Macao’s basketball scene has grown through the years, and Leo Lei has grown along with it. He’s a student at Keang Peng School who was raised shooting at a hoop his grandfather put up at home. The 17-year-old player also scored 20 points against the China National Team in 2023, and is the first player from Macao invited to the NBA’s Basketball Without Borders Asia camp. Small wonder he was signed up by the Macau Black Bears in September 2023.
“After the game was over, I felt like I was dreaming,” Lei says of that performance against team China. “It gave me a great boost of confidence… a recognition of my previous efforts.”
[See more: Mario Ho becomes youngest NBA co-owner with Boston Celtics purchase]
Lei’s formal training began in the fourth grade. By high school, basketball had stopped being a pastime and had become something more serious.
Stephen Curry’s shooting was a major inspiration, but it was Curry’s movement and team-first style that left a deeper mark. Add the late Kobe Bryant’s “Mamba Mentality” – work every day, no shortcuts – and you have the makings of Lei’s approach. “Without effort, there would be no reward,” he says. It’s become his guiding principle.
Breaking through with the Macau Black Bears
Lei’s path to the Black Bears started with school tournaments and a call-up to Macao’s U16 team. A training invite from the Black Bears became valuable game minutes. “The Black Bears provide many opportunities for young players,” he says. “As the only professional team in Macao, I believe it is the goal of many Macao players.”
Inside the Black Bears organisation, belief in Lei came quickly. “At first I thought, hey, he can shoot, has long arms, good size, really coachable,” recalls Kevin Connelly, who was head coach when Lei first came to practice in 2023 and is now the team’s general manager. “I didn’t realise he was only a sophomore in high school. He carried himself like a veteran.”
[See more: University of Macau coach Lam Teng Long on winning a national basketball title]
Connelly later helped secure Lei’s spot at Basketball Without Borders (BWB). “He was the first Macao player ever invited, to my knowledge,” he says. For Lei, BWB was an education.
“I came into contact with many people my age, but they were physically and technically much better than me,” he says. Instead of discouraging him, it gave him a clearer checklist to get stronger, defend harder and be more aggressive.
He’s quick to credit others. “I must express my deepest gratitude to coach Kevin. I want to share what I have learned with my teammates. I hope more people from Macao can appear on bigger stages.”
That maturity has only deepened since. In a recent game against the Taiwan Beer Leopards, Lei tied a Macau Black Bears record by draining nine three-pointers, finishing an astonishing 9-of-11 from beyond the arc. Seven of those came in the second quarter alone, a stretch that his coach, Garrett Kelly, described as “one of the best shooting performances I’ve ever seen. He really grew up this weekend.”
Leo Lei’s focus on the CBA
The next target is clear: the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA). To get there, Lei is putting in extra hours in the weight room, embracing contact, and working to make defence a defining part of his game. Connelly believes he has the tools. “Any athlete needs unbelievable self-belief and confidence, that’s the great separator, and he has it because he knows he puts in the work.”
Between his school team, the national team, and the Black Bears, Lei is stacking up the experience and preparation needed to reach that level. Off the court, Lei keeps life simple. He plays video games, enjoys travelling, and makes sure to rest. But training always comes first. “It’s important not to get too addicted to entertainment. Training is definitely the top priority.”
[See more: Nets vs Suns ticket sales launch today for October’s NBA Macao showdown]
When asked about a dream one-on-one, he doesn’t hesitate: Curry, the original inspiration. Asked for advice to younger players, he keeps it simple: “Failure itself is not terrifying. What is terrifying is the lack of the courage to try again.”
And he leaves one final thought, a statement that could stand as the theme of his journey so far: “I want to show that a kid from Macao can work, stay humble and keep climbing – one step at a time.”
