Memphis wing Trahson Burrell had an up and down season, but there is no denying his potential.
Burrell came to Memphis with huge expectations as a scorer. Before coming to Memphis, he spent two seasons at Lee College, where he averaged over 25 points per game (third in the nation) his sophomore year.
Though Burrell’s numbers this season were not as extravagant as his junior college days, the soon-to-be senior still averaged 9.1 points per game (third highest on the team) on 44.9 percent shooting from the field. He also finished third on the team in rebounding as well, grabbing 5.2 rebounds per game.
The New York native was able to rack up double figure scoring in 15 games in his first year in a Memphis jersey. However Burrell’s play was not as strong as some would have hoped, including coach Josh Pastner.
Burrell had a huge scoring drought from Jan. 3 to Feb. 26. Throughout that period Burrell only scored double figures in three total games—11 points against UCF on Jan. 17, 11 points against ECU on Jan. 28, and 13 points against Jacksonville State on Feb. 4.
Pastner was so disappointed in Burrell’s play throughout that stretch, that he spent the major portion of one press conference calling on Burrell to be more aggressive on the offensive end.
“He’s got to produce at a high level,” he said. “He knows he needs to produce at a high level. I got on him yesterday because he was being too passive. I said, ‘we can’t have you out there just being passive. We need you being aggressive. We need you to be a stud. You scored 30-something a game in junior college. I need you to score 30-something a game. Go get it done. However you need to get it done, go get it done. You have no restriction from me. You have the green light, but you have to go get it done. If you are not going to get it done and you’re playing passive, that doesn’t help us. I didn’t bring you here to be that. I didn’t bring you here to be just a tagalong guy. I brought you here because you scored 30-something a game in junior college and you were a flat out scorer.”
Burrell answered his coach’s call in the final stretch of the season, scoring double digits in three of the final four games. In this stretch, he showed flashes of the elite scorer he was in junior college. In the Tigers 54-53 victory over the UCONN Huskies, Burrell lead the Tigers to victory, racking up a career high 22 points
If Burrell stays consistently aggressive throughout the entire year, he could be a force on the offensive end next year.
One of the Tigers’ biggest problems this season, was not being able to get through offensive droughts late in the game. Next year, this shouldn’t be a problem with a more experienced Burrell and the addition of the Lawson brothers, two prolific scorers from Hamilton High School.
If Burrell develops into the player he can be, the Tigers could shine next year.
Photo by David Minkin.
