Alijah Arenas, the 18-year-old son of former NBA All-Star Gilbert Arenas and a five-star commit at USC, was sent to the hospital on Thursday morning after a serious car crash, sources told ESPN's Shams Charania.
Five-star prospect and USC commit Alijah Arenas was involved in a serious car crash early Thursday morning, hospitalized and placed into an induced coma, sources tell ESPN. Arenas, 18, is the son of former NBA star Gilbert Arenas.
— Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) April 24, 2025
Arenas was put into a medically induced coma and his prognosis is not immediately clear.
USC commit Alijah Arenas, son of Gilbert Arenas, hospitalized in serious car crash
The No. 10 recruit in the 2025 high school class at 247 Sports, Arenas is widely viewed as a potential first-round pick in the 2026 NBA Draft. He was recruited to USC by head coach Eric Musselman. Arenas' father is a North Hollywood native and Alijah was born in Oakland, so he has close geographic and familial ties to the area.
Police responded to an accident involving a Tesla Cybertruck in the Los Angeles area around 4:55 AM, per TMZ. Arenas was rushed to the hospital in "serious condition."
This is heartbreaking news, and we can only wish for the best. Arenas is one of the most talented high school basketball players in the country, averaging 30.9 points, 6.8 rebounds and 2.8 assists across three seasons with Chatsworth H.S.
A 6-foot-6 shooting guard, Arenas is known for his fluid ball-handling and his effortless jump shot. With a 7-foot wingspan and 8-foot-9 standing reach, he boasts tremendous physical tools, which he puts to excellent use on the defensive end.
The hope, of course, is that Arenas can return to full strength and eventually get back on the floor for USC. We are still in the early stages of this breaking news cycle, so there's more to come. We don't know the extent of his injuries, nor what the recovery timeline is. All we can do is offer our thoughts and prayers to the Arenas family. His health is paramount, so basketball takes a backseat for now.
Arenas recently participated in the 2025 McDonald's All-American Game, in which he scored 11 points. The USC commit received offers from several schools, including his dad's alma mater, Arizona. His "final four" also included Alabama, Arizona State and California. Almost 20 schools put forth an offer.
His father, Gilbert Arenas, was a three-time All-Star and three-time All-NBA guard. A second-round pick to the Golden State Warriors in 2001, Arenas won the league's Most Improved Player award in his second season. At his peak, Arenas averaged 29.3 points per game, emerging as a cornerstone of Washington Wizards lore.
Update: Per ESPN's Shams Charania, initial tests showed no broken bones for Arenas, whose Cybertruck crashed into a tree and caught on fire. He was safely removed from the vehicle when authorities arrived at the scene.
Arenas inhaled "a lot" of smoke when his Cybertruck caught fire, per Sports Illustrated's Tarek Fattal. That is the reason for his medically induced coma — it's protocol with smoke inhalation.