A week before his senior season began, in a span of back-to-back days, Alex Wilkins’ world caved in on him.
On Nov. 27, the Brooks star broke his wrist, forcing him out indefinitely. A day later, on Thanksgiving, Wilkins tragically lost his grandfather, who was a pivotal figure in his basketball journey. Wilkins suddenly faced overwhelming adversity, but he never cratered.
Wilkins ultimately missed the first month of the season with his wrist injury, and when he returned, he used the memory of his grandfather to push him to the mountaintop. He remembered the talks with his grandfather, the phone conversations about scoring 1,000 career points, going to college and winning a Class B championship. He did it all. Wilkins – our first Class B Player of the Year – overcame one of the hardest periods of his life to honor his family as a champion.
“I’m definitely blessed. We talk a lot about going through adversity, so just being able to fight adversity, being resilient,” Wilkins said. “There’s always a light at the end of the tunnel, so being able to get through a tough time and get some sunshine at the end was really a blessing. …
“Just being able to accomplish the things that we talked about in our last couple conversations was definitely something that helped me a lot and get through the season. … Really just sticking to being a man of my word, doing everything I said I was going to get done for him. Just being able to finish what we talked about, and continue to make my family proud.”
