Newsome was born in San Jose, California. He is the second child of Carmelita, a Filipina, who hails from Parañaque and Eric, an African American. He has an older brother, Eric Jr. and younger sisters Nishelle and Melissa. When the Newsomes moved to Albuquerque, New Mexico, he attended his secondary education at Rio Rancho High School. His first sport was baseball and football, but did not play basketball until he reached seventh grade. He helped the Rio Rancho HS Rams win the 5A State Championship in 2007.
College career
Newsome attended the New Mexico Highlands University, a NCAA Division II school for three years. In his final season with the Cowboys in 2011, he averaged 10.1 points and 4.2 rebounds per outing. He was recruited by then-Ateneo head coach Norman Black to play for the Blue Eagles and for the Philippine national team that will play for the Southeast Asian Games. He accepted the offer and spent two years of residency before finally seeing action for Ateneo in 2013. In his final season with the Blue Eagles, he posted averages of 14 PPG and 8 RPG while earning a spot among the UAAP Season 77 Mythical 5 team.
Amateur career
Newsome suited up for the Hapee Fresh Fighters in the PBA D-League, where he teamed up with fellow college standouts and future draft batchmates Troy Rosario, Baser Amer, Garvo Lanete and Scottie Thompson. Together, they helped the Fresh Fighters win its first ever PBA D-League title in 2015.
Professional career
Newsome was drafted fourth overall by the Meralco Bolts in the 2015 PBA draft, reuniting with his former collegiate coach Norman Black. A few days after the draft, he signed a three-year deal with the Bolts. In his PBA debut on October 28, 2015, he finished with a team-high-tying 14 points, including two on a highlight slam dunk over San Miguel's Arwind Santos. Newsome quickly rose to stardom. He participated in the PBA All-Star Weekend Slam Dunk Contest, making it to the final round only to lose to two-time defending champion, Rey Guevarra. He became a key player in Meralco's rotation as the season went on. He helped Meralco get to the Semi-Finals of the 2016 PBA Governors' Cup and to the Finals of the 2016 PBA Commissioner's Cup before eventually losing to the Barangay Ginebra San Miguel. He was named as the PBA Rookie of the Year 2016 during the PBA Leo Awards Night. Other nominees for the league's newcomer trophy are Maverick Ahanmisi, Arthur Dela Cruz, Troy Rosario and Moala Tautuaa.
