Former Ohio State players Andre and Kaleb Wesson become basketball globetrotters
After enjoying success as high school and college teammates, brothers Andre and Kaleb Wesson have gone their separate ways to continue playing the sport they love.
Both embrace their overseas journeys in professional basketball.
Andre is currently playing in Hungary, and Kaleb is in Bulgaria. Both are a long way from home, whether home refers to the home of parents Keith and Stephanie Wesson or their previous basketball homes at Westerville South and Ohio State.
“I love learning about cultures, how people do things and compare it to how we do things in America,” said Andre, 26. “You see the differences, the pros and cons of everything. It’s definitely interesting. You can see historical sites you don’t get in America. It’s nice.”
“I’m living a dream,” said Kaleb, 24. “We’re blessed to play overseas and see all different walks of life. You can’t complain about it because this is what we’ve been dreaming about since we were younger in the sandbox – me and Andre being able to go overseas and provide for our family.”
Family, not the sandbox, is where the Wesson brothers' basketball story technically begins. Keith was a 6-foot-9 center who played in 115 games for Ohio State from 1983-87. He started his sons' basketball journey, putting them on a path that would take them to the Buckeyes.
At South, the brothers helped the Wildcats win the Division I state title in 2016, holding off Lima Senior 57-55 at Value City Arena.
Kaleb was named Ohio Mr. Basketball as a senior in 2017.
The brothers are revered at South. They have an open-door invitation whenever they visit.
“They’re two great kids and I love them,” South coach Ed Calo said. “They did everything that they could do while they were here. These guys are making a living off of basketball. I wish I was good enough to do that.”
Andre played 127 games for Ohio State and Kaleb played 96. The COVID-19 pandemic cut short their final season in 2019-20 – the Big Ten and NCAA tournaments were canceled and Kaleb, then a junior, opted to declare for the NBA draft.
Andre, a 6-6 forward, received his first professional opportunity in the 2021-22 season, playing in Finland. His career was put on hold earlier this year while rehabbing a right knee injury, which allowed him to return home to visit family and friends.
He has learned, however, that he must be prepared to head to his next destination when the opportunity arises. He was invited to join a Hungarian pro league team in Budapest and flew out the weekend of Dec. 9.
“Life moves fast,” Andre said. “You know when it’s time for things to happen with guys leaving jobs and getting jobs. It’s that second group of guys that are going overseas now. You’re expecting it, but you’re gone within three, four days of finding out that somebody is interested.”
He's also played professionally in Cyprus, Sweden and Italy.
“Italy was amazing,” Andre said. “I was an hour from Milan. I would be there from time to time, and I miss it. It’s a beautiful city. Cyprus was beautiful, too. I liked Finland, also. Helsinki is a beautiful city, especially around Christmas time. I’ve been blessed to be a few places that I really liked.”
After not being drafted in 2020, Kaleb signed a free-agent contract with Golden State and was assigned to its G-League team, playing 11 games in the 2020-21 season.
His career took him to Belgium, Puerto Rico, Israel and the Philippines before Bulgaria.
“I’m liking it here (in Bulgaria) so far,” said Kaleb, who is 6-11 and 250 pounds. “I’m averaging around 18 points and 10 rebounds. With my career now, I’m trying to have building blocks, have seasons like this to where if I’m fortunate to play when I’m 30, maybe I’ll have another opportunity in Bulgaria. I’m trying to get to EuroLeague or even in the Japan market. ... That’s high-level basketball overseas.”
For Kaleb, life in Bulgaria isn't much different from life in the United States.
“I feel like I’m a simple person,” he said. “I don’t really need a lot. We have almost everything that you can get in the states besides certain things like Chipotle. There’s home stuff that you miss, so when you come home you grab it, but for the most part, everything is kind of the same.”
Keith and Stephanie admit it’s difficult not watching their sons play in person on a regular basis after doing so at South and Ohio State. They watch via streaming when games are offered by the team or league, Keith said.
“It’s extremely difficult (not being there in person),” he said. “It’s been a few years and I still just miss it tremendously. I don’t know how I’m going to fill that void. I can’t be going overseas every month. We both miss it.”
While they are enjoying their time overseas, both brothers would love an opportunity in the NBA.
“That’s everybody’s dream when you start playing basketball,” Andre said. “I’ve been (overseas) for a while and I’ve learned there’s more than the NBA. There’s EuroLeague, EuroCup, Champions League. You’re not making NBA money, but you’re still in that six- or seven-figure range, which isn’t bad at all. You’re traveling the world and playing basketball.”
The brothers were able to join forces this past offseason as teammates for Carmen’s Crew in The Basketball Tournament. They also played together in the Kingdom Summer League in 2022.
“I loved playing with Kaleb again,” Andre said. “Anytime we get to do that it’s always fun.”
Andre graduated from Ohio State with a degree in economics, while Kaleb left school a year early. Stephanie said Kaleb plans to earn his degree in sports management and has 16 credit hours remaining.
“When you make a great living playing a game, it doesn’t get better than that,” Keith said. “Our only thing for them is just like when they were in high school, they were preparing for college, and when they were in college, they were preparing to play professionally. Now as you play, you should be preparing for when you’re done playing, because there’s going to come a day when the basketball stops bouncing.”
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This article originally appeared on The Columbus Dispatch: Ohio State basketball's Wesson brothers embrace playing overseas
