Kenyon Aguino is “the ultimate teammate.”
In his junior season, he averaged 22 points per game and 11 rebounds. But according to Volcano Vista Coach Greg Brown, those numbers could have been much higher.
“He’s sacrificed some personal stats for the good of the team,” said Volcano Vista coach Greg Brown, pointing to his four assists per game.
Kenyon Aguino, an Ohkay Owingeh native and tribe member, won the Gatorade New Mexico Boys Basketball Player of the Year after leading Volcano Vista to a third- consecutive state title. He is the first male player to win the award in back-to-back years since Aaron Castillo in 2006-07. He also won the MaxPreps state player of the year.
“Sometimes those individual awards and accolades don’t represent a great player like Kenyon,” Brown said. “Kenyon could have had even better stats. We’re happy that Gatorade and MaxPreps did give him this honor, because he definitely deserves it. It’s really cool when a team-first player like Kenyon gets recognized.”
Before each game, as lineups are announced, four other starters have their own introductions. Then, the entire team huddles around Aguino before slowly revealing the 6-foot-7 forward to the crowd.
Aguino said that the introduction was used since his freshman year, and last year was used for star Sean Alter. The subtext, though, is clear. Aguino’s teammates have utmost respect for him both as a person and as a player. And they know what kind of weapon they have to unleash on opponents.
On the court, his selflessness is clear. While his talent is obvious, his focus on everything else stands out. Aguino seems just as comfortable setting a screen or dishing an assist as he does attacking the rim or taking a jump shot.
“Kenyon’s selflessness stems from his unwavering commitment to team success,” Riis Gonzales, Aguino’s youth AAU coach, wrote in an email. “Since our early days together, Kenyon has remained true to these values. Our emphasis on personal growth, enjoyment of the game, and giving one’s best in the moment, reaching our individual and collective potential laid the foundation for his enduring selflessness.”
And his skills are many. Aguino can dominate the glass, get to the rim, or take an outside shot. He often takes the ball up the court for the Hawks and sets up plays. Or he plays off the ball and lets other players take the lead. Gonzales wrote that Aguino steps up during the crucial moments in a way that “is truly remarkable.”
“He trusted the system and his teammates, and got the ball where it needed to be,” Brown said. “He puts winning first.”
That all has led to him drawing Division I interest, including from New Mexico State University. Playing in college has always been Aguino’s dream, he said. He wants to follow examples of other New Mexicans that have had success at the highest level.
Tribal Identity
Through all of his success, Aguino still maintains strong tribal roots. He participates in tribal events and dances. He loves to act as a role model to younger children, giving back to his community.
“Most of my supporters come from up north,” Aguino said. “Everybody from Ohkay Owingeh, Española, Alcalde, all the up north places come here. It’s really cool to see. It’s really good to have all the support, all those people having my back. It’s a great feeling.”
He said that his grandparents still run Clyde’s RV store in Española, and people will often stop in to talk about him and congratulate them.
Aguino grew up in Ohkay Owingeh, attending San Juan Elementary. But he spent a lot of time in his youth in Albuquerque, especially for his club basketball teams.
During that time, he was always the tallest on the team. A 2017 photo in the Rio Grande SUN shows him towering over his elementary-school teammates, multiple of whom are now players for Española Valley.
Aguino still feels the influence of Northern New Mexico basketball.
He said Albuquerque style is more focused on a college-style, slowed down and offensive sets, compared to Northern New Mexico’s up-tempo quick shooting attacks.
“It gives me both types of styles,” he said. “When you put the run and gun, and then you put it in a system, it really combines both of them, and gives me an edge on either of them.”
In seventh grade, he went to Santa Fe Indian School. And for eighth grade, he moved to Albuquerque, and attended Tony Hillerman middle school, across from Volcano Vista.
Off-the-Court Leadership
Brown said he knew Aguino as he was growing up, with Brown’s children roughly the same age and playing at the same youth tournaments.
Off the court, Brown described Aguino as a “lead by example guy.”
“However, this year he’s been more vocal,” Brown said. “Which has really helped our team. He will be a voice in the huddle. He’ll be a voice in the halftime adjustments.”
Getting big moments early in his career helped Aguino as a player and a leader.
As a freshman, he started in the state championship game and scored 13 points with eight rebounds to defeat undefeated Las Cruces. But since then he has continued to grow.
Brown said that in this year’s state championship game, during halftime he helped the coaching staff make a coaching staff that he spotted on a set play.
That helped the Hawks take over in the second half and win by 13 after trailing at halftime.
“I, as the head coach, would not have figured that out on my own,” Brown said. “Kenyon definitely has a lot of strengths. But his composure, his maturity and his basketball IQ is at the top.”
And through all of this, Aguino has kept up a 4.3 GPA while taking harder classes this year, according to Brown.
Aguino’s focus as a player has always been on winning. And he sure has won a lot.
In three years with the Hawks, his teams are 88-4. He has won the state title every year.