Levi Molitowsky's long, winding recruiting road has led him back to Winnipeg.
Molitowsky, a 6-foot-5 guard/forward out of Toronto's Royal Crown School, has committed to Wesmen men's basketball head coach Mike Raimbault in the 2025 recruiting class.
Molitowsky is a Manitoban who took his basketball skills on the road at a young age, moving to Rothesay Netherwood School in Rothesay, N.B., in Grade 9 to play prep.
Moving out at 14 years old is a move not for the shy, but Molitowsky has no regrets about his decision.
"That helped me build a lot of character and showed me what the real work is," he said.
"I knew I wasn't going to be the best player out there because of my age, but I knew I was going to work harder than everyone. I wanted to prove that I had the potential and I wanted to go … outside my comfort zone."
As the youngest on the RNS team that season, he "older, bigger, faster, stronger guys every day that got me a lot better."
After two years at RNS, Molitowsky was recruited to Royal Crown which, this past season, was one of the top programs in the Ontario prep league.
His Grade 11 year at Royal Crown was derailed by knee surgery, but Molitowsky said he came back stronger in his senior season.
"Through all my years, I think it's prepared me to play at the university level, and I'm super excited to get started and make an impact very quickly," he said.
Molitowsky's link-up with Raimbault started in the Summer of 2024 when he was invited to informal runs and workouts with the team at the Duckworth Centre.
"The more I worked out with him and I got a sense of what his values are, it started attracting me more to the program and I saw what the culture at U of W is."
Raimbault is happy to bring in a bigger guard who can defend multiple positions and has the offensive game to spread the floor.
"We're super excited to have Levi joining our group," Raimbault said. "He's a great student, is of high character, and he's a great shooter. We are happy he has decided to come back home and join the Wesmen."
Molitowsky said he had the option of another post-grad prep year but, in the end, he didn't want to pass up the chance to play for Winnipeg.
"At the beginning of the year, I wasn't fully sure (what was next)," he said. "There were coaches who messaged me, but ultimately, Coach Raimbault stood out the most. His culture and communication and his love for the game really drew me towards University of Winnipeg."
Molitowksy joins an already impressive Wesmen recruiting class that includes Jayden Westerlund, Paul Ogweno, Noah Macalalad and Connor Grandbois.