Alaskan freshman Hep’s talent helps smooth transition to his new lifestyle.
Alaskan freshman’s talent helps smooth transition in lifestyle
AUSTIN — Yes, Kamaka Hepa’s hometown of Barrow, Alaska, spends months cloaked in darkness. No, its inhabitants do not live in igloos.
Hepa doesn’t mind being peppered with questions by curious strangers, even the ridiculous and offensive ones. The northernmost city in the United States, roughly 1,300 miles south of the North Pole, might as well be the surface of Mars to a bunch of Texans who cocoon themselves in winterized clothing once the thermometer dips below 60 degrees.
“Some of the questions are naive,” the Texas freshman forward said, “but I don’t really expect people to understand the lifestyle and culture up there.”
Hepa is gregarious and smiley, a 6-9 anomaly from Alaska who hopes to become the first Iñupiat to play in the NBA. He would be the fourth Alaskan to reach basketball’s biggest stage, joining Trajan Langdon (Anchorage), Carlos Boozer ( Juneau) and Mario Chalmers (Anchorage).
Teammates have taken to calling Hepa the “Alaskan Assassin,” though they might have to tack on a “2.0” considering Langdon earned the moniker during a standout career at Duke.
“Hopefully that catches on for him,” senior guard Kerwin Roach said. “But he’s a great player. He’s catching on.”
Hepa towered over most of Barrow’s population — now formally referred to Utqiaġvik, its traditional Iñupiat name — by the time he reached middle school. It was obvious he’d soon outgrow the state’s out-of-sight, out-of-mind basketball scene.
Standout in Barrow
His parents, both former basketball players, considered moving Hepa to a high school in the Lower 48 so he could gain exposure. But he wasn’t ready to leave.
“I wanted to stay and play in the town I grew up in and play with my friends,” Hepa said. “There’s only one high school there so we weren’t all competing against each other.”
Hepa was unstoppable. He led Barrow to consecutive 3A state titles as a freshman and sophomore and was twice named Gatorade state player of the year. But in all that time, only two coaches, assistants from Gonzaga and Old Dominion, ventured up to catch a glimpse of Barrow’s hidden gem.
It was time to go. Hepa moved with his father, Roland, to Portland, Ore. His mother, Taquilik, remained in Barrow to live and work. He joined Portland BC of Nike’s Elite Youth Basketball League and enrolled at Jefferson High School.
When not playing basketball in Barrow, which nearly everyone does, Hepa would spend his days subsistence hunting with family, taking down caribou with a .22250 Remington rifle and spraying geese with 12-gauge shells. If weather permitted, he’d wade into the breath-stealing waters of the Arctic Ocean.
In Portland, he’d have to explore new non-basketball hobbies some 2,100 miles southeast of home while adjusting to the elevated competition he’d face on the court.
“It was a big culture shock,” Hepa said.
The move helped Hepa adjust and adapt to life in a city. It was a two-year test for how he might handle life on a major-college campus. He passed.
Hepa led Jefferson to the 6A state championship as a junior and earned Gatorade state player of the year honors in Oregon following his senior season. He averaged 12.8 points, six rebounds, 1.6 blocks and hit 42 percent of his 3s for Portland BC. Recruiting website 247Sports ranked him the state’s top prospect and the No. 11 power forward among class of 2018 recruits.
He committed to UT over a slew of other suitors led by West Coast Conference power Gonzaga.
“The biggest thing for me was definitely the relationship I had with the coaches,” Hepa said. “Coach (Shaka) Smart, coach (Darrin) Horn and the rest of the staff did a really great job of building a strong relationship with me and my family. And when I came down on my visit just being able to hang out with the guys on this team and be around them and experience the environment here was really great. I thought I could fit in really well here.”
The oppressive Texas heat began boiling Hepa as soon as he touched down in Austin this June following a gold-medal run with Team USA (coached by Kansas’ Bill Self ) at the FIBA Americas U18 Championship in Canada. Sweat beads started trickling from his brow, and all he could think was “I need to take off all my clothes.”
Hepa shed his sweater and turned his hat into a makeshift fan.
Earning playing time
His mom made the trip to Austin to see him hit a couple of 3pointers in the Longhorns’ season-opening win over Eastern Illinois. She was also present for the Las Vegas Invitational, though Hepa played sparingly in a win over No. 7 North Carolina and loss to No. 11 Michigan State.
This past Sunday, Hepa played a season-high 23 minutes and was part of Smart’s closing lineup in a 72-68 win over Purdue. Smart lauded the freshman’s play afterward, though he wants the smooth-shooting Hepa to shed some of his unselfish tendencies and shoot more. Asked whether he’s better with a basketball or a hunting rifle, Hepa paused.
“I’m a pretty good shot,” he said. “I would say I’m probably a better shooter as a hunter.”
But he’s not so bad with a ball.