Arkansas Coach Had Doubts Brazile Interested in Being Razorback

Forward's game will change under Calipari

Arkansas Razorbacks' forward Trevon Brazile against UNC-Greensboro in a game Dec. 6, 2022, at Bud Walton Arena in Fayetteville, Ark. / Andy Hodges-allHOGS Images

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — When Razorbacks coach John Calipari went to the locker room to meet with his new team, he walked in to find it empty. Apparently, not a single one of Eric Musselman's former players was interested in continuing the journey at Arkansas.

If the roster was going to be empty, then so be it. Calipari had players who wanted to transfer in and several more elite players anxious to sign out of high school.

If it was to be a completely clean slate, at least he got the satisfaction of hand-picking his entire team. He certainly wasn't going to beg any current players who clearly didn't want to be there.

"I don't even beg the recruits I'm recruiting," Calipari said. "They've gotta want this as bad as I want them. They've gotta want me and us, our staff. With a player that's been here, if they don't wanna be here, would you want them here? No?"

One of the players who technically had the option to be in the locker room that day was forward Trevon Brazile who was testing his value in the NBA waters. When the evaluation came back how most expected, he needed a college home.

Word trickled back to Calipari, and, although he was surprised, he was also intrigued. So, he asked someone to get Brazile on the phone so he could gauge how serious his interest was and how committed he was willing to be to a new way of doing things.

"We talked, talked to his dad, sat down, that's what he wanted to do," Calipari said. "I said, 'Well let's go do this.' I told him my plan for him, what we try to do."

His plan involves packing muscle onto Brazile's 6-foot-10, 220 pound frame. So far, that appears to be working.

"TB's, dad, same thing," Calipari said of parents noticing changes in their sons' bodies. "'I see bumps on my son I haven't seen.' So, when we talk weight room, I don't want to hear they're doing great. Give me numbers. It's all I want is numbers. The other stuff doesn't matter. I don't need it. And when you see the numbers, like some guys their core, in their legs, if you want to be better, that's going to improve."

As for "what we try to do," that actually involved performing an old habit less and developing a more aggressive demeanor. It means Brazile no longer shooting threes in exchange for developing mid-range accuracy and a powerful attack on the rim.

"We've got to make you comfortable being uncomfortable, because now you can be an attack dog," Calipari said. "TB, I'm trying to make him an attack dog. I don't want him standing out there shooting threes. No, no, You're not doing that here."

The result so far is performances out of Brazile that exceed what Calipari expected. However, that doesn't mean his lone returning forward was lacking confidence.

"[Brazile's] standing there and he's laying on his back," Calipari said. "I said, 'You're better than I thought you were.' He looks at me and says, 'I told you,' but that's the confidence that I want him to feel. He's talented, but he's got to get into wars and be those situations."

At some point, Calipari put in a call to Cuonzo Martin, who is in his second stint as Missouri State head coach. However, before returning to Springfield, Martin was Brazile's coach at Mizzou, and made it clear how much he loves Brazile's potential as a player.

"My hope is everybody comes out and says 'That's what I knew he could be,'" Calipari said. "Then we've done our job as coaches."

HOGS FEED:

• He keeps saying it over and over, but local media doesn't seem to be listening to Calipari

• Special rule gives insight into Calipari coaching style for Razorbacks

• Calipari wants Razorback fans to pull back on expectations

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