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Indianapolis Star
27-04-2025
- Sport
- Indianapolis Star
Braylon Mullins is Mr. Basketball: 'One of those guys who is going to be talked about for a really long time'
Braylon Mullins led Greenfield-Central to a 23-4 record as a senior, averaging 32.9 points, 7.2 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 3.7 steals per game. Mullins broke school records for career points, single-season points and single-game points and was named a McDonald's All American and Gatorade Player of the Year in Indiana. Luke Meredith was the fire to Braylon Mullins ' ice. Before a game or coming out of a timeout during a key moment, the Greenfield-Central basketball coach would offer a few pointed words of advice to the Cougars' star. Mullins would nod and say, 'I got you, coach.' What followed, usually, was a great performance. The 6-6 UConn commit led Greenfield-Central to a 23-4 record as a senior, averaging 32.9 points, 7.2 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 3.7 steals per game. He did it with remarkable efficiency, considering he was at the top of every opponent's scouting report, shooting 47.6% (88-for-185) from the 3-point line. Mullins broke the school record for career points (2,158), single-season points (887) and single-game points (52). He was named a McDonald's All American and Gatorade Player of the Year in Indiana. Add this title to his impressive resume: The 2025 IndyStar Mr. Basketball. Mullins was crowned Mr. Basketball on Sunday night during the Indiana High School Sports Awards show, presented by Indiana Pacers, at Butler's Clowes Hall. Mullins was voted on 182 ballots from the state's coaches and media to outdistance finalists Tre Singleton of Jeffersonville (65 votes), Azavier Robinson of Lawrence North (49 votes) and Dezmon Briscoe of Crispus Attucks (15 votes). There were 344 overall votes with 14 players receiving at least one vote. 'It means the world,' Mullins said. 'There are really not enough words to speak about it. I feel like I did a lot for this community and being able to show that this basketball program is something and having that No. 1 jersey framed on the wall and everything that comes with it is a blessing. It wasn't even a goal of mine when I came into high school. I didn't have that on my mind at all. But once I saw I had a chance I thought, 'Why not go for it?'' The only thing that escaped Mullins was a sectional title. The Cougars were closing in on that goal the night of March 8 at Muncie Fieldhouse. But despite 38 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and four steals from Mullins, Greenfield-Central could not close the door on Mt. Vernon and Luke Ertel in an 83-76 double overtime heartbreaker. As Mt. Vernon celebrated on the floor that night, Mullins sat on the bench in silence. His father, Josh, took a seat next to him for a few minutes before both retreated to the locker room. This was going to be the year Greenfield-Central ended its 27-year sectional title drought. The fact it was not still bothers both Mullins and Meredith, the latter who resigned after the season as coach but will remain on as the strength coach at Greenfield-Central. But in an era when many of the top-100 players in the country have opted for prep schools, Mullins decided to stay home. That experience, sectional title or not, was one Mullins said he would never trade. 'I felt like my best opportunity was staying home and playing for my community and my school and all my friends I've been playing with for a while,' Mullins said. 'It's something that I took advantage of and I'm happy I got to play my senior year in Greenfield in front of all these fans. Seeing my jersey on that wall 50 years from now is going to mean even more than it does right now.' It was not obvious, to Mullins or others, that he would be a Mr. Basketball candidate after his sophomore season at Greenfield-Central. He averaged 16.9 points and shot 47% from the 3-point line for a team that went 21-2 and lost to Anderson in the sectional. 'Braylon has always been special,' Meredith said. 'But this was not easy. There were a lot of growing pains, especially his freshman and sophomore year to become the player he was going to become. He's self-made. It wasn't something where it was just meant to be. This was something that was hard fought with a lot of blood, sweat and tears and a lot of hard work along the way that has made him who he is.' Mullins then injured his back at the most inopportune time late in his junior year. He tried to give it a go against New Palestine in the sectional, but that season also ended with a loss in the sectional championship game, completing the Cougars season at 24-1. But that junior season offered a glimpse of Mullins' potential. He still shot 3-pointers at a high rate (43%) but did more damage inside the arc on his way to averaging 25.0 points, 6.2 rebounds, 3.2 steals and 3.2 assists. After his back healed, Mullins' recruitment exploded in the spring. During an Adidas 3SSB event in Bryan, Texas, North Carolina coached Hubert Davis watched Mullins shoot 6-fo-6 from the 3-point line and score 25 points. On Monday after the event, Davis called to offer Mullins a scholarship. That was just the start. Purdue, Kansas, Missouri, Stanford, Creighton, Michigan State, Alabama, UConn and Virginia offered in the next week. Those were on top of a list that already included Butler, Cincinnati, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Notre Dame and Virginia Tech. When Mullins returned to play with his high school team in June, he looked the part of a five-star recruit. 'He was already really good as a junior,' said senior teammate and point guard Boston Willard. 'But it was just another level of confidence going into his senior year. Once he started picking up all these offers, he just started going up to a different level. He was more confident and more athletic. He got better as time progressed. You would see him do something and be like, 'How did he do that?' It wasn't normal. Any time you needed something, needed a bucket, he was going to get it for you anytime he wanted.' When the dust settled on his recruitment, Mullins narrowed it down to Indiana, North Carolina and UConn. His choice, coach Danny Hurley's UConn program, was not the most popular decision in Indiana. The Hoosiers made a coaching change after the season, going from Mike Woodson to Darian DeVries. Who knows how Mullins' recruitment might have worked out under different circumstances. But that is just water cooler talk at this point. 'I wanted to do something that challenges myself and I felt like this was the best opportunity to do that,' Mullins said. 'That's why I picked UConn. I wanted that challenge, and I want to prove everybody wrong. I know it's going to be tough. I'm going to be 13, 14 hours from home. But I knew that when I picked UConn. I'm excited for it now that it's almost here. They are going to push me to be my best and I'm willing to work for that.' Mullins, the first Mr. Basketball from Greenfield-Central, will play in the games during Indiana All-Stars week (the games vs. Kentucky are June 6 and 7) before leaving immediately to start his journey at UConn. 'He cares about what other people think but for him to make that decision and do what is best for him, regardless of what other people may say he should do, is what he should do,' Meredith said. 'He's blossomed into a great young man.' There are those who say Mullins 'didn't win anything' in high school. He understands that. He wanted a sectional title more than anyone. But Greenfield-Central was 68-7 in Mullins' last three years of high school. As a senior, he led the Cougars to wins over Ben Davis, New Palestine, Jeffersonville and Mt. Vernon, among others. No, it did not end how Mullins hoped it would. But there is a generation of kids in Greenfield who see the program in a different light. 'You think about how he changed the entire community,' Meredith said. 'It wasn't me or any other player — it was Braylon Mullins. You come to a game the last three years and it was sold out. That does not happen. It's never happened before. That's why I've said before and I'll say it again: he's the Greenfield GOAT. There are little kids here wearing UConn shirts and Braylon Mullins shirts because of him. He's one of those guys who is going to be talked about for a really long time.'
Yahoo
19-02-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Newest Sparks want to make the team title contenders again
Mercedes Russell said the quiet part out loud during the Sparks' introductory news conference for her and fellow WNBA free-agent signings Emma Cannon and Odyssey Sims on Tuesday afternoon. 'Obviously, the basketball history in L.A. is deep … we're going to be wanting to hang a banner," Russell said. "We're going to be wanting to win a championship.' It's an ambitious mentality for a team coming off the worst season in franchise history, but it's one that Sparks GM Raegan Pebley has cultivated by reshaping the roster this offseason to complement their young core of Cameron Brink and Rickea Jackson, especially with the addition of two-time WNBA champion and three-time All-Star Kelsey Plum. On paper at least, the Sparks look primed for a return to relevance in 2025. 'One of the things that we really wanted to make sure that we targeted in our offseason was continuing to add to our culture,' Pebley said via video, 'and making sure that we were bringing in pieces that were going to enhance our backcourt and very intentional pieces that we would add with our veteran leadership that we needed to have. … So we are thrilled to have the additions of these three and grateful that they've joined us.' Russell and Cannon bring championship experience to L.A. Russell won two WNBA titles with the Seattle Storm while Cannon has won five titles overseas in Israel and Germany. Another thing they share in common? They both have a history with Plum. Read more: Kelsey Plum, an All-Star and WNBA champion, welcomes challenge of reigniting Sparks Plum and Russell first shared the court as high schoolers 12 years ago at the 2013 McDonald's All American game. 'I've been great friends with her, and just knowing her off the court is really special. Because, I mean, on the court, look what she's done,' Russell said. 'Her accolades and her mentality and just how her game has grown since she's been in the league has been amazing. So, I mean, during this process, I was obviously thinking of being teammates with her, and just also thinking back to 2013 like, dang, I haven't played with her in so long. Like, it's gonna be cool just to be back on the court together and putting that work together again.' Cannon reunites with her former Las Vegas Aces teammates Plum and Dearica Hamby, who led the Sparks in scoring and set a franchise record for rebounds in a single season last year. Sims, on the other hand, brings a level of familiarity to the Sparks, both from her original stint from 2017-18 and when she arrived last August on a hardship seven-day contract. She's seen the Sparks at their highest and their lowest, and she's excited to be a part of this new chapter in the franchise's history. 'I know the last few years, L.A. has just been up and down, trying to figure out rosters, just rebuilding,' Sims said. 'I know, especially losing Nneka [Ogwumike], that was a huge part of just the L.A. culture. Just from what was built up with Candace [Parker], with Chelsea [Gray], Alana Beard, some of the greats that have been through. So I think to be a part of it now, makes it more special because we're going to be something special, but at the same time, getting back to that winning culture that everybody knows that L.A. is. That's what we're all about.' Cannon knows what the expectation is within the team and fans, but she also acknowledged that the work needs to be put in first. 'It doesn't happen overnight,' Cannon said. 'I mean, if you want to chase something, you want something, you have to work at it every single day. So every time that we go into the gym, every time we step on the court, we have to have that championship mindset. Everybody has to have the same goal.' Sims agreed. 'We have a lot of work to do. Like I said, we're going to have our tough days, we have our grind it out moments, but I'm excited just to be a part of it and to be surrounded by these great players that I get a chance to play with.' This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
