At the start of Trevon Brazile’s senior year at Kickapoo high school in Springfield, the idea that he would be playing basketball in college a year later would have seemed improbable. For everyone except Brazile’s AAU coach, Rob Yanders, that is.
Brazile had shot up from 6-foot-3 to about 6-foot-7 in the past year, but he struggled to add weight and coordination to his wiry frame. Add in the fact that the COVID-19 pandemic prevented him from showcasing his ability on the AAU circuit in the spring and summer of 2020, and Brazile only had two scholarship offers when that fall arrived, from Cleveland State and Montana State.
But one September day, Yanders pulled Brazile aside and made a bold prediction: Brazile would be fielding calls from college basketball coaches across the country, and ultimately earn a scholarship to play Division I ball. Eventually, the unknown prospect could become a pro.
“I said, all you have to do is dunk on Patrick Baldwin,” Yanders recalled. “All you have to do is block Patrick Baldwin’s shot.”
As part of the Grassroots Showcase tournament in Indianapolis, Yanders Law matched up with EYBL powerhouse Phenom University and its star forward, five-star prospect Patrick Baldwin Jr. College coaches weren’t allowed to attend the game in person, but Yanders knew virtually every school would have a coach tuned into the live stream to see Baldwin and the other high-profile prospects that comprised the Phenom U roster.
Over the course of the summer, Yanders had watched Brazile quietly blossom into an athletic, versatile wing. This was his chance, Yanders told Brazile, to show everyone else what he was capable of.
No box score exists online from the matchup, but according to Yanders, Brazile finished with something like 21 points and six blocks. He held Baldwin under 10 points. It took only a few hours before Brazile’s phone started blowing up, first with Twitter notifications and then with messages from college coaches.
“It changed drastically,” Brazile said. “Right after the game, I started getting a lot of messages on Twitter, started getting posted by big media things like Ball is Life. And then I started getting contacted by lots of Power Five schools, and then it just went from there.”
His performance against Baldwin ignited Brazile’s meteoric rise from an unknown prospect into a starter at Missouri. He’s barely slowed down since, starting the Tigers’ past seven games despite being sidelined for the first eight matchups of the season and providing a glimmer of optimism in a largely dreary season.
Those who know Brazile believe he’s just scratching the surface of his abilities.
“He’s a special talent,” point guard Boogie Coleman said of Brazile following Missouri’s win at Ole Miss Tuesday. “ … We just want him to get as good as he can, because the better he gets for the team, the better we’ll get. And he knows that and he knows we all believe in him and his ability, and he’s got a high ceiling. He’s nowhere near done.”
Braziel played basketball growing up, mostly at point guard. But during his first three years of high school, playing at the next level wasn’t really on his radar. In his words, “not a lot of skinny 6-3 guys play college basketball.”
Even Brazile’s growth spurt didn’t immediately change that mindset. At first, Yanders said, Brazile was too frail to hold up around the basket, and he “couldn’t walk and chew gum at the same time.” Brazile said his knees always hurt. But slowly, he gained weight and coordination. His leaping ability caught up with his size (he’s now listed at 6-foot-9), and by the time the pandemic shut down basketball at all levels, Brazile could touch the top of the backboard.
Just as challenging as growing into his body was mentally adjusting to his new role. Not only did Brazile have to learn a new position, he was constantly learning what he was capable of. It was like he had to remind himself that he wasn’t the 6-3 guard anymore.
“It’s funny, but at times Trevon doesn’t even see it,” Yanders said. “That’s how innocent he is. You know what I mean? He’s kind of like, ‘oh, I guess I’ll go block his shot.’ It’s like, ‘huh, I have four blocks tonight. You think I can get seven, coach?’ I said, ‘yep.’”
Brazile’s performance against Baldwin marked a watershed moment because it not only showed college coaches across the country what he could do, but affirmed it for himself, as well. True to Yanders’ prediction, shortly after the game, coaches from Kansas, Arkansas, Iowa, Wichita State and others reached out. Missouri coach Cuonzo Martin, who has known Yanders since his days coaching Missouri State, had been monitoring Brazile’s development for a while. Before letting Brazile take calls from any other coaches, Yanders said he called Martin with a simple message: He’s ready.
Missouri offered Brazile a scholarship on Sept. 8, 2020. By that evening, Brazile had committed to the Tigers.
“I always had in the back of my mind that if Mizzou offered I was going to go there, no matter what,” Brazile said. “... I just liked the way they played, the coaching staff. I knew I was going to come here and they were going to push me to be the best that I could be.”
Before he could play his first game, Brazile’s dream of playing for Missouri almost got derailed. Brazile had practiced with the team since arriving on campus in June, but shortly before the season began, he was sidelined with an undisclosed medical condition. While a specific diagnosis has never been shared, Brazile said there was legitimate concern that his basketball career could be over.
“At first I was just thinking it was going to be a one or two week type deal, and then it escalated a little bit and then it really started to sink in that there was a possibility that I really wouldn’t be able to play any more,” he said. “So it was tough.”
On Dec. 7, Martin revealed that Brazile had been cleared by doctors to resume practicing. Five days later, he made his debut against Eastern Illinois.
Martin had praised Brazile for his versatility and athleticism during the preseason, but expectations weren’t particularly high for a player who didn’t list another high-major offer and missed the first month of the season. Brazile’s play immediately stood out. His first field goal attempt, a transition dunk, rattled off the rim and out, but it showed a level of bounce no one else on the Tiger roster possessed. Later in the game, Brazile recorded a block and threw down an alley-oop from Anton Brookshire, his high school teammate.
As Brazile’s minutes expanded, he showed more and more of his athleticism. Brazile served as a bright spot in Missouri’s losses to rivals Kansas and Illinois, scoring 10 points at Allen Fieldhouse and scoring 11 to go along with six blocks against Illinois. On the season, he’s averaging 5.8 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.7 blocks per game.
Brazile’s defense has stood out most. While his early-season absence will likely prevent him from catching Arthur Johnson for most blocks recorded in a season by a Missouri freshman, Brazile is on pace to be the first Tiger freshman to average more than two rejections per game. Martin said Brazile’s ability to protect the rim has brought a new dimension to Missouri’s slowly-improving defense.
“The one thing I said to him, make a play on every ball,” Martin said Tuesday. “Make a play at the rim on every ball. And then what happens, all of a sudden guys are still looking for him. That’s an advantage. Even if he doesn’t block the shot, they’re looking for him.”
While Brazile’s primary contributions so far have been blocks and dunks, the Missouri team is so excited about him because they believe he can do much more. The one-time point guard can still shoot, handle the ball and pass, and he’s shown flashes of that this season. Like most freshman, he has plenty of room for improvement — taking better care of the ball, becoming a better on-ball defender, continuing to gain strength — but you don’t have to squint very hard to envision him as the ideal modern center: a player who can both protect the rim and switch onto anyone on the defensive end, who can score over smaller defenders in the low post or step out to the three-point line and knock down a jumper.
“He continues to grow,” Martin said. “You can see he can make that three-point shot. I think the next step will be continued strength. He’ll be one of those guys that play a physical brand around the rim. Especially when smaller guys switch on him, man, he’s probably a guy that’s almost impossible to guard when he gets that part.”
The most encouraging thing Yanders has seen from Brazile this season wasn’t on the court. The day after he logged career highs in points, rebounds and blocks against Illinois, Brazile returned to Springfield for Christmas. Yanders said Brazile “called me immediately” asking to get into the gym.
That showed Yanders that success has only made Brazile more hungry. Combine that with Brazile’s physical gifts, and Yanders believes his rapid rise from no-name prospect to true freshman starter is only the beginning.
“I just think if you look at a stat sheet, Trevon’s going to be up all around that thing,” Yanders said. “I mean, he brings so much beyond just offense. You’re looking at a guy that can grab 10 rebounds and possibly average five blocks a game and go three-for-four or five-for-six from the field, and he’s a stretch guy. … So when I look at that, I say, man, he’s just a next-level type of guy that has a tremendous upside. I think potentially he’s off the charts.”
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