Riviera Prep’s Dante Allen is the Miami-Dade 4A-2A Boys Basketball Player of the Year
There are a couple of things Dante Allen has long known thanks to being the son of an NBA coach and former player.
Study your opponents.
And while it’s good to enjoy success, always be prepared for what’s next.
Allen’s accomplishments this season mirrored those qualities as he improved his game while repeating the same success for Riviera Prep as he led the Bulldogs to back-to-back state championships.
“Going back to the season, the difference this year was that a lot of teams wanted to take us down and be the ones to take down the big dogs,” Allen said. “We knew teams were going to give us our best shot and we had to give them our best shot.”
Allen stepped up in the toughest spots to make sure Riviera Prep would not be dethroned after only one season as state champion.
He averaged 21 points, 7.8 rebounds, 3.4 steals and 3 assists per game.
As such, Allen is the Miami Herald’s Class 4A-2A Boys Basketball Player of the Year for the second consecutive season.
Allen, the son of Miami Heat assistant coach and former player Malik Allen, remains one of the top prospects in the Class 2025 with 11 offers. Allen said he’ll likely decide on a college before the 2025 year begins, but will see how things go after the AAU season.
Allen said training with his father and learning what to look for when scouting his opponents has helped him continue to evolve his game.
Allen’s ability to impact the game at both ends of the floor proved crucial in several tough games for the Bulldogs this season including a decisive regional final win over Fort Lauderdale Westminster Academy to clinch a return trip to Lakeland.
Allen said after the state championship-clinching win over Windermere Prep that such preparation began as soon as the Bulldogs won their first state title a year earlier.
“It started right when that buzzer sounded last year,” Allen said. “We knew what our goal was, we knew we wanted to get back here. It took a lot of early mornings and late nights that people didn’t see, but they are going to see it now. That’s why when that buzzer hit, it’s a very emotional time.”
