Trevon Brazile is still on track to make his return to Arkansas basketball without missing any time next season.
In an interview with Hogs+ released Tuesday, the high-flying big man revealed he’ll be full-go by “early September” after missing most of his first season with the Razorbacks because of a torn ACL.
That further confirms the timeline he laid out to Best of Arkansas Sports between the first and second round of the NCAA Tournament in Des Moines, Iowa. All indications are that he’s having a very successful and productive rehab process.
“I just think my body heals a little differently,” Brazile told Hogs+. “I’m so confident that it’s an issue sometimes because they have to put some brakes on me sometimes. All of the milestones I’m supposed to be hitting, I’m hitting them.”
Prior to going down with the injury, Brazile was in the midst of a breakout season that had thrust him into first-round conversations for this summer’s NBA Draft. Not including the UNC Greensboro game, when he got hurt after playing just nine minutes, he was averaging 13.3 points, 6.5 rebounds, 1.1 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.1 blocks in about 29 minutes.
Even with that small sample size, his combination of length, athleticism and skill not only led to spectacular dunks, but made him an intriguing draft prospect because of his fit for today’s NBA.
However, professional teams will have to wait another year before getting their hands on Brazile because he announced last month that he’d return for a second season with Arkansas basketball.
“I didn’t really get to display everything I wanted to display,” Brazile said. “I feel like I almost owe it to the fans because I didn’t get to show them my full potential. I’m ready to get out there and unleash it all.”
Although he didn’t go public with his decision until March 30, Brazile said he had his mind pretty much made up a couple days after his surgery. He told head coach Eric Musselman that he had “unfinished business” and they maintained daily contact throughout the rest of the season.
A return to the court in early September is great for Brazile and the Razorbacks because that should give him a couple of weeks to prepare for training camp, which begins later that month. He’ll also have two months to get ready for the season, which is scheduled to start Nov. 6.
Trevon Brazile’s Vertical Leap
Brazile made national headlines in November with a sky-scraping rim-rocker vs South Dakota State that many consider to be the dunk of the season in college basketball.
In that dunk, Brazile used a part of his 42.5-inch vertical jump, as the top of his head got nearly level to the rim. For most mortal, this would be the achievement of a lifetime, but Trevon thinks he can go higher still. “I’m in the weight room just working legs out a lot” currently, he told Hogs+. “I think by the end of this I will add a few inches to my vertical.”
Such an improvement would put him in line to becoming the second-most explosive Razorback big man of the last three seasons. Justin Smith, likely the most vertically explosive Hogs big man of all time, has the No. 1 spot as you can see below:
Justin Smith – 48″ vertical jump
Ethan Henderson – 44″
Trevon Brazile – 42.5″
Makhi Mitchell – 38.5″
Jalen Graham – 36″
Jaylin Williams – 35″
Kamani Johnson – 35″
Makhel Mitchell – 34″
Abayomi Iyiola – 28.5″
Connor Vanover – 24.5″
*all measurements taken from Arkansas basketball game notes
To watch Trevon Brazile’s full interview, subscribe to Hogs+.
2023-24 Arkansas Basketball Roster
There are still a few moving parts and Eric Musselman, as always, is still active in the transfer portal, but next season’s Arkansas basketball roster has mostly taken shape.
Davonte Davis and Jordan Walsh are testing the NBA Draft waters while maintaining their eligibility and could return, but if history and Musselman’s moves in the portal are any indication, at least one — if not both — will ultimately move on.
If neither of them return, the Razorbacks would have another scholarship to use in the transfer portal, which would add to what is already a five-man portal class that is ranked No. 2 nationally by On 3 and No. 3 by 247Sports.
(It’s also worth noting that transfers El Ellis and Tramon Mark are also testing the waters.)
Here’s a breakdown of the Arkansas basketball roster…
Still Deciding
- Davonte Davis — senior
- Jordan Walsh — sophomore
Returning
- Jalen Graham — super senior
- Makhi Mitchell — super senior (yet to officially announce decision)
- Trevon Brazile — redshirt sophomore
- Joseph Pinion — sophomore
- Derrian Ford — sophomore
Incoming
- Jeremiah Davenport — super senior (transfer from Cincinnati)
- *El Ellis — super senior (transfer from Louisville)
- *Tramon Mark — redshirt junior (transfer from Houston)
- Khalif Battle — redshirt junior (transfer from Temple)
- Keyon Menifield Jr. — sophomore (transfer from Washington)
- Layden Blocker — freshman (2023 signee)
- Baye Fall — freshman (2023 signee)
*also testing NBA Draft waters
Departing
- Kamani Johnson — exhausted eligibility
- Nick Smith Jr. — declared for NBA Draft
- Anthony Black — declared for NBA Draft
- Ricky Council IV — declared for NBA Draft
- Makhel Mitchell — entered transfer portal
- Barry Dunning Jr. — entered transfer portal
***
*Evin Demirel contributed to this report
More coverage of Arkansas basketball from BoAS…
