STORRS — Nothing gives UConn men’s basketball freshman guard Braylon Mullins greater satisfaction than silencing a gym, but he doesn’t spend any time glorifying the moment.
When Mullins hits a 3-pointer in a hostile road environment, with a jump shot that coach Dan Hurley refers to as a “beautiful rainbow,” there’s no gesticulating or motioning to the crowd, no chest-pounding, nothing that breaks the mold of the cooling sense of calm with which he plays. The silent, baby-faced killer retreats up court with one thing top of mind.
“When it goes dead quiet, that’s just the best feeling,” Mullins said. “I don’t show much emotion when I make shots. The other team is going to come down and try to score, so I try to move on.”
Article continues below this ad
Basketball is a delicate balancing act, a tip-toe through the fastest and most intense moments, day in and day out. It’s about compartmentalizing, in game and out, a careful exploration of patience and balance both through 40-minute winter blocks and the breadth of an experience. You stay present, thinking now and next and never far behind or beyond.
Mullins, a 6-foot-6 guard, is going places long-term, of course, speedskating along his basketball journey. He understands this. His coach does, too. After Mullins hit a few overtime jumpers and sucked the soul out of Amica Mutual Pavilion on Jan. 7, leading the Huskies to an exhilarating 103-98 victory over Providence, Hurley said, “We’re not going to have him here long, so we’re going to enjoy it.”
A few months from now, when this promising UConn season ends however it will, maybe with another Final Four appearance or even another national championship, Mullins will have an option to depart that will be difficult, perhaps impossible, to pass up. He is projected as an NBA lottery pick and has the type of game that could make him very rich and very successful at that level for the next 15 years or so.
Article continues below this ad
UConn guard Braylon Mullins shoots against East Texas A&M in the first half of an NCAA college basketball game, Friday, Dec. 5, 2025, in Storrs, Conn. (AP Photo/Jessica Hill)
Jessica Hill/Associated Press
It goes so quick. Mullins’ trajectory isn’t dissimilar from that of Steph Castle, who spent the early portion of the 2023-24 season injured and/or recovering, started flourishing after the New Year, became the best perimeter player on one of the best teams in college basketball history and, a couple of months later, joined the San Antonio Spurs as the No. 4 pick in the NBA draft. He wound up as NBA rookie of the year, becoming a dynamic scorer along the way, but shined at UConn for the way he locked up opposing players. He was a menacing defender.
Mullins is different. He’s solid on defense, more so than some anticipated, but his identity is built on that jump shot, on scoring, on swishes that are darts to the heart of opposing fans. He’s so smooth, thus far averaging 11.6 points and shooting 47.1 percent from the field, 36.1 percent on 3-pointers — a good, not necessarily great, conversion rate as he’s been streaky, but he has range that extends well beyond the arc and the UConn offense is built around a confidence in him firing away at will. He can change a game so quickly. He’s one of the most gifted and exciting players at UConn and will continue as such until he’s gone.
“I just try to block out all the noise and stay in the present,” Mullins said. “I try to stay away from looking at what social media has to say about what your future is going to be. Nobody knows what your future is going to be. You’ve got to focus on the next game. That’s where my mind is: the next practice, the next game. Everything is going to figure itself out. That’s kind of how I’ve been going at it.”
Article continues below this ad
This doesn’t come naturally. What college basketball player — heck, what college student — doesn’t walk to and from the gym or classroom without the curious consideration for what’s next in life? Mullins is 19, not far removed from his celebrated basketball life in Smalltown Indiana, where at Greenfield-Central High he dominated public school ball and was named, like Eric Gordon and Glenn Robinson and others before him, as the state’s “Mr. Basketball.”
UConn guard Braylon Mullins (24) puts up a shot during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against Kansas, Tuesday, Dec. 2, 2025, in Lawrence, Kan. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)
Charlie Riedel/AP
Now, after parachuting into the very adult and very professional world of college basketball, Braylon is a fascination for the way his quick assimilation has helped make UConn look like one of the most well-rounded teams in the nation. Given how well this has gone, with his contributions matching his high-profile potential, how could he not be wondering where it all will take him. He could be a number of places just a few months from now — back in Storrs for his sophomore season, or anywhere in North America as an NBA rookie.
“I have to remind myself,” he said of focusing on what is instead of what can be. “I’ve just got to stay true to the path. I’ve been talking to Coach [Luke] Murray, especially. He gave me that little talk: stay in the present.”
Article continues below this ad
The present is pleasant because it’s a grind. Mullins choose UConn after cutting his list and taking official visits to Indiana, North Carolina and Michigan. Like most players, he cited a bond with coaches, the right fit having to do more with relationships that facilities or geography or any guarantee or hyperbolic proclamations about what awaited.
“When I got on campus — I think I came in the beginning of August — they just treated you so well, and they were like, ‘We’re going to put you to work, and you’re going to get better,’” Mullins said. “No other school was telling me that. [Others] were like, ‘You’re going to have fun and enjoy it,’ this kind of thing. This, it was, ‘You’re going to go to work. I’m going to push you to be the best player and person you’re going to be.’ You can’t say no to that. That’s how I thought about it.”
UConn head coach Dan Hurley talks with UConn guard Braylon Mullins in the second half of an NCAA college basketball game against East Texas A&M, Friday, Dec. 5, 2025, in Storrs, Conn. (AP Photo/Jessica Hill)
Jessica Hill/Associated Press
Storrs feels like home now, particularly with his longtime girlfriend, Kylee — a student at a rival high school in Indiana — having chosen to attend UConn as well. Most everyone back home wanted Mullins to attend Indiana, of course. The Bloomington campus is just 75 miles from Greenfield (population: 25,000), where Mullins was raised as one of three boys. His younger brothers, twins Cole and Clay, are seniors at Greenfield-Central. His parents, Josh, a police officer, and Katie, who works in finance, have spent their entire lives in the town and attended the same high school.
Article continues below this ad
Josh has a long basketball history. He was a standout high school player. His son had fun passing him on all the GCHS career scoring lists as he went though his experience. Josh played two seasons at Lincoln Trail College and two more at IUPUI, where he was a member of the Jaguars’ NCAA Tournament team in 2003. Josh has been a Greenfield police officer for nearly 20 years and, for about the past five, the school resource officer at Greenfield High, where he was an assistant coach during Braylon’s time with the team.
“He had a key to the gym,” Mullins said.
They’d shoot in the mornings before school, and in the afternoons after school.
“Growing up, the toughness, the criticism, I got that,” Mullins said. “So transitioning from my high school and him coaching me, it wasn’t any different coming [to UConn]. Coach Hurley yelling, I had gotten that already. Him being hard on me was good for my growth. … I feel like he’ll say what he means. He’s, ‘If you’re doing this wrong, you’re going to need to hear this. I’m going to tell you.’ He’s that kind of person. Having him in my life has been a blessing.”
Article continues below this ad
Recruiting is much more than it once was. The era of NIL (name, image and likeness) business opportunities and revenue-sharing has taken amateurism out of the sport and teenage prospects are quickly drawn into an adult world of contracts, advance obligations and lucrative marketing initiatives, branding. Players of Mullins’ ilk get paid — handsomely — to attend schools like UConn and perform.
“The recruiting process, it was a lot for me,” Mullins said. “It got to a point where it was like, hey, I don’t even want to look at my phone. Because you’re talking to coaches, my dad got into it and he’s talking to agents and [others]. You’re talking to a bunch of people. So it’s a lot to take in, especially being 16, 17 years old. But I kind of thought over time, especially when I cut my schools down, you just have to focus on the relationship part, building on what you need to do with the coaching staffs. That’s kind of what it was. I took a visit here and it was like, oh, man. It changed my perspective on everything. I was like, this place is damn near perfect. It just set the tone for everything else.”
Braylon Mullins and his mom, Katie, took in UConn’s season-opener Wednesday night while on an unofficial visit.
David Borges/David Borges/Hearst CT Media
By no fault of his own, Mullins couldn’t do much early on. He sustained a scary leg injury in October during a preseason practice, initially described as an ankle issue. He sat on the bench, missing UConn’s first six games, and it was clear that he was wearing a sizeable brace (well above his knee) underneath those baggy khakis and collared shirts. Mullins and UConn had no interest in letting everyone know exactly what he was dealing with, and in a recent conversation Mullins remained reluctant to get into all the details. Bottom line: He never feared that his freshman season would end before it started. Surgery was never an option. He just had to rehab and heal, which he did.
Article continues below this ad
“It wasn’t to the point that it was that serious,” Mullins said. “I think it was a real high ankle sprain and I had a knee problem with it as well. It was just a real ugly fall. I just had a positive outlook on everything, especially in the rehab process. I just tried to support my teammates as best I can, just be a helpful person on the sideline. That’s how I took the first 4-6 weeks, and when I got back in rhythm and got back into practice, it was like, hey, you see how everybody else is playing and you have to match that, have to figure it out. I’m still growing as well. I’m not perfect.”
But he has proven prepared. How’s this for an on-ramp to college ball? Mullins made his UConn debut Nov. 28 against at Madison Square Garden, playing 10 minutes against Illinois. Four days later, he played 23 minutes at Kansas, scoring 17 points on 6-for-12 shooting (3-for-9 on 3’s). He silenced historic Allen Fieldhouse.
HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT – JANUARY 10: Braylon Mullins #24 of the Connecticut Huskies is introduced before an NCAA men’s basketball game against the DePaul Blue Demons at PeoplesBank Arena on January 10, 2026 in Hartford, Connecticut. (Photo by Joe Buglewicz/Getty Images)
Joe Buglewicz/Getty Images
“When I was at the scorer’s table at MSG, it was a surreal moment,” Mullins said. “Chills. Just knowing this place had my back, it gave me a bunch of confidence. Then going to Kansas, hostile environment and one of the most difficult places to play. You have to have confidence. That’s how you have to approach these games.”
Article continues below this ad
The Garden, Allen Fieldhouse … those are different worlds. No matter how talented a freshman is — Hurley long referred to Mullins as a “potential flame-thrower” — it’s always a crapshoot as to how someone will respond to that kind of environment. Mullins, though, considered himself prepared. He had been under such a bright spotlight in Indiana, playing high school games in a home gym that holds about 5,000 fans and often sold out, finishing his career with school-record 2,518 points. He made a concerted effort to remember that, to feel those situations again, while playing against Illinois and Kansas. Public school ball is often criticized for not having the same talent and competition as elite prep school leagues. But it sure worked well in preparing Donovan Clingan, and it sure worked well for Mullins.
“Some hostile crowds back then, smaller crowds, but it had the same feel with the noise and stuff,” Mullins said. “I kind of just thought about that and tried to compare the two. .. I think I kind of just, over time, have trained myself to play in those environments. Having the confidence piece, coming in with that kind of mindset, you have that mind frame of you’re going to make every shot. I came into every game like that and tried to make that happen.”
So much has changed for Mullins already at UConn, through just 13 games. He only took opponents by surprise once, maybe.
Article continues below this ad
“I feel like the Kansas game you kind of saw that a little,” Mullins said. “They were doing a lot of game-planning against some of our other guys, especially Solo [Ball], AK [Alex Karaban] and Silas [Demary Jr.]. It’s crazy to look back at that and see how many open shots I had. Now I’m playing games where I’m getting held, I’m getting tugged on. You’re running around with Solo and AK, you have three shooters on the court and you have to find all these pieces. Silas is going to coordinate all this. Tarris is the focal point in the paint. There are going to be different game plans against you, and you just have to figure it out.”
What’s next is Villanova Saturday at the PeoplesBank Arena. After that, Mullins will worry about Providence at Gampel Pavilion on Tuesday. He’ll figure out how to spend 2026-27, as an NBA rookie or a UConn sophomore, only when he has to. He won’t make much noise in the meantime. He won’t hear much, either.