This is scary stuff. Gilbert Arenas is opening up about a terrifying accident involving his teenage son, Alijah Arenas, who was recently hospitalized after a violent early-morning car crash in Los Angeles. The 18-year-old, a highly ranked basketball phenom and USC commit, drove a Tesla Cybertruck when things went dangerously wrong.
ICYMI, the crash occurred just before 5 a.m. on April 24, when Alijah lost control of the vehicle and collided with a tree and a fire hydrant. ESPN insider Shams Charania first broke the news, tweeting: “Five-star prospect and USC commit Alijah Arenas was involved in a serious car crash early Thursday morning, hospitalized and placed into an induced coma, sources tell ESPN.”
Get this: The former NBA star is offering more insight into what may have caused the wreck—and he’s pointing fingers at Tesla’s latest electric truck.
“The car malfunctioned on him,” Gilbert revealed during an appearance on the All The Smoke podcast. “The steering wheel went limp and ran him right into a tree.”
The ordeal became even more harrowing when Alijah was trapped inside the burning vehicle.
“He couldn’t break the window,” Gilbert explained. “Physically, he said he was trying to kick the window in and couldn’t. If you’re a parent and your teen has this car, you might want to put a hammer in that joint,” he cautioned, referencing emergency escape tools.
Alijah has since been released from the hospital and is on the road to recovery, but his father didn’t miss the opportunity to reflect on the close call.
“I gave him that speech. You’re a lucky one to see this. Most people don’t get to see the flowers and how everyone reacts when something happens… You can’t take this st for granted,”** Gilbert told his son.
Alijah, who committed to USC earlier this year as the No. 1 shooting guard and No. 4 overall player in the class of 2026, was expected to become one of the next breakout stars in college basketball. With his recovery underway, the incident casts a spotlight on both car safety concerns and the fragility of life—something Gilbert made sure his son fully understood.