Aliya Arena’s College Basketball Journey Delayed

Aliya Arena has to hit pause on her college basketball career.

The incoming USC freshman is facing a knee injury that will necessitate surgery, sidelining her for six to eight months, according to the team’s announcement on Wednesday.

Basketball insider Chris Haynes reported that Arena, the daughter of former NBA star Gilbert Arenas, has suffered a torn meniscus.

USC coach Eric Musselman expressed his disappointment for her, stating, “Aliya is an incredible worker, teammate, and competitor. It’s obviously tough for her not to start the season on the court, but her health is our primary concern.”

It’s been a challenging few months for Arena. She was placed in a medically induced coma after a serious car accident in April, where she lost control of her vehicle, resulting in a collision with a fire hydrant and a tree. It was a harrowing experience.

Her Tesla Cybertruck caught fire, and Arena mentioned feeling disoriented, coming in and out of consciousness before arriving at the hospital. Thankfully, she was released about a week later.

“I changed lanes without really understanding what was happening, and I felt something was off. Next thing I knew, I couldn’t steer back to the left lane,” Arena recalled at the end of June. “So, I thought I should just speed up to move to the right, where there was a parked car.” The clarity of that moment is a little surreal to think about.

Arena is regarded as a 5-star recruit, ranked 10th overall by 247 Sports and recognized as the leading shooting guard in the country.

In addition to USC, she had received offers from over a dozen other schools, including Arizona, West Virginia, Alabama, and California.