Husky Basketball Offers Son of New York City Playground Legend

Originally posted on Washington Huskies on SI
By Dan Raley | Last updated Jun 16, 2025 3:39 PM ET

He is the son of Rafer “Skip 2 my Lou” Alston, who made the jump from legendary New York City playground creation to NBA player.

Reese Alston similarly has his own catchy nickname -- Lil Skip -- and his own flashy court moves yet he's taking a more conventional route to making his basketball opportunity happen.

The younger Alston, a 6-foot-2 point guard and a 2027 recruit from Houston's Second Baptist High School, has received a flurry of recent offers from Florida, Purdue, Texas and Washington, and before that had heard from Kelvin Sampson's hometown Houston staff and others.

The Huskies, with Quincy Pondexter serving as the point man, extended a scholarship proposal to Alston on Sunday at the peak of the national camp season, with players coming off the NBPA Top 100 Camp in Rock Hill, S.C.,

I am truly blessed and honored to say I have received an offer from the University of Washington @UW_MBB . Thank you Coach Pondexter for giving me this opportunity. #offered pic.twitter.com/ODGgCDgYB3
— Reese (lilskip) Alston (@lilskip08) June 15, 2025

Alston is a fairly advanced player who as a sophomore at Second Baptist averaged 21.2 points, 5.2 assists, 4.3 rebounds and 2.4 steals per contest. He shot 57 percent from the floor, 42 percent from behind the 3-point line.

Scouts say he has the ability to aggressively push the ball up court and distribute it around in a disciplined manner. One analyst also said he has a "mean hop step."

“Lil Skip” Reese Alston at Pangos All American Camp “Cream of the Crop” Top 30 Game @pangosaacamp pic.twitter.com/VWyHsI4Mcc
— Home Team Hoops (@HomeTeamHoops) June 5, 2025

Alston's father Rafer, 48, emerged in the Jamaica neighborhood of Queens and quickly developed a reputation for uncanny playground basketball moves that involved an abrupt crossover, fast dribble and trademark skipping dribble, hence his nickname.

This eventually led to him making his way through the junior-college ranks and then to Fresno State, where Alston played for Jerry Tarkanian.

He was an NBA player in 1999-2010 for the Milwaukee Bucks, Toronto Raptors, Miami Heat, New York Nets, Houston Rockets and Orlando Magic.

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This article first appeared on Washington Huskies on SI and was syndicated with permission.

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