What Duke's Gary Trent Jr. learned about basketball from his dad, the NBA player

When Gary Trent Jr. was a child playing in AAU tournaments, his father, a former NBA player would interview him after games.

Out at dinner, Gary Trent Sr. would hold his camcorder and record. He was preparing his son for what he knew was to come: Gary Trent Jr.'s basketball career at a major Division I program, followed by the NBA.

"How do you think your team played?" the elder Trent would ask his young son.

If his son said "um," Gary Trent Sr. would stop him and say "No. Don't say an 'um.' Just pause. Go silent." "He was built for this," the elder Trent said in an interview recently.

If the younger Trent works hard enough, the elder Trent strongly believes his son will be a hall of fame player some day.

Now, Trent, 19, is a 6-6, 209-pound freshman guard and key player at Duke, one of the best basketball programs in the country.

The second-seeded Blue Devils will play No. 11 seed Syracuse (23-13) in the NCAA tournament's Sweet 16 on Friday in Omaha, Neb.

Trent, in his role, has been one of Duke's most consistent players this season. He struggled shooting in the final six games of the regular season. But he's picking up his game again right when it matters most.

Through Duke's first two games of the NCAA tournament, Trent averaged 17 points per game and shot 44.4 percent from behind the 3-point line. That's a good sign for a Duke team hoping to win its sixth national championship in program history, and first since 2015.

"He is as important as anyone on our team," Duke associate head coach Jeff Capel said of Trent. "And it's because he's a really good player. For a young guy he has outstanding leadership qualities and abilities. His ability to shoot, stretch the defense... He has a competitiveness and toughness. All of those things, he's been very, very important to us."

Trent averaged 14.3 points per game in the regular season on a team that included freshman forward Marvin Bagley III, the ACC Player of the Year, senior guard Grayson Allen, a former All-American selection,freshman forward Wendell Carter Jr., who is expected to be a lottery pick in the upcoming NBA draft, and freshman Trevon Duval, one of the top point guards in the country coming out of high school.

Coming out of Prolific Prep in Napa, Calif., Trent wasn't so bad himself. A five-star recruit, Trent was a top-15 ranked prospect, according to most recruiting services. But through Duke's first 12 non-conference games this season, he was averaging 12 points per game, and his 3-point shot was off.

"I think it was hard for him early, just as it is with each freshman, because you're used to being 'the guy,'" Capel said. "And then all of a sudden you're with other outstanding players and that's an adjustment period."

The making of Gary Trent Jr.

Gary Trent Jr. has been a shooter since he started playing basketball. His father taught him everything he knew about the game, something the younger Trent finds funny since the two play different positions. Nicknamed "the Shaq of the MAC" as a player at Ohio University, the elder Trent was a forward and a powerful dunker.

The younger Trent is a guard, a knockdown shooter, who likes to also drive to the basket.

"Every move, every jump-shot I do out there is from him," the younger Trent said. "I've been working with him since five years old. I've seen a lot of his tapes. He made me sit down to watch them. He always talked about how he dunked on this person and how he had stats this game."

The elder Trent was drafted 11th overall in the 1995 NBA draft by the Milwaukee Bucks, before being immediately traded to the Portland Trail Blazers. He played for four teams in nine years in the NBA, and three years oversees.

When Gary Trent Sr. retired from basketball in 2004, Gary Trent Jr. was a small child. When Gary Trent Jr. was just 5, his dad started training him as if he were a pro at their home in Columbus, Ohio. When other kids were going to birthday parties, the younger Trent was working on his game, dribbling and footwork with his father.

"He loved it," the elder Trent said. "I'm sure there were times that he did not want to do it, but as a kid he was mature."

When the younger Trent was in fourth grade, the elder Trent gained full custody of him and moved him to Minnesota. They continued to work on his game. And the younger Trent continued to grow.

"I got my chance to put my hands around him as his father and as a man," his father said. "Even if my son was not athletic and did not play sports, I would have still had those same responsibilities."

In high school, Trent Jr. was a dominant force on the court. He played for Apple Valley High School in Minnesota his first three years of high school before transferring to Prolific Prep for his senior season.

At Prolific Prep he averaged 31.8 points, 6.4 rebounds and 3.8 assists, and helped lead his team to a 29-3 record. He was a 2017 McDonald’s All-American and Jordan Brand Classic selection.

During his recruitment, his final five schools came down to Duke, Michigan State, Kentucky, UCLA and Arizona. He signed with Duke in November 2016.

A minor adjustment

When Gary Trent Jr. signed with Duke, he was a part of a three-person class that included Carter and four-star guard Alex O'Connell.

But it soon got crowded.

In the spring of 2017, Duke would sign Duval, a point guard, and in the summer it would add Bagley. Trent Jr. became part of the best recruiting class in the nation, which meant he had to share the spotlight.

It took Trent a while to adjust. In early ACC play, though, he seemed to turn a corner. At times, he made it look easy. Through his first 13 conference games, Trent averaged 17.7 points per game, and was 46-for-80 (57.5 percent) from behind the 3-point line. There was no better 3-point shooter in the ACC at the time than Trent Jr.

A minor adjustment — a quicker release on his shot — had paid off.

"Earlier in the year, I was kind of getting the ball off kind of slow, and coach told me if I wanted to be successful I had to get it off a little bit faster," Trent said. "And I just practiced on reps of getting my release quicker and it came to me quick."

Capel said the encouragement from the coaching staff and playing a lot has helped Trent.

"It's something that everyone has told him, 'you're valuable to us,'" Capel said. "And we recruited him to be that, to be a really good player and he's done that all year. And at times he's been outstanding."

Against Texas on Nov. 24, with 36 seconds left in the game, Duke was down by two. Allen, the senior guard, had fouled out of the game. Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski drew up a play for Trent.

Trent inbounded the pass to Bagley, who handed it back off to Trent. Trent drove, scored and was fouled. The bucket helped send the game to overtime, and Duke ended up winning 85-78.

Two days later, on Nov. 26 against Florida, Duke was down by one point with 1:12 left in the game. Trent went to the free throw line and made both shots. Then, on defense, he stole the ball from Florida’s Jalen Hudson and was fouled. He knocked down both free throws again, and the Blue Devils went on to win 87-84.

Duke overcame double-digit deficits in both of those games.

Then there was the game against Miami on Jan. 15. When Duke's other players were struggling offensively, Trent scored a career-high 30 points. Trent was 4-for-4 from behind the 3-point line in the game’s final nine minutes, helping to cap off a 13-point comeback with less than 10 minutes left. Trent's final 3-pointer, with 1:16 remaining in the game, put Duke up six en route to a 83-75 win.

"Just the rhythm, having confidence in myself, letting fly and simply just playing hard as I can, finding open spots in the opposing team's defense and it's working out for me," Trent said of his play. "So I'm just continuing to try to play hard. Continuing to try to play at a high level."

A caring person

On March 3, Lisa Cutchin and her son Jackson, who's 6 and a patient at Duke hospital, went to the Duke-UNC game at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Jackson, who has an impaired immune system, is a huge Duke fan. He has all the gear, knows who the players are, and his dream one day was to meet one of them.

He didn't get to meet any the night of the Duke-UNC game. But he asked his mom if he could go back to Duke's campus and shoot some hoops.

As they walked near the tennis courts, Jackson froze and looked up.

There was the 6-6 Trent in a gray hoodie, waving at him. Trent gave Jackson a high-five. Jackson looked back at his mom, and said "that's Gary Trent."

The two talked about playing basketball. Trent gave Jackson some pointers, and recommended he work on dribbling with his left hand.

"I think it just says a lot about his character," Cutchin said about Trent. She said it's something her son will remember for the rest of his life.

"Gary Trent is definitely the No. 1 player in our household," she said.

During interviews, Trent is serious, and business-like almost. He uses the word "simply" often. But his teammates, too, describe a different side.

"He's a caring spirit," Carter said. "He's always caring for all of us."

"Something as simple as, I may have left my money, left my wallet at home and I just need to get some food or something like that. He's the first one to make sure I get some food. Just something small like that."

But when he steps on the court, he's all business, and we respect that, Carter added.

Come Friday, in the Sweet 16, expect Trent to be all business. It's what his dad, Gary Trent Sr., had prepared him for.

The elder Trent said he has enjoyed watching his son's success on the court.

“The best part of watching, I would have to say is him applying everything that he has worked on,” his father said. “To watch you over the years, to train him in the gym, eight to 12 hours a week for the last 10 years, and to watch all of it pay off somewhat, because these moments, are what you spend all these hours in the gym for.”

This story was originally published March 23, 2018 at 2:04 PM with the headline "What Duke's Gary Trent Jr. learned about basketball from his dad, the NBA player."