Incoming USC guard Alijah Arenas has had a difficult offseason. He entered the year with a lot of hope as the No. 10-ranked player in the 2026 recruiting class, according to 247Sports. However, the offseason has proved difficult for the young star. Notably, reports came out in late July that Arenas will miss six to eight months with a knee injury.
Despite that, his family still has a positive attitude and is confident he will return and become a college star. On Thursday, his mother, Laura Govan, posted an old clip of Arenas from when he was a kid on her Instagram story. In the clip, Arenas is playing one-on-one with Golden State Warriors superstar Stephen Curry. Arenas manages to score by shooting over Curry as he is contested. Govan had a two-word reaction to this clip.
“Got em,” Laura Govan wrote.
Alijah Arenas was expected to join the USC Trojans this season and have an immediate impact. However, now it appears likely that he will medically redshirt and return for the 2026-27 season because of his injury. The timeline for his injury could allow him to return for the end of the season, especially if USC qualifies for March Madness. However, Arenas has not indicated whether he would want to burn a year of eligibility.
This was the second time Arenas dealt with injuries this offseason. In April, he was in a car crash and hospitalized for a week. His knee injury occurred less than a month after he returned to practice following the incident. Despite the injury problems, USC head coach Eric Musselman is confident in his ability to return stronger.
“Alijah is a tremendous worker, teammate, competitor, and person,” Musselman said. “He is understandably disappointed that he will not be able to take the court to start the season, but his health is our No. 1 priority. We have no doubt that he will come back even stronger. We look forward to supporting him during this process.”
Alijah Arenas’ Father, Gilbert Arenas, Was Arrested for Running Illegal Poker Games
Alijah Arenas’ tumultuous offseason continued on Wednesday when his father, Gilbert Arenas, who is a former NBA star, was arrested for hosting illegal high-stakes poker games. According to ESPN, he is charged with one count of conspiracy to operate an illegal gambling business.
Gilbert Arenas was arrested in connection with a federal indictment alleging he hosted illegal high-stakes poker games at his Encino, California mansion, according to a release from the United States Attorney’s Office of Central California. https://t.co/laoSHG7kgD
— ESPN (@espn) July 30, 2025
Arenas was released on a $50,000 bond after pleading not guilty on Wednesday afternoon. His trial will begin in September.
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