Like father, like son, Gary Trent Jr. is making a name for himself as one of high school basketball’s most promising prospects. After naming his top three of Duke,  Michigan State, and UCLA, Trent is coming towards a college decision, something that could shake up college basketball for years to come. “I probably want to commit sometime in the fall, before the season starts,” Trent stated. “I don’t want to go every game with questions about where I’m gonna go or commit. I want to get that out of the way.”

Trent has also stated his interest in a package deal with fellow 5-star recruit, Wendell Carter and that continues to be a strong possibility. After transferring to Prolific Prep this fall, Trent is following in his father’s footsteps emerging as a special basketball talent.

 

Trent first began playing basketball at the age of five. Led by his father, Gary Trent, who had an illustrious 12 year NBA career, Trent Jr. recalled his initial moments when he first started playing. “One day, my dad came up to me and asked if I wanted to play basketball, and if I wanted to be good at basketball. We went to the track, dribbled two miles worth, and then for every one hundred meters we did ten pushups and ten sit-ups. We kept doing that every day, so he instilled hard work in me at a young age.”

These workouts with his father helped instill a strong work ethic for Trent, allowing him to become recruited from a young age, as he dominated with teammate, Tre Jones at Apple Valley (MN) High School.

 

At Apple Valley, Trent lead his team  to the 2015 Class AAAA state championship as a sophomore, where he captured All-Tournament honors. Last season, for his junior year, Trent was named Minnesota’s Boy Basketball Gatorade Player of the Year and it seemed like he was going to finish off his high school career with the Eagles, but on July 18, Trent announced his transfer to Findlay (NV) Prep, one of the top basketball academies in the country. “The players that have played there in the past have accomplished what I’m trying to accomplish, as in going to college, being a Division 1 athlete, and going to the NBA,” Trent said after the transfer.

When the transfer was announced, Trent was already in the midst of a stellar summer, playing with the USA U-17 Team in Spain, leading them to a gold medal, and attending events such as the Nike Basketball Academy and the Adidas Nations. “ As far as the summer goes, I had the opportunity to go to Spain and play with USA Basketball and we won another gold medal, for the second time.” he continued.  “I’ve just been here and there at great camps, continuing to build bonds with players and coaches, and just playing the game of basketball.”

 

As the summer came to a close and it seemed that Trent was going to be attending Findlay Prep, another development took place, when he decided to attend Prolific (CA) Prep instead, tweeting out, “With changes at Findlay Prep, my family and I have decided to attend Prolific Prep after being floored by [the] program.”

Last year, Prolific Prep had players such as 5-star recruit, Josh Jackson, and four-star recruits, Vance Jackson and Ira Lee and now, after the Trent transfer, they have reloaded, with Trent and newly acquired guard, Paul Scruggs. For Trent, the transfer came down to one thing, reaching his goal of playing in the NBA. “That’s always been a goal of mine to make the NBA,” Trent said. “I’m not gonna stop until I’m number one. Even if I am number one, I’m gonna keep going, keep pushing every day.”

 

Now, as he enters his senior year, and his recruitment heats up, Gary Trent Jr. continues to prove his worth as an elite player in the 2017 class. As Trent sums it up best, “I just want to be one of the great players to ever play the game. I’ve seen a lot of people play. I’ve seen the pros, everything they’ve accomplished, and I just want all that.”