Four-star Kamaka Hepa thriving in Portland

PORTLAND, Ore. -- After his sophomore season, four-star junior Kamaka Hepa made a move from his home in Barrow, Alaska to Portland and enrolled at Jefferson High. The move looks to be paying off as the 6-foot-9 four man has seen his recruitment and reputation take off.

Thanks in large part to his play in the summer with the Portland Basketball Club and his workouts at Jefferson, Hepa is now ranked No. 32 in the class of 2018. He can shoot with range, he's athletic, he is well rounded and he's settling in nicely at his new home.

"It's been going well," Hepa told Rivals.com. "My first game of the season I was a little nervous just getting my jitters out. But by the second game I knew I had to be aggressive and help my team by being a leader and doing what I can to win games. Now I'm getting that chemistry with my teammates and it's going a lot better.

"I've stepped up my game a lot on the defensive end with blocking shots and my coach is really stressing that because I'm our only rim protector. I'm also working on rebounding. Hopefully this year I can average a double double and my goal is to get at least 13 rebounds a game."

On the recruiting front, things have blown up for Hepa. He's got double digit high major offers and has become a West Coast priority.

"Because of the area I live in a lot of West Coast schools have been showing interest because they know about me and it's been easier for them to come see me," said Hepa. "So it's been mostly schools in the Pac 12, Gonzaga and then schools like Texas and Oklahoma have come out too."

This winter, Hepa has had the opportunity to make it to Oregon and Gonzaga for unofficial visits. He checked in on Oregon when they hosted Alabama.

"It was good," said Hepa. "It was good talking to Coach (Dana) Altman before the game. I enjoyed seeing how they get to prepare for a game and all of that stuff."

Up next was a trip to Spokane to see the Zags.

"That was a lot of fun," said Hepa. "Just being able to see the environment they have. The student section is crazy and the fan support they have is great."

For now, though, Hepa is focusing on his junior season. He's working to return from a recent ankle injury and says that he's not likely to take any official visits until next Fall.

"I know that it's my junior year and it's getting close to my senior year so I'm going to have cut down my list soon. I'm just not sure when I'm going to do it yet. I'll take official visits next fall when I have a more cut down list."