It’s safe to say Gilgeous-Alexander had quite a come-up in high school, but it was deeper than simply eventually earning a spot at the University of Kentucky. This week, he described a lesson he learned in high school, one that came to be a defining characteristic in his life. The power of calm. “I used to be a kid that got mad and threw the ball around the court over a pickup game,” he said. “My coaches taught me the older you get, the less you get away with things like that.” “To be the guy I want to be, I can’t behave like that because it will translate to the rest of my team. That lesson always stuck with me. I still have [that fire], I still feel it. I just understand not to let it show, and it kind of weaponized it for myself. Showing [your emotion] gives your opponent a weapon as well.” -via ESPN / June 5, 2025
