Only in Hawaii: Coaches give surf lessons to new Warriors
Dillon Biggs and Gerry Blakes have a long list of goals they’d like to achieve on the court together as members of the Hawaii basketball team, such as winning conference championships and playing in the NCAA Tournament.
They also have some things they’d like to do off the court, and they can now cross surfing off the to-do list.
Biggs and Blakes got in a memorable surf session on their first day in Hawaii on Saturday. They are in Honolulu this weekend on their official “recruiting” visit, even though both players have already signed letters intent to play for the Warriors next season. Due to school commitments, they were never able to schedule a trip to Hawaii until now.
“Certain places you go, you can just feel the good atmosphere, you can feel the good vibes,” Blakes said. “And you can definitely feel it when you come here to Hawaii.”
One thing that is certainly unique about Hawaii is receiving a surfing lesson from your future coaches. Hawaii head coach Gib Arnold and assistant coach Brandyn Akana both surf in their spare time, so they provided the guidance and instructions for Biggs and Blakes.
“Well, I don’t think we have to worry about either of them getting a surfing scholarship any time soon,” Arnold said with a laugh.
As expected for first-time surfers, Biggs and Blakes spent more time falling into the ocean than riding the waves, but both said it was a priceless experience.
“It was a good experience, definitely,” Blakes said. “Now I can say I came surfing here in Hawaii.”
Biggs said: “It’s kind of soothing, but it’s tiring because you have to paddle. It’s a lot of work; it ain’t easy.”
The players were next looking forward to sleeping in their Waikiki hotel room – to recover from the surf session and wake up to the view in the morning.
“All I know is I can look out the window and see the beach right there,” Blakes said. “Can’t beat that.”
Biggs and Blakes are both high school seniors in the Los Angeles area – Biggs at Dorsey High and Blakes at Morningside. They have already formed a friendship after learning that they were both going to play at Hawaii as freshmen next season.
Biggs is a 6-foot-7 small forward and Blakes is a 6-4 combo guard. Both players said they plan to return to Hawaii in July to start summer classes.
Good coverage on Biggs and Blakes. From LA to Waikiki Beach…….pretty good. Things are looking up.:)
well, they haven’t fudged on their heights. blakes appears to be a future leader. looking forward to seeing these two fine young men develope over the years.
good job, dayton. next group you ought to grab your board and join them. seems like two very nice kids, and we’ve seen what they can do out of the water.
Dayton, thanks for going out and shooting this. These two guys seem like good kids. Hope they’re having a good time tonight as well.
Now, if we can just get either Shaquille or Darnell or even both would make for some kind of outstanding recruiting class. But, so far, things are definitely looking up!
These two will be stars!!
Prerequisite to have a UH basketball scholarship. They must learn to surf!!!!!! Did Bobby Miles, Trevor Wisemen, and the other guys from last year recruiting class go surfing? Gerry and Dillon, good sports! Looks like they had fun.
derek…i don’t think that darnell taylor nor anthony odunsi are being considered.
That’s really all you can ask for!! Teammates bonding off the court will bring them together on the court. Like to hear how much they both enjoy being here!! We have to support these guys lose or win – they will be exciting to watch! Can’t wait for Ohana Madness in October. Thanks Dayton!
Good to see our recruits enjoying themselves in Hawaii.When they return in july to start summer class it’s a good time to bond with their future team mates during off season workout.
nice video!!!! i really think they thought it was more of a workout than fun lol, first time out surfing is always hard…..they probably gonna miss hawaii when they get back home and gotta go to school….too bad we couldn’t see a little basketball unless it’s because it’s against the rules?
Seems likes Gerry Blakes is already embracing the aina and taking it all in… Biggs seems a little soft spoken, but I hope both of these two guys can showcase their talents this coming basketball season and bring some excitment to our Warrior Basketball program. This duo will be playing together for awhile and I’m excited to see where they’ll take this team and how there games are gonna develop. I think these two especially have major upside to their games and haven’t even scratched the surface of what they’re capable of.
This story/video got picked up by ESPN.com.
Hopefully it reaches more potential recruits out there.
Dayton,
Nice feather in your cap… having the story picked up by ESPN is awesome. Congratulations!
i hope espn means a few dollars in your pocketbook.
Haha, I wish a fee was involved — maybe it would be the start of a road trip fund. Unfortunately it doesn’t work that way.
Once stories/videos get posted here, they can be linked by any other site. As long as they send people to this site, I have no problem. It leads to more exposure, not just for WarriorInsider.com, but especially for the UH basketball program.
By the way, CBSsports.com also picked up this story/video.
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