USC-bound Alijah Arenas is a man of the people: 'I just want to make everybody smile'

USC commit Alijah Arenas sits down with Myckena Guerrero at the 2025 McDonald's All-American weekend to chat about things beyond basketball.

Alijah Arenas (right) puts the 2025 McDonald's All-American game MVP necklace around Cameron Boozer. / Jordan Jimenez

There's more to Alijah Arenas than just basketball.

Like most superstars — at any level — there is always more to the person than just the sport.

The Chatsworth High senior put that simply over the weekend in a 1-on-1 interview with High School On SI's Myckena Guerrero ahead of the 2025 McDonald's All-American game in Brooklyn.

"I realize there’s more to life than just basketball and what you can really get out of basketball," Arenas said. "My goal is to open a lot of doors (in life) through basketball."

Most know Arenas is the son of former NBA All-Star Gilbert Arenas, but Alijah talks about the impact his mother (Laura Govan) has on his life.

"My mom is very special. She's very supportive," Arenas said. "She's very outgoing, and my sisters are the same way. They aren't shy — just like me."

When Guerrero asked the smiley Arenas if he ever has bad days, he said: "I have my bad days, but my day always gets better when I see someone else smiling."

He added: "I'm kind of a guy that just likes to laugh and have fun, that's my thing. No matter where I am ... I just want to make everybody smile."

Alijah Arenas shoots the ball from the corner in the 2025 McDonald's All-American game in Brooklyn, NY. / Jordan Jimenez

Arenas was recently named High School on SI's All-CIF SoCal Offensive Player of the Year and included on the 2025 All-California CIF State boys basketball team. He averaged 30.4 points, 7.4 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 2.1 steals per game this season en route to a City Section Open Division final, CIF State Division II regional title, and the CIF State Division II final.

He led Chatsworth to back-to-back CIF State final appearances, which no City Section school had done since Westchester did it in 2009 and 2010.

The USC commit scored 3,002 points in just three seasons (after reclassifying into the 2025 class) and became the first LA City Section player to reach 3,000 points and just the 14th player in California history to reach the mark.

Arenas tallied 11 points with two 3-pointers in the McDonald's All-American game, helping Team West defeat Team East 105-92 live on ESPN Tuesday night.

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