Once Overlooked Now Making a Name

 I believe it was the 2018 high school playoffs in Houston, TX. I was watching a 2nd round playoff game between Cypress Falls High School and Westside High School. Cy-Falls was loaded with five future college basketball players on one team. Three of them would go on to play at Division 1 schools. That is unheard of in public school basketball, because it is illegal to recruit in those schools. On the other side of the floor you had Westside’s roster. They were a good, solid team with a few low level college prospects. There were the Vanbeck twins, who were two 6’3 guards that could shoot it. Ironically, to the point I intend to make in this article, their older brother, Wes, was a former “Walk-On'' at the University of Houston who went on to earn a scholarship and subsequently, legitimate playing time for the Coogs. Anyways, one kid that I had never heard of from Westside who caught my eye was Warith Alatishe. He was a 6’7 kid that could move! He could run up and down the court with speed and agility, possessed a very active motor, and did I mention to say he was 6 '7!? Now, for one you must know that from a former coach’s perspective, having a 6’7 kid on your team that can move well and is tough is extremely rare. Also, I consider myself a Houston high school basketball know-it-all, so I was shocked that I didn’t know who this kid was. Now, I’m not saying this kid was destined for the NBA, but he did catch my eye, and you could see plenty of potential in him. Unfortunately for him and the rest of his Westside squad, they were playing the loaded, soon-to-be State Champions, Cy-Falls. So, you could say that their season was coming to an end, and I would soon forget about the potential possessing Alitishe that I had just discovered. 

Abdul Alatishe dunks in a high school game. (Howler News/ 2018)

Fast forward to the 2021 NCAA Tournament. In the round of 32, one of the matchups is Oklahoma State vs. Oregon State. Oklahoma State boasts the projected #1 pick of the 2021 NBA Draft, and Oregon State boasts… Warith Alatishe?? In actuality Alatishe’s 2021 draft prospects aren’t ideal, but the fact that this dude is playing meaningful Division 1 basketball in March is incredible. Warith was a relatively unknown prospect in his senior year of high school, and now he is a key cog on one of the remaining basketball teams in the most prestigious and celebrated college basketball tournament in the world. Alatishe is currently a junior who is averaging 9.5 points per game and 8.6 rebounds per game. That is BIG TIME for a guy who was under-recruited in high school. 

Alatishe competes for Oregon State in the 2021 NCAA Tournament. (Yahoo News/ 2021)

Alatishe isn’t the only guy in this category of relatively unknown high school prospects that are now some of the best players in college basketball with somewhat of a promising professional future. Some others are Javion Hamlet (UNT), Max Abmas (Oral Roberts), and Kevin Obanor (Oral Roberts). These guys are proving to the scouts that rated them and to the coaches that underecruited them that they were overlooked. It raises some legitimate questions that need to be asked in terms of recruiting. Why are these kids being overlooked so much? Lastly, what is making these late bloomers so successful? 

Deshang Weaver plays for the Oral Roberts men’s basketball team which destroyed everyone’s brackets by upsetting both Ohio State and Florida. He played for that state championship Cy-Falls basketball team I mentioned in my opening paragraph. As far as I can remember, as a 6’7 high school freshman, Deshang never had an issue being recruited, especially early in his career. On the contrary, before this year’s chaotic NCAA tournament, I had never heard of his star teammates Kevin Obanor and Max Abmas, Obanor being a native of Houston, Texas. The duo is collectively averaging 35 points per game, 13 rebounds per game, and 5 assists per game. Not too shabby for a couple of 2-Star prospects. Based on their play in the NCAA tournament, their success shouldn’t be considered a fluke. Abmas is a freshman scoring guard that can shoot it with the best of them. If he stays at Oral Roberts, he’ll be one of the best players to ever suit up for the Golden Eagles. He can score at all 3 levels and he’s extremely quick. Obanor is a stretch four big with a great physical frame. Obanor is a lethal offensive weapon at the forward position, and with another year left, he could position himself to create a chance to make the NBA. The 2 together lead a talented Oral Roberts squad that isn’t afraid of the big stage or obviously, the Power 5.

Max Abmas and Kevin Obanor celebrate a win in the 2021 NCAA Tournament. (The Athletic/ 2021)

My freshman year in college I attended the University of North Texas. The previous year, 2010, was the most recent time before now that the Mean Green made the NCAA tournament. Sometime around this past holiday season one of my old college friends from my UNT days sent me a video of some lefty guard with a crazy floater who was absolutely getting buckets. That guard was Javion Hamlet. Hamlet is an excellent testament to one important factor that leads to overlooked prospects succeeding in college and even surpassing some who were perceived as top tier prospects. Javion Hamlet received only one college offer upon graduating high school and that was from LeMoyn-Owen College, a Division II school. I don’t know if it was because Hamlet believed he was truly good enough to play at the Division I level or maybe there was another factor, but he ultimately would elect to play at Motlow State Community College instead. Hamlet played well there and then at another junior college, eventually earning offers from UNT, SMU, St. John’s, Arkansas, and Gonzaga among others. That is what you call self confidence. Okay, no one believes I can play at the D1 level? Just let me show you. You see, Javion Hamlet is a great example of why some kids, especially the ones who are truly talented or promising, should seriously consider junior college as an option to elevate their chances to accomplish their dreams. 

Javion Hamlet leads the UNT Mean Green in the 2021 NCAA Tournament. (Dallas Morning News/ 2021)

Also, another huge factor in why some of these overlooked athletes are having so much success is their choice of which college they chose to attend. As I mentioned before, Javion Hamlet had offers from the likes of Gonzaga, Arkansas, and St. John’s, but he chose North Texas where he knew he would be in a position to make an impact from the day he stepped foot on campus. The same can be said for both Obanor and Abmas. Whether intentional or not, their decisions to play at Oral Roberts turned out to be great ones for them individually but also for their program. 

It's just amazing to see how these guys didn’t let their lack of elite potential status derail their careers and end their dreams. Instead, they were able to put their head down, get to work, and most importantly they believed in themselves enough to bet on themselves. Now look at them; battling on the biggest stage in college basketball, no longer overlooked.

Zach Jones

    - Hoop Untold