Harvard-Westlake boys basketball coach David Rebibo has been clear about Nik Khamenia since he was a freshman.
“He could be the best player I’ve ever coached,” Rebibo would say, who has two former players in the professional ranks today in Johnny Juzang and Cassius Stanley.
Khamenia has already won two CIF State Open Division titles, and still has one more year of high school to play. He already might be the most decorated player to come through the Harvard-Westlake program.
To add to Khamenia’s basketball prowess – and Rebibo’s claim – the 6-foot-8 senior forward verbally committed to Duke on Tuesday afternoon to play for coach Jon Scheyer.
Khamenia’s final three schools were UCLA, Gonzaga and Duke.
“This has been a journey,” Khamenia said on 247Sports’s live stream. “I haven’t paid attention to the rankings much, just continued to work. I have a great support system.”
“Ultimately, I’m coming (to Duke) to win a national championship,” he added.
The do-it-all forward averaged 14 points, 7.2 rebounds and four assists per game as a junior. One of his best performances last season was at the Spalding Hoophall Classic in Springfield, Mass. when Khamenia led the Wolverines to a 60-59 win over top recruit Ace Bailey and McEachern (GA).
Bailey is now a freshman at Rutgers and expected to be a 2025 NBA Draft lottery pick.
Khamenia’s rise as a national recruit came on late. Regionally, all the coaches and local pundits knew about his talent. But nationally, his rise has been “linear”, according to 247Sports director of basketball scouting Adam Finkelstein said. Khamenia has worked his way to a fringe, 5-star recruit on 247Sports.com.
He’s currently a 4-star prospect, ranked No. 19 nationally and the No. 4 recruit in California. Khamenia’s chances to be Harvard-Westlake’s second straight McDonald’s All-American are very high after Perry was selected for the 2024 game this past April.
Harvard-Westlake, which plays in the Mission League with the likes of Notre Dame/Sherman Oaks and Sierra Canyon, will begin its 2024-25 campaign against Temecula Valley on November 19.
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