“We have a plan” – Laura Govan’s powerful message after son Alijah Arenas suffers devastating setback months after car wreck

Alijah Arenas’ freshman year in college met an end even before he could officially suit up for the USC Trojans. The 5-star recruit has just made a comeback after a near-fatal car crash in April 2025.

According to ESPN, USC announced that Arenas would be out for 6-8 months with a knee injury, which would require surgery. With his dream of playing in the NBA potentially postponed, Govan stepped up. She shared an encouraging message for Alijah on her Instagram Story on Friday, featuring a long text message with Alijah Arenas walking away in the background. In her message, she called for her son to pick himself up.

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"EVERYTHING ABOUT YOU IS EVERYTHING... pick your head up KING!!!" Govan wrote. "We HAVE A PLAN AND GOD ALWAYS HAS A BETTER ONE FOR SURE NOT A SET BACK BUTA COME BACK!!! got the team on Deck and A He Of A Team GOT YOU!!!!! It's go time so let's GO! ❤️🙌🏽."

"@alijah arenas Love You Papa ❤️."

Govan had been hyping up her son lately, posting videos of Alijah Arenas' practice with USC.

The son of the former NBA player, Gilbert Arenas, Alijah Arenas suffered a torn meniscus. Alijah had just made his practice debut for USC.

Soon after committing to the USC Trojans, Arenas was involved in a Tesla car crash in April. He has inhaled a lot of smoke and was put into an induced coma. Govan had asked her fans and followers to pray for her son. Fortunately, he was released after a week in the hospital. Arenas didn't suffer any major injury.

At Chatsworth High School (California), Alijha Chatsworth was arguably the best player in the country. He scored over 3000 points playing three years with Chatsworth. He had reclassified into 2025 and received offers from multiple schools.

USC coach Eric Musselman responds to Alijah Arenas' injury

Alijha Arenas' dream debut for USC was shattered, but certainly not over. The former NBA player's son is too talented to sit tight on his potential. After Arenas' devastating injury, USC coach Eric Musselman released a statement in support of his freshman shooting guard.

"Alijah is a tremendous worker, teammate, competitor and person," he said in the statement. "He is understandably disappointed that he will not be able to take the court to start the season, but his health is our No. 1 priority."

Musselman had previously spoken about Arenas already having a lot of knowledge of offense on paper. Although playing against an opponent is a different story, the USC coach expected him to pick the game early.

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Nandjee Ranjan

Nandjee Ranjan is a journalist covering the NBA and WNBA at Sportskeeda whose passion for basketball dates back to his childhood when he enjoyed playing the sport in school.

Nandjee finds his heart divided between two NBA powerhouses: the LA Lakers and the Golden State Warriors. He idolizes LeBron James and his leadership, while he appreciates the Warriors' dynamic and team-oriented style of play.
Basketball, for Nandjee, isn't just a sport but a holistic approach to fitness and well-being. He's been drawn to team sports, finding fulfillment in the physical engagement basketball offers.

With years of following basketball, Nandjee contextualizes historical events and player performances. He believes in conducting thorough research before writing, only taking information from reliable sources. He doesn’t mind taking more time to write an articles, as long as it is 100% accurate for his readers’ benefit.

During his leisure hours, Nandjee finds relaxation by reading books.

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