Completed Event: Men's Basketball at UNLV on February 7, 2026 , Loss , 78, to, 80
M Basketball
at UNLV
L 78-80
Grand Canyon University Athletics
Insider: Lighter Lever looks limber
10/1/2019 11:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball, Paul Coro, Lopes Insider Blog
GCU junior center dropped 20 pounds in offseason
Alessandro Lever always has grinned for his Grand Canyon head shots, from the GCU Arena bench and off the GCU Basketball Practice Facility court.
Now, the junior center can keep a smile through conditioning and scrimmaging because the rest of his body is handling court work with more ease. Lever changed his eating habits after last season and dropped at least 20 pounds before practices began last week.
Now at 6-foot-10 and 225 pounds, Lever's body and movement look different as the team prepares for its GCU Arena debut on Oct. 30.
"I definitely feel a difference," Lever said. "I feel like I can run faster, jump higher, move quicker. I feel way better."
Lever already was a high achiever for GCU, earning WAC Freshman of the Year and All-WAC first-team honors in 2017-18 and following it up with nearly identical statistics in 2018-19 (12.5 points and 4.3 rebounds per game). The same discipline that he used to come from Italy with no English and impact a pair of 20-win Lopes seasons is what helped him transform his body this summer.
"Alé has been unbelievable," GCU head coach Dan Majerle said. "He's had a great offseason, so I'm expecting him to have a really good year."
GCU director of sports performance Gabe Bourland said Lever did not need to lose weight, but he prompted Lever to see what improved nutrition could do for him.
"After being here for a while and learning how to eat in the States, he learned a lot and was able to apply it," Bourland said. "It went really, really well quickly. He found out that managing it was more of a simple thing to do than he initially thought it would be. It was all him and it's worked out really well so far. It's been a drastic change, with appearance especially."
Lopes junior J.J. Rhymes also used his redshirt year to greatly improve his body composition, and newcomer Gabe McGlothan, who will redshirt this season, already added 10 pounds of strength to his dynamic 6 -7 frame in the Lopes Performance Center this summer.
Lever made his change by learning how to cook so that he could avoid fast-food temptations.
"I quit eating the stuff my body didn't need," Lever said. "I'm trying to keep to more lean food. I cut out burgers, McDonald's, Chick-fil-A and those places that don't help me as a basketball player. It was a lot of diet and a little bit of a workout."
Lever's weight loss should not have an adverse effect, given his tall frame and still-increasing strength. Its intention is to make him a more efficient player offensively and defensively, especially as Majerle expects new players to help GCU play at a faster tempo this season.
"Since we've started back up, it's been showing that Alé is much more active," Bourland said. "He looks more explosive. He moves around a lot more efficiently and seems to be a lot more comfortable with himself at the weight he's at. It has shown to be beneficial to him so far."
Follow Paul Coro on Twitter: @paulcoro.
Now, the junior center can keep a smile through conditioning and scrimmaging because the rest of his body is handling court work with more ease. Lever changed his eating habits after last season and dropped at least 20 pounds before practices began last week.
Now at 6-foot-10 and 225 pounds, Lever's body and movement look different as the team prepares for its GCU Arena debut on Oct. 30.
"I definitely feel a difference," Lever said. "I feel like I can run faster, jump higher, move quicker. I feel way better."
Lever already was a high achiever for GCU, earning WAC Freshman of the Year and All-WAC first-team honors in 2017-18 and following it up with nearly identical statistics in 2018-19 (12.5 points and 4.3 rebounds per game). The same discipline that he used to come from Italy with no English and impact a pair of 20-win Lopes seasons is what helped him transform his body this summer.
"Alé has been unbelievable," GCU head coach Dan Majerle said. "He's had a great offseason, so I'm expecting him to have a really good year."
GCU director of sports performance Gabe Bourland said Lever did not need to lose weight, but he prompted Lever to see what improved nutrition could do for him.
"After being here for a while and learning how to eat in the States, he learned a lot and was able to apply it," Bourland said. "It went really, really well quickly. He found out that managing it was more of a simple thing to do than he initially thought it would be. It was all him and it's worked out really well so far. It's been a drastic change, with appearance especially."
Lopes junior J.J. Rhymes also used his redshirt year to greatly improve his body composition, and newcomer Gabe McGlothan, who will redshirt this season, already added 10 pounds of strength to his dynamic 6 -7 frame in the Lopes Performance Center this summer.
Lever made his change by learning how to cook so that he could avoid fast-food temptations.
"I quit eating the stuff my body didn't need," Lever said. "I'm trying to keep to more lean food. I cut out burgers, McDonald's, Chick-fil-A and those places that don't help me as a basketball player. It was a lot of diet and a little bit of a workout."
Lever's weight loss should not have an adverse effect, given his tall frame and still-increasing strength. Its intention is to make him a more efficient player offensively and defensively, especially as Majerle expects new players to help GCU play at a faster tempo this season.
"Since we've started back up, it's been showing that Alé is much more active," Bourland said. "He looks more explosive. He moves around a lot more efficiently and seems to be a lot more comfortable with himself at the weight he's at. It has shown to be beneficial to him so far."
Follow Paul Coro on Twitter: @paulcoro.
Players Mentioned
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