Goodwin behind the Rainier Beach bench and a baseline full of visual media creators.

"He's the real deal," Rainier Beach coach Mike Bethea said of his senior addition. "He's definitely that."

Stokes also is a necessary deal on a Rainier Beach team that's defending its state 3A title with nine new players, including highly regarded freshman J.J. Crawford.

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The lot of them spent the opening quarter bonding and shaking away the offseason rust, and found themselves behind 16-10. Then, early in the second quarter, Stokes delivered a nifty spin move in the lane, leading to a panic-inducing, in-traffic jam that shook his team out of its doldrums. Stokes put together a 7-point spurt, including a second dunk, and, for good measure, dished out of the post to Crawford for a half-ending three-pointer.

But that was just a gentle warning of the storm that was brewing. Bethea took advantage of the adrenaline rush prompted by Stokes and accelerated the game's pace with defensive pressure. With Rainier Beach operating at warp speed, Stokes put on a dizzying offensive display that was good for 13 points in the quarter, including four dunks in transition and a 3-point shot.

With some prompting from Stokes, Crawford got uncorked in the fourth quarter with a pair of 3s and the move of the night — multiple crossovers and hesitations into a pull-up baseline jumper. He finished with 15 points in his high-school debut. The Vikings also got 9 points and a huge, aerially focused spark off the bench from Kam Babbs and another 8 from Marques I'll Menesse and Knowledge Wright.

In so many ways, Stokes was the one who orchestrated the victory for his new team. When he wasn't dunking or hitting 3s, he put his 7-foot wingspan to good use at the defensive end and the Rainier Beach offense almost always ran through him.

"He brings a lot more than just the basketball abilities," Bethea said. "His leadership — that's so underrated than what other people talk about. He's one of the better leaders and, as a coach, you can see that as soon as he steps on the floor."

In fact, Stokes has inspired Bethea and Rainier Beach to think bigger than just a state title defense this year. The Vikings have rebuilt their 2025–26 schedule to fit in a berth at the Les Schwab Invitational for a field in Portland right after Christmas that will include Sierra Canyon (California), ranked No. 1 in the country by Max Preps, and Columbus (Miami), ranked No. 5, one spot ahead of Rainier Beach. Over New Years, Rainier Beach will play traditional national powers Mater Dei (California) and Duncanville (Texas) in Arizona. Over Martin Luther King Jr. weekend in January, the Vikings will travel to Springfield, Massachusetts, to take on No. 18 Bishop McNamara (Maryland) in the Hoophall Classic.

It's a pretty profound shift inspired by a player Bethea had only seen once — three years ago in an AAU game — before he showed up at Rainier Beach a little over two weeks ago. As storied as the Rainier Beach program has been under him, Bethea says it's never rostered a player like Stokes.

"No, we've never had a player like him," Bethea said. "Not like that — 6-7, 230 pounds who can play every spot on the floor.

"He's like a grown man."

Glenn Nelson covered the Sonics and the NBA at The Seattle Times for 17 years. He was a founding executive at Rivals.com, a co-founder at Scout.com, and the founder of ESPN HoopGurlz, a national website about women's and girls' basketball. He has won regional awards for his columns about race for the South Seattle Emerald.