It felt good to be home.
Williamsburg native Jose Alvarado wrapped up his high-school hoops career April 14, competing in the Jordan Brand Regional Classic at Barclays Center and for the Christ the King star, the chance to play one last time in Brooklyn was something he’ll always cherish.
“It was a great opportunity just to be in this game and play in a game like this,” Alvarado said. “It was fun. I can’t believe high school is over now, but it was a great event. If I could do it all over again, I’d definitely do it.”
Alvarado – who will head to Georgia Tech next season – notched one of the most dominant on-court performances in the city this winter, but the chance to play with some his friends was one of the highlights. He’s close to St. Raymond’s star Isaiah Washington and Bishop Loughlin standout Keith Williams and all three competed on the same team at Barclays.
“That’s the thing about basketball, you get great friendships on and off the court,” Alvarado said. “So we play each other a lot and we talk to each other all the time off the court. This was just a great opportunity to play with those guys as teammates.”
It was an All-Star game and Alvarado was happy to be on the court, but that didn’t mean he gave up his competitive tendencies. In fact, as soon as he got off the court, Alvarado grabbed the stat sheet and couldn’t stop himself from being just a bit disappointed in the numbers he put up.
Alvarado racked up eight points, nine assists, three rebounds and two steals – but he couldn’t quite top Washington.
“Me and Isaiah, we said we wanted to get a double-double with the assists. He got it and I didn’t, but that’s what we were really trying to focus on,” Alvarado said. “We knew we had great scorers on our team, so we wanted to kind of dish it out. I wanted to get more than 10, but it still went well.”
Alvarado made a name for himself in Queens, but he’s always considered Brooklyn home and it only made sense that his high school career wrapped up at Barclays in front of his friends and family.
It’s a theme that he focused on all season long, determined to make his entire family proud every time he stepped onto the court.
“I started the season off losing my grandmother and she was my everything,” Alvarado said. “I know she was here with me today. Right now it’s all about family with me.”
Alvarado will leave Brooklyn once again this summer – ready to take his talents to Atlanta – but he knows this one afternoon spent at Barclays will be enough to help spark his determination moving forward. After all, he’s a Brooklyn kid at heart.
“I had my little brother here, my mom and dad, today, I’m hoping my grandmother was watching down on me,” Alvarado said. “I’m going to be in Atlanta a lot soon, trying to focus on my goal and they understand that. But everybody was here and cheering and I really appreciated that.”
