Prospect Spotlight: Tayven Aloi (2019)
Cyprus 6-foot-4 wing Tayven Aloi is off to a fast start this season, and the junior is poised to have a big-time winter for the Pirates.
A do-it-all wing, Aloi says staying versatile on defense and getting his teammates involved are things that separate him from his peers.
“My strengths I feel like are that I can contribute in many different ways. I feel like if my shot’s not on then I can get my teammates involved, and I can defend on the perimeter and in the post. I also feel like I’m good at rebounding,” said Aloi.
“I feel like I need to improve my ball-handling, and become a more consistent shooter.”
With still the rest of the season ahead of him at Cyprus, and with it being his third year with the varsity and second year starting, Aloi says it’s his time to be a leader on the team.
“Last year, we had a bunch of seniors and they all graduated. So, coming in as a junior this year, I’m a leader on the team, and I just need to help them win in any way possible,” he said.
“I want to average a double-double in boards and points, and I want to average about five or six assists per night.”
Aloi spends his offseasons playing grassroots ball with Utah Basketball Club, and his coach at UBC is also a coach at Salt Lake Community College. That’s helped to get his recruitment off the ground.
“My UBC coach has talked to me about recruitment and says I’m on their (SLCCC) recruiting board,” said Aloi, Utah’s 47th-ranked 2019.
“I hope I get college offers, I’d love to play at the next level. And it doesn’t really matter between D1/D2, JuCo; I’m just interested in anything right now.”