Esai Easley, who played his freshman year at Makua Lani, was picked in the first round by Sporting Kansas City in the Major League Soccer SuperDraft on Tuesday, the 22nd overall selection.
“I’m super excited. I met the Kansas City owner once or twice. They’ve always been one of the top teams in MLS,” Easley said from his home in Kailua-Kona. “I talked to a couple of other teams, but not Kansas City. They showed interest but kept it low key.”
After his freshman season, Easley moved to Seattle for a year, then to California before playing college ball at Grand Canyon, where he was an All-Far West Region second-team pick as a defender and the Western Athletic Conference defensive player of the year.
The first Big Islander selected in the MLS draft, he already graduated with a degree in economics and finances and leaves for Kansas City today. Then it’s out to Arizona for preseason games. He’ll sign his contract there.
The MLS season runs from April through November. The Sporting KC club is currently third in the Western Conference.
Meanwhile, San Diego State and Kealakehe graduate midfielder Laukoa Santos wasn’t selected in the three rounds of the MLS SuperDraft, which saw 78 players taken.
“It’s a surprise for sure. My agent was also surprised. Houston (Dynamo) has already reached out me,” Santos said. “The next couple of days will be a huge indicator of what will happen. Obviously, I’m a free agent.
“Talk about an emotional roller-coaster. I don’t know what happened. I was projected to go in the late first round or early second and fell out.”
It’s another mark of motivation for Santos, the BIIF’s first three-time player of the year as a Waverider.
“I was projected to go late in the first round or early in the second round and fell out,” he said. “Nothing in my life has come easy. This adds fuel to the tank. You can take it one of two ways: Be sad and pout for a week, month or years, or take action and work that much harder. I still believe in myself 100 percent and the people who support me.”
Easley was named after actor Esai Morales because his mother Felicia liked the name. He’s the fourth of five siblings of Taylor and Felicia Easley: Alaia (31 years old), Ethan (26), Sina (23), Esai, and Isaiah (18), who’s currently in Spain but will soon head to college.
“It’s so tough. Laukoa is one of my best friends,” Easley said. “I grew up with him. It’s shock and surprise. He’ll find a team. It’s a different pathway, but it’ll be a little different route.”
Easley also expressed his gratitude to the Big Island.
“I’m thankful to everyone, especially on the Big Island,” he said. “It means so much. There has been a lot of people in my life since I lived there since I was 14 years old. My family still has their lives there.”