As Sonoma State athletics faces termination, a former Seawolf spoke out to show his support for his former school.
Although many have voiced concerns about the recent budget cuts that have affected Sonoma State, no voice has made more headlines than rising NBA star Jaylen Wells. The Memphis Grizzlies forward roared his support for his former school on X by posting the hashtag #SaveSeawolfAthletics on his account this past Saturday.
Along with him, NBA star Ja Morant voiced his support for Jaylen Wells’ fight to save SSU sports. The Grizzlies superstar responded on X with “Talk to me” after seeing the hashtag posted by his rookie teammate.
This comes after the school has decided to cut all athletics programs among others to address the $23.9 million plus deficit that has been plaguing Sonoma State for the past few years.
Wells played for Sonoma State’s basketball team in the 2021 and 2022 seasons, while playing in every game for the Seawolves during that time. He came within four points of breaking the single season scoring record and averaged 22 points per game over his tenure.
His performance propelled him to win the CCAA player of the year award in his last season at Sonoma State and helped them reach their first appearance in the CCAA tournament since 2017.
After his success at SSU, he transferred to Washington State where he played in 34 of 35 games and started 20 of them. The forward averaged about 12.6 points and 4.6 rebounds per game during his time as a Cougar. Wells was drafted to the Memphis Grizzlies in the second round of the 2024 NBA Draft and made history by being the first Sonoma State athlete drafted by the NBA.
The Sacramento native’s outstanding rookie campaign has brought up Rookie of the Year conversations and he will make his homecoming in the NBA’s Rising Star game during All-Star Weekend in Golden State. The forward now uses his professional platform to support his alma mater on various different media outlets, both local and across the country.
“SSU meant a lot to me because it was a big part of my development as a player, leader and person. I’m very thankful for my years at SSU,” Wells told The Star.
He also expressed his sorrow for the over 200 student- athletes who are now scrambling to figure out where to go from here.
Wells ended his statement by showing his love and support for all of the Seawolves who have been affected by the recent events, “I’m not sure what I can do to help as of right now, but I’ve been trying my best to stay up to date and learning what’s going on and doing whatever I can to bring awareness to this issue.”
SSU’s most successful athlete since Larry Allen now joins the hundreds of people beginning to take steps to reverse this decision. Jaylen Wells’ support gives hope to the student-athletes who don’t want to be forced out of the school they chose to play for.
Some students and staff alike also bring up the argument that since Sonoma State has just recently had an alumni make it to a professional sports league, this would have attracted more possible student-athletes to attend in the future.
Many are still unsure if this will be the end of the budget cuts that SSU implements or if there are more on the way. One thing is for certain, Sonoma State students and alumni alike have shown support for each other and are willing to do what it takes to make sure the community around them is able to succeed in these unpredictable times.
People are taking to social media to show their support for Sonoma State athletics by using the hashtag #SaveSeawolfAthletics. The hashtag has been gaining popularity on X ever since the news came out
