In the wake of a significant knee injury that will keep Alijah Arenas out for months, USC coach Eric Musselman talks about the bond he has developed with his star.
Basketball usually took a backseat in early conversations between Eric Musselman and prized recruit Alijah Arenas.
On one side was a teenage phenom navigating an early jump to college. On another was a USC men's basketball coach more curious about Arenas’ mood, when he woke up and how he made sense of the people and the world around him.
And so when USC’s coach stood in front of the Galen Center’s vibrant new scoreboard Friday morning — two days after it was announced that Arenas would miss six to eight months with a knee injury — Musselman found himself stammering, stitching together the words to encapsulate what the freshman meant to him.
Read more:USC star freshman Alijah Arenas sidelined by serious knee injury
“I probably feel closer to him than anybody that I've coached in a two-month span since he's been on campus,” Musselman said.
The bond has already weathered more than most would in four years.
First came the reclassification — Arenas skipped his senior year of high school to join USC. Then came the rush course into collegiate basketball as he prepared spring practice. Then, on April 25, Arenas was in a serious car crash that led to him being placed into a coma.
After recovering from his injuries, Arenas was barely two weeks back from being medically cleared to practice when he sustained a slight meniscus tear and bone bruise.
But even in those 14 days — and just one full practice with Musselman present — Arenas proved enough to be the centerpiece of his coach’s vision for USC.
“We built the roster around some of the stuff that he could do, and knowing that he could play the one and the two, and when he played the one, would have great length,” Musselman said. “And I told people from the beginning of the recruiting process what a great passer he was.”
At 6-feet-7, Arenas averaged 30.9 points and 7.8 rebounds per game at Chatsworth High before landing 13th in ESPN’s Class of 2025.
Read more:USC women's basketball lands another No. 1 recruit in Saniyah Hall
In Arenas’ absence, Musselman said he has weighed adding a 14th player to the roster, but would do so only if it “could help us." The bigger hurdle, the coach added, would be revenue-sharing limits.
Arenas will still be traveling, learning and rehabbing alongside USC. And he’ll continue to shadow Musselman in a role the coach never had to explain to him.
“To some people during the recruiting process, you call them and you can't wait to get off the phone, and you're just kind of calling them to try to develop a relationship,” Musselman said. “The reason that Alijah and I are in such a good spot is because he picked up the phone when I called him.
He added: “We already had a built in trust before he got here.”
Etc.
Musselman said Friday that Terrance Williams (wrist), whose injury he called “one of the weirdest injuries I’ve seen," will return Aug. 25 when the Trojans report for practice on the first day of the academic year. ... Musselman noted that Jordan Marsh has been the team’s “biggest surprise” of the summer, while Rodney Rice will take over as the Trojans’ primary ball handler.
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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
Category: General Sports
