Get to know new Arizona guard Terrell Brown, a grad transfer from Seattle

Photo courtesy Seattle U

Seattle grad transfer Terrell Brown committed to the Arizona Wildcats on Monday, filling a key void in the backcourt for the 2020-21 season. Here are some things to know about the soon-to-be senior.

He comes from a strong legacy of Seattle talent and is close with Jason Terry

Seattle has long been a breeding ground for some of the nation’s top basketball talent. Garfield High School, Brown’s alma mater, produced Brandon Roy, Tony Wroten and present University of Washington assistant coach Will Conroy.

Brown was a two-time state champion at Garfield before spending a year at Shoreline Community College in North Seattle. His high school teammates included former UW star Jaylen Nowell and Saint Louis point guard Tramaine Isabell.

Recruiting Seattle prospects, even transfers like Brown, is always an uphill challenge given UW’s presence in the region. Arizona has landed a handful of Seattle players in the past including Jason Terry (Brown’s godfather, apparently) and most recently Allonzo Trier.

Congrats family and continued success as you continue your Journey!!!!! @APlayersProgram we got a game changer #BearDown https://t.co/Lfbq9ZhIkw

— Jason "The Jet" Terry (@jasonterry31) April 6, 2020

Yes, he can score, but he’s also an elite rebounder for his size

Despite being listed at 6-foot-1, Brown hauled in 6.2 rebounds per game as a junior. That number is actually down from the previous season, when Brown averaged 6.8 boards.

Brown’s production on the glass isn’t merely a reflection of playing in a weaker conference; he recorded eight rebounds against Washington State and seven in games against Washington and Syracuse.

In fact there were only two games last season where Brown finished with fewer than three boards.

That’s a far cry from Arizona point guard Nico Mannion, who averaged 2.5 rebounds. Mannion recorded two or fewer rebounds in eight of Arizona’s last 10 games.

As far as the scoring goes, Brown averaged 20.7 points per game this season, the 20th-best mark in the country, and still managed to dish out 4.9 assists.

He continues Arizona’s trend of an outsourced roster

By joining the Wildcats, Brown becomes the fourth member of the 2020-21 roster to begin his career at another school.

That is not a new trend.

Seven players on the 2019-20 squad began their college careers somewhere other than Tucson including late addition James Akinjo from Georgetown. Arizona will likely add another transfer or two by the end of the spring.

Brown has taken a winding career path

You’d be hard pressed to find an Arizona player in recent memory with a more arduous backstory than Terrell Brown.

Despite winning multiple state titles in high school, Brown didn’t attract any serious college offers, forcing him to take the unconventional junior college route.

He bounced around community colleges in Oregon and Washington before making a name for himself at Shoreline, where he averaged 30 points a game.

That caught Seattle’s interest, but it wasn’t as easy as transferring from one school to another.

A 2019 profile in the Seattle Times recounts Brown’s struggles to earn enough credits to academically qualify at Seattle, whom he joined as a walk-on. The whole article is worth reading, as Brown’s story is a masterclass in perseverance.

A journalism major at Seattle, Brown is interested in pursuing sports broadcasting.

He is friends with 2021 five-star prospect Paolo Banchero

2021 five-star forward Paolo Banchero added Arizona to his list of finalists on Saturday in what at the time seemed like a surprise move. Now we (probably) know why Sean Miller is making a late effort to land the highly touted Seattle prospect.

Banchero has a relationship with Brown, as is clear by his Twitter feed in the past couple days.

YESSIR!!! city is proud https://t.co/m6VDDf41zk

— Paolo (Paul-Oh) (@Pp_doesit) April 6, 2020

Banchero is considered the No. 4 player in the 2021 class according to 247Sports.

While Brown and Banchero likely wouldn’t play together in college, Brown’s decision to transfer to Arizona could factor into where Banchero’s commitment.

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