HawgBeat - Trevon Brazile 'ready to go' for 2023-24 season
Arkansas Razorbacks basketball head coach Eric Musselman shared a positive update on Trevon Brazile's recovery status.
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Arkansas basketball head coach Eric Musselman shared a positive update on redshirt sophomore forward Trevon Brazile's recovery status during SEC Media Day on Wednesday.
One of two Arkansas players to be named Preseason All-SEC by the media alongside guard Davonte Davis, Brazile is coming off a season in which he averaged 11.8 points and 6.0 rebounds in nine games and was the team's leading three point shooter at 37.9%.
After suffering a season-ending torn ACL injury against UNC Greensboro on Dec. 6, the sophomore has steadily progressed through his rehab and is expected to be fully ready for the 2023-24 season opener on Nov. 6 against Alcorn State.
"Oh, he’s ready to go," Musselman said on the SEC Nation desk Wednesday. "I mean, he’s had an incredible rehab process. It’s been a long process, but we’ve been patient. Coaching staff have been patient, trainers. TB himself. But, he’s ready to roll."
Arkansas' exhibition game against UT Tyler this Friday could provide the first glimpe of Brazile in game-action for the fanbase, but we might have to wait a little bit longer depending on his status.
"We don’t know what he’ll do Friday when we have our exhibition game," Musselman said. "He might play, he might not play. He’ll for sure a little bit against Purdue and then we’ll roll into the regular season.
"So he’s got two exhibitions games to continue to kind of get his rhythm back and certainly we feel like, the player that we’ll see in January and February is much different than what we’ll see in November and December because he’s going to get better and better with each day that passes."
No matter the injury, rehab is always tough. On top of putting your body through the physical process of recovery, you have to keep your mind in check too. Brazile talked Wednesday about the obstacles he faced.
"One of the main challenges is just accepting the fact that you got to sit out," Brazile said. "However much the rehab was for me, it was nine months. So getting my mind prepared to sit out nine months. It was tough, especially with the season I was having. But here we are, nine months later.
"Man, I would say the first three months of rehab is probably the hardest part, because maybe like the first month you’re just on bed rest. Can’t do much, I can barely walk. Can’t go to games with Coach and the team, so that sucks. But when last year’s season ended, I started to get back into practice a little bit more. Started to do things with the team. So, I would probably say the first three months is the toughest but after that, time flies."
It wasn't all gloom and doom, though. During his time away from the basketball court, Brazile made sure to practice his golf swing as much as possible.
"I golfed a lot," Brazile said. "I was getting solid but then I started practicing more, I was like ‘Man, I remember why basketball was the only thing I used to do all day.’ Because practice and all that, it’s hard to go golf after practice."
Fans may not have to wait long to see Brazile and the Hoop Hogs, as Arkansas will face UT Tyler in an exhibition match on Friday. The game is set to tip at 6:30 p.m. CT inside Bud Walton Arena in Fayetteville.
