USC commit and son of the three-time NBA All-Star Gilbert Arenas, Alijah Arenas had only one answer about Overtime Elite's Defensive Player of the Year as he took to his Instagram story to ask for his audience to vote for Class of 2026 recruit Isaac Ellis.
Ellis shared a graphic showing Shon Abaev, Meleek Thomas and Kaden Magwood's stats against Ellis and vice versa.
"This award means a lot to me… I am following back every single person who votes for me for “DPOY” LINK IN MY BIO," Ellis captioned the post.
Alijah Arenas then reshared this post on his IG story.
"Vote @isaacellis !!" Arenas captioned his story.
![Gilbert Arenas' son Alijah Arenas makes his stance clear on who the OTE defensive player of the year should be (Image: IG/alijah0arenas)](https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2025/02/ec30c-17393688492982-1920.jpg?w=190 190w, https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2025/02/ec30c-17393688492982-1920.jpg?w=720 720w, https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2025/02/ec30c-17393688492982-1920.jpg?w=640 640w, https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2025/02/ec30c-17393688492982-1920.jpg?w=1045 1045w, https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2025/02/ec30c-17393688492982-1920.jpg?w=1200 1200w, https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2025/02/ec30c-17393688492982-1920.jpg?w=1460 1460w, https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2025/02/ec30c-17393688492982-1920.jpg?w=1600 1600w, https://staticg.sportskeeda.com/editor/2025/02/ec30c-17393688492982-1920.jpg 1920w)
Ellis will face tough competition from Thomas Bassong, Amari Evans, Keshawn Fisher and Kai Rogers, who are all nominated for OTE's Defensive Player of the Year title.
Ellis has played 18 games this season for YNG Dreamerz. He averages 14.2 points (on 54.2% shooting, including 35.9% from beyond the arc), 4.6 assists, 5.8 rebounds, 1.8 steals, and 0.2 blocks per game.
His best performance this season came against the Diamond Doves on February 2, when he achieved a double double, scoring 35 points on 56.6% shooting and 53.3% from the 3-point line, handing out six assists, grabbing 10 boards and stealing the ball four times.
USC coach Eric Musselman watches Alijah Arenas play
After receiving offers from programs including UCLA, Arizona, Kentucky and Louisville, among others, Alijah Arenas committed to the Trojans on Jan. 30. Furthermore, he also took unofficial visits to Arizona, UCLA and USC.
Coach Eric Musselman visited to see Arenas lead his team to a 71-44 victory against Cleveland on Monday. Arenas did not fail to impress as he registered a double-double with 30 points and 10 rebounds:
Alijah Arenas has continued to impress with his performances at Chatsworth High School. This season, the 6-foot-5 shooting guard has played 19 games, averaging 30.9 ppg, 7.6 rpg, 4.3 apg, 2.2 spg and 0.8 bpg.
His best offensive show came in the 2023-24 season where he averaged 33.0 points, 8.6 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 1.3 steals and 0.9 blocks per contest.
Arenas will be joined by Jerry Easter and Elzie Harrington at the Trojans next season.