Prospect Spotlight: Kosy Akametu 2021
The high school basketball regular season in California might be temporarily on hold, but that hasn’t stopped players from continuing to work and improve their games. One of those players is Kosy Akametu, a senior from King/Drew High School. Akametu…
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Continue ReadingThe high school basketball regular season in California might be temporarily on hold, but that hasn’t stopped players from continuing to work and improve their games. One of those players is Kosy Akametu, a senior from King/Drew High School.
Akametu isn’t talked about much in the Southern California high school basketball scene, but when he steps on the court, you’re going to know who he is. He’s been playing with ELEV8’s 17U team at the Hoops 2.0 Showcases for the past couple of months and he’s been one of the top standouts.
He wants to use the showcases as a way to improve his game as well as to make a name for himself and prove that he’s worthy of being mentioned among some of the other top SoCal players in his class.
“I just want to get the exposure I deserve. I see a lot of guys that do a lot of things, I know I can do the same things, or even better,” Akametu told Prep Hoops. “Why do they get to have it and not me? I’m hungry for it.”
Akametu is a solid wing prospect and stands and 6-foot-3. He’s really comfortable with the ball in his hands and creating offense on the perimeter. He has a solid slashing game and he can knife his way to the rim where he finishes strong over the defense.
He’s also got the tools to be a defensive stopper on the wings. He has quick hands and good length that he uses well to contest shots on the perimeter. He’s agile with quick feet and applies strong pressure on the ball-handler.
He’s an unselfish player who looks to make the right pass and find his open teammates. It’s something that he considers to be one of his strengths. While he has a strong off the dribble game, it’s something that he wants to continue to work at.
“I really like to get my teammates involved. If we all get involved, if we all have that same energy, we can beat almost any other team,” Akametu said. “I’m trying to improve my left hand and my dribble pull-up, that’s the main things I need to get. I know if I get that, I’m going to be scary.”
When he hasn’t been playing with ELEV8, Akametu has had to get in work on his own with high school teams currently unable to get workouts in. He and his brother have developed a routine to keep themselves in shape and ready for whenever the season might start back up again.
“I have a park that’s close to my house. Me and my brother go there sometimes and get a little run in,” Akametu said. “We do that and stay fit, we also eat healthy. My mom makes me a good dinner every day. We just find a way to stay fit so that when our opportunity comes, we’re ready.”
And he’s hoping that they will have a season so that he can continue to make a name not only for himself but for the King/Drew Golden Eagles as well. Last season, the team went 25-9 and a perfect 10-0 in Coliseum League play. They beat Taft in the opening round of CIF City Section playoffs but fell to Westchester in the next round.
In CIF State playoffs, they advanced past the first two rounds, knocking off Mater Dei Catholic(Chula Vista) and Hillcrest(Riverside) before narrowly losing to Roosevelt(Eastvale) 66-65 in overtime.
Near the border between South Central and Watts, Akametu knows King/Drew doesn’t get much coverage, but if he’s able to have a senior year, he’s looking to change that.
“Going to King/Drew, there’s not a lot of respect over there, so we’re trying to make a name for ourselves,” Akametu said. “I’m just hoping people can see us and they’re not going to just look at us and say, ‘oh it’s just King/Drew,’ they’re going to have be ready to play.”
And like most high school basketball players, Akametu has a dream of being able to play at the college level. He has heard from Cal Poly but currently doesn’t have any offers.
He isn’t discouraged though. He’s confident that he will get the opportunity to play college basketball at some level and regardless of whether or not he has a senior season, he’s going to do all he can to prepare himself for the next level.
“A lot of people are focused on going to college. What you need to be focused on is what are you going to do when you get there,” Akametu said. “I just want to be prepared, I want to keep working, and when I get there, I just want to be ready.”