Alijah Arenas, a USC basketball commit and son of ex-NBA star Gilbert Arenas, was placed into an induced coma after a car crash Thursday morning, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania.
Arenas, 18, was rushed to the hospital in Los Angeles after crashing his Tesla Cybertruck into a tree or fire hydrant, police told ESPN, leaving the vehicle “completely mangled on the side of the road,” per TMZ.
The outlet reports the car was “ablaze” when emergency responders were called to the scene at 4:55 a.m., with Arenas taken from the scene in “serious condition.”
Details regarding the crash are still emerging.
Arenas, an 18-year-old five-star college prospect out of Chatsworth High School in California, committed to the Trojans in January for the 2025-26 season, a decision he revealed on his father’s “Gil’s Arena” podcast.
A 6-foot-6 shooting guard, Arenas is described as “a versatile scoring threat” who is still growing, according to 247Sports, which predicts “significant long-term potential” for the teen phenom.
He received offers from Arizona — Gilbert’s alma mater — West Virginia, Alabama, Arizona State and California among a 20-school bonanza of offers for the McDonald’s All-American.
Earlier this month, Arenas inked a sponsorship deal with Adidas.
His father, Gilbert, was a three-time NBA All-Star and was named the league’s Most Improved Player in 2003.
Over a 12-season career spanning 5,522 games with Golden State, Washington, Orlando and Memphis, he averaged 20.7 points, 5.3 assists and 3.9 rebounds.
