DV senior and mens varsity basketball player Jalen Stokes won the winter 2024-2025 title for the North Coast Section Mens Co-Basketball Player of the Year. The winners were interviewed during the week of March 3 in the NBC Sports Studio at Levi Stadium for a video segment that will air on March 16, as per executive producer of 49ers Cal-Hi Sports Robert Braunstein’s press release.
Stokes’s coach, Mike Hansen, believes that Stokes is beyond deserving of the title.
“He was the best high school basketball player in Northern California and beyond,” Hansen said.
Stokes himself couldn’t believe that he won the title, explaining that he never expected it.
“It’s very exciting for me, and I’m just so happy I was able to win it,” Stokes said.
Some of his highlights from this past basketball season as a shooting guard include winning the NCS championship. Dougherty won 69-37 against Redwood High School, who came into the game with a record of 17-12, and received their fourth victory.
“It was just a big moment for everybody around me and all my supporters,” Stokes shared.
Stokes, no. 2 and a power forward, is a four-year varsity starter. One recent game was a home match against De La Salle in EBAL that DV won on Jan. 17, 2025 with a score of 59-48. Furthermore, back in 2024, Stokes played against LeBron James’s son, Bryce James, during DV’s game against Sierra Canyon High School on Dec. 28. Additionally, as part of the Pro West Exposure Camp that consists of the best players in Northern California, he has been named “Top 20 All-Star Game Most Outstanding Player” by national scout Frank Burlinson.
“Jalen was a key part in our run to a third consecutive NCS championship,” Hansen said.
DV Athletic Director SueEllen Thomas has also expressed praise towards Stokes, as she congratulated him on the award, and talked about his work ethic.
“This recognition is a testament to his hard work, dedication and exceptional skill on the court,” Thomas said.
Now, as a current Class of 2025 senior at DV, Stokes recently committed to UC Davis and was one of the first new students to be announced to the public as part of the new Aggies’ athletic class of 2029.
As a future college athlete, Stokes listed things he was looking forward to in the future.
“Obviously playing college basketball, but also just meeting all my new teammates and actually going on the court and practicing and playing with them,” Stokes explained.
Senior Tyler Robbins, one of Stokes’s teammates, remarked on Stokes’s growth over the past season, and also highlighted his leadership skills and technique.
“Jalen took over that daddy role on and off the court for us, as he continues to show dominance and never show mercy,” Robbins said. “It didn’t matter who you were on the other team, he was going to hit you everywhere, from the front to the back.”
As they all contemplate high school graduation and beyond, Robbins also joked about the impact that Stokes had on him and his teammates over the duration of time they have known each other.
“He will be missed by many when he’s gone, as his earthly soul will run through these halls forever like the other greats,” Robbins quipped.
