Prospect Spotlight: Alek West (2019)

Sylvania Northview’s 6’3” point guard Alek West (2019) has a knack for getting in the lane. He’s a physical floor general gets a defense off-balanced with his sneaky dribble-drives. West can hit a floater and a pull-up jumper, but, in the past, he’s preferred to find an open teammate to pass to. But West’s coaches will be looking to him for points as an upperclassman. “My role is going to change this year, where I have to finish more ... I just need to change my mindset a little bit, to score more.” “Ever since I’ve started playing basketball, I’ve been more of a passer and stuff like that. Especially throughout high school, my role has been different every year. It’s just going to be a hard adjustment for me to stop being unselfish — to be a good amount of selfish, good amount of unselfish,” West said. As mentioned, West’s scoring usually comes within 12-feet of the basket. However, he's looking to expand his repertoire. “[The inside] is where I’m most threatening. But, I feel like once my jump shot comes along, it’ll become more of a threat because they’ll have to guard me from the outside too,” West said. West is also looking to become a more consistent ball-handler as well. Away from the court, West excels in the classroom. He carries a 3.95 GPA. West’s plans for the future are based in the medical field. “Orthopedics is something that interests me,” West said. Finding a college with the right academic fit is one of the things that will be crucial for him. “Just like the atmosphere of the university, like what the coaching staff is like, what the academics programs they have that will benefit me in my future,” West said. West’s brother, Aaron, graduated from Northview in 2016 and is currently playing soccer for the Cincinnati Bearcats. The younger West is also being recruited by UC, alongside Xavier on the soccer side of the aisle. As far as basketball goes, it’s been quiet so far. He is open to either sport, but he prefers basketball at the college level. “I’d probably choose basketball over soccer, if I had to choose,” West said. Being that Alek was able to observe Aaron closely throughout his recruitment, he has some wisdom going into his upperclassmen years. “Once [colleges] start talking to you, don’t let you go off their radar ... [Aaron] kind of drifted away from talking to certain coaches and it may have closed his gaps to play at a different program,” West said. It’s likely that West will have his own opportunities to maintain relationships with staffs in both sports eventually. We have him ranked #62 in the 2019 class, and he should prove it this season by being one of the best players in the Northern Lakes League. In the meantime, West is just focused on working hard. “I’m a super hard-worker and I’m willing to do anything to benefit a program,” West said.