Barlow senior Brayden Barron: 'Freak athlete' helps Bruins reach first final since 1996

Barron is "one of the most improved players I've ever coached," says 39-year veteran Tom Johnson

Barlow coach Tom Johnson calls senior Brayden Barron one of the most improved athletes he's coached during his 39 seasons at the school. / René Ferrán

For two seasons, Brayden Barron’s basketball career was all about untapped potential.

The final two? The Barlow senior overhauled his game and turned into a defensive monster who played a significant role in getting the Bruins to their first OSAA boys basketball state final in nearly 30 years.

The player long-time coach Tom Johnson praises as “one of the most improved players I’ve ever coached” had 20 points on 10-of-13 shooting and nine rebounds, but more important, he anchored a defense that held West Linn to five field goals in the final 20½ minutes of the Bruins’ 69-42 victory in their 6A semifinal Friday night at the University of Portland’s Chiles Center.

Barron, who was the Mt. Hood Conference’s defensive player of the year — “and I don’t know that it was even close,” Johnson said — was credited with two blocked shots but altered many more.

Just his presence in the middle of the lane helped Barlow erase a 27-22 deficit with a withering 30-6 run over a 12½-minute stretch that spanned halftime.

“He’s just a 6-foot-7 freak athlete that you can’t teach anything about that, you know what I mean?” marveled senior guard Jalen Atkins, who led Barlow with 21 points. 

“So, you have him in the paint, and to have him be as active as he was tonight, I mean, it’s hard to beat us when you have a guy like that who can just play out on the perimeter and also come down low and block shots.”

Barron credits his transformation to working with Curtis Williams and Julius Rogers with the Dynasty AAU program during the summer between his sophomore and junior seasons. 

“They really helped me develop,” he said. “My freshman year, sophomore year, I don’t really think I took basketball seriously. But then, I realized I got better every single day, and I realized if I could take the game seriously, I could be really good and make something out of it.”

He made the varsity for the first time last season, averaging 14.6 points and 7.4 rebounds per game in earning first-team all-MHC recognition.

He then returned to work with Dynasty, and it was at an AAU tournament in Washington that Barron finally realized he could be a Division I player.

“I really showed out my skills, and I kind of surprised myself,” he said. “I think I averaged maybe 18, 20 points, and after coming off of last year, I never did that before. It was a huge leap that I had.”

It was there that Portland State took notice, and the Vikings snatched him up during the early signing period, with coach Jase Coburn saying at the time, “Brayden really fits who we are. Athletically, I think he is as good as there is. His size and versatility is really going to make an impact at Portland State."

Johnson also watched Barron spend hours in the gym, working for three or four hours in the morning, then returning for another couple of hours later in the day. The biggest difference he saw in Barron when he returned from that summer?

“His footwork,” said Johnson, who plans to retire after Saturday night’s state final against Jesuit. “And his athleticism. He’s become so athletic in the last three years.”

Jalen Atkins calls Barron "a 6-foot-7 freak athlete" whose defensive prowess makes the Bruins click. / René Ferrán

That athleticism shined on both ends of the court Friday. He went high to block a shot at the rim at one end. He grabbed a rebound, then ran the 94 feet to pack a perfect lob from Maddyn Cummings at the other.

“That’s where I get my energy from is the blocked shot,” Barron said. “And my goal is at least one dunk a game. I’m gonna get one, guaranteed. And when I get a dunk, it turns everybody up, and then we all start playing better. And you saw it in tonight’s game.”

Indeed, his teammates fed off the energy he exuded at both ends, and the Barlow crowd let out one deafening roar after another in response.

“I just try to make an impact,” he said.

In one sequence late in the first half, Blake Hills drew a charge, then he and Atkins had steals on back-to-back possessions, with Barron cashing in both with a layup and a monstrous dunk as part of a 12-0 run to close the half.

“The last four minutes of the first half turned the game around for us,” Johnson said.

Barron is one of seven seniors who will lead Barlow into Saturday’s final, where the Bruins will go for their first state championship as Johnson — who has spent 39 years at Barlow and ranks No. 4 on the state's career wins list with a 710-351 record — looks to add that elusive title after making his only final appearance in 1996.

Then, Barron will begin preparing for life on the Park Blocks, and he’s already salivating at the thought.

“Once I get to Portland State, I think they’ll develop me even more,” he said. “I’ll get stronger. I think that’s the main thing, getting the feel of college. I’m playing at the D1 level, and coming straight out of high school is not easy.”

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