Robbie Avila

Roberto Avila (born September 10, 2003) is an American basketball player. He played college basketball for the Indiana State Sycamores and Saint Louis Billikens.

High school career Avila attended Oak Forest High School in Oak Forest, Illinois. As a junior, Avila averaged 25.5 points and 11.5 rebounds. In his final season as a senior, he averaged 23.9 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.1 assists, 2.1 steals, and two blocks, leading Oak Forest to a 25–8 record and becoming the school's all-time leading scorer.

Recruiting Avila was ranked as the sixth-best player in the state of Illinois and the 54th-best power forward in the country according to 247Sports. He committed to play college basketball at Indiana State University over offers from Appalachian State, Bradley, Loyola Chicago, Richmond, and Southern Illinois. Avila began the next season averaging 16.5 points, 4.2 assists, and 6.6 rebounds through the first ten games of the season, including a 27-point, eight rebound, and eight assist performance against Rice in a 103–88 victory. On January 24, 2024, he was named the conference player of the week after averaging 22 points, 8.5 rebounds and 4.5 assists across a span of two games. Avila scored a career-high 35 points in an 85–67 win over Evansville on February 28, 2024. He finished his sophomore season averaging 17.4 points, 6.6 rebounds, and 4.1 assists per game, helping lead Indiana State to a 32–7 record and an appearance in the NIT final. On April 9, 2024, Avila announced he was entering the transfer portal.

Saint Louis On April 20, 2024, Avila announced his decision to transfer to Saint Louis, following his former Sycamores head coach Josh Schertz.

On November 4, 2024, Avila was helped off the court late in his team's season-opening 85-78 loss to Santa Clara University, due to a right ankle injury. He drove to the rim and jumped to pass the ball but landed awkwardly and twisted his ankle.

Professional career After going undrafted in the 2026 NBA draft, Avila signed an Exhibit 10 contract with the Los Angeles Lakers on June 25, 2026.

Personal life Due to similarities in the playstyles of Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokić, Avila has been nicknamed the "College Jokić". Furthermore, Kentucky Wildcats talk radio host Matt Jones gave Avila the nickname "Cream Abdul-Jabbar". Avila's other nicknames include "Larry Nerd", "Larry Blurred", "Steph Blurry", "Milk Chamberlain", "Kevin Duranch", "Shaquille Oatmeal", "Kevin McPale", "Rob Wave", "Nikola Yogurt", and "Charles Barley". These nicknames were bestowed to Avila by fans, teammates, and users on Twitter, due to Avila being white and wearing protective goggles.

Avila is of Mexican descent through his father.

Career statistics

College