Julian Newman

Newman began showing an interest in basketball at age three. His father, Jamie Newman, trained him with regulation-size balls and had him participate in recreational leagues with older players.

His early practices were intensive, including daily routines of 100 free throws, 200 floaters, and 200 jump shots. He later became known by the nickname "Handles."

In 2012, Newman transferred to Downey Christian School in Orlando after his father began coaching basketball and teaching history there. As a fifth grader, he initially played for the middle school team, but he was promoted to varsity after scoring as many as 91 points in a game.

At 11, Newman stood about 4 feet 5 inches tall and weighed 70 pounds. During his first three varsity starts, he averaged 12.4 points, 11 assists, and 4.3 steals per game, helping Downey Christian finish with a 21-6 record while leading Florida in assists.

A highlight video posted in 2012 received more than 3.5 million views on YouTube and brought him national attention from outlets including Sports Illustrated and The New York Times. He also appeared on programs such as The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Good Morning America, and The Steve Harvey Show, and performed at halftime during an Orlando Magic game.

As a seventh grader in 2015, Newman became the youngest player to reach 1,000 career varsity points. In 2016, he scored 52 points against Kyree Walker at the MiddleSchoolHoopsTV camp, and footage of the game received more than 13 million YouTube views.

By 2018, Newman had scored 3,873 points, surpassing the Florida prep record set by Teddy Dupay in 1998. During the 2018-19 season, he averaged 34.7 points, seven assists, five rebounds, and four steals per game for Downey Christian.

His size and playing style prompted questions about how his game would translate to higher levels of competition. Recruiting attention also became disputed, with different accounts describing Division I interest ranging from multiple offers to no offers. Newman later identified interest from UTSA, USF, and UCF and said that discussions about playing professionally overseas did not materialize.

For his senior season, Newman transferred to Prodigy Prep, a new Orlando school created by his father, who also became its head basketball coach. MaxPreps lists Newman as a 2020 graduate of Prodigy Prep.

Newman signed with Bethesda University of the National Christian College Athletic Association in 2024. He made his collegiate debut against The Master's on October 24, going scoreless on six three-point attempts in a 109-23 loss.

During the 2024-25 season, Newman played as a reserve guard and averaged 3.0 points, 2.0 rebounds, and 0.7 assists in 30 games. His college career high was six points, which he scored against Southern Utah on November 13, 2024, along with four rebounds and one assist.

He returned for a sophomore season and changed his jersey number from 2 to 4. His father, Jamie Newman, was also hired as Bethesda's head women's basketball coach.

Newman has Puerto Rican ancestry through his mother and African American and Jewish ancestry through his father. His mother, Vivian Gonzalez, played point guard at University High School in Orlando, served four years in the United States Navy, and later worked for the United States Postal Service.

His father, Jamie Newman, played point guard at Colonial High School in Orlando and became a history teacher and basketball coach. His younger sister, Jaden Newman, also drew national attention after beginning varsity basketball at Downey Christian in third grade.

Newman starred in the documentary series Born Ready, which began in 2015. He and his family later appeared in the reality series Hello Newmans, launched by Overtime in 2019. He is also associated with the family sports apparel brand Prodigy, whose merchandise was sold at his games.

Alongside basketball, Newman competed in exhibition boxing matches connected to Adin Ross's Brand Risk crossover boxing events. He defeated Gio Wise at a Brand Risk event in 2025.

Newman later headlined Brand Risk 10 against Oblivion in Tennessee on October 3, 2025. He won the three-round exhibition bout by unanimous decision.