Former Shocker walk-on thought basketball career was done. His new role helping WSU
Born a coach’s son, Trevor McBride can’t remember a time when basketball wasn’t the main part of his life.
For nearly two decades, the Basehor native was dedicated to finding out how far his love for the sport could take him. It led to a decorated high school career, followed by an opportunity to walk on with a Division I program at Wichita State the past two seasons.
But this summer, after much deliberation, McBride made the agonizing decision to hang up his jersey. After entering the transfer portal in March and entertaining offers from Division II teams, McBride ultimately decided the wear and tear had become too much on his body.
“I’ve been in a gym since basically I was born, so basketball has been everything to me,” McBride said. “Giving it up was one of the toughest decisions I’ve ever made, but I knew it was time for me to start the next chapter in my life. At some point basketball goes away for everybody, whether you’re LeBron James at 42 years old or me at 20 years old.”
McBride returned to Wichita State earlier this month to begin classes, no longer as a student-athlete, rather as simply a student. He is more than halfway to earning his business school degree in finance and real estate.
On the first day of class, August 19, McBride figured he would pay his former head coach a visit to inform him of his choice.
By chance, earlier that morning, Paul Mills had listened to a podcast with former Michigan head coach John Beilein discussing the value of walk-ons to a college team. It reminded him of McBride, who was a model teammate and fully bought into his role — right up to the exit meeting with Mills in March.
“He was very complimentary about how much he enjoyed being around the team, around the coaches, the locker room,” Mills said. “I’ve been in those meetings before where players have to some degree burned bridges. As I often tell players, anybody can speak on the negative. It’s not that difficult to complain. It’s a different caliber of person who can find solutions. You could tell being on a 15-win team, Trevor was a guy who saw the glass half full. I personally appreciate those kinds of people who can understand that optimism is usually going to win out. He’s a positive influence and you want guys like that in your program.”
When the former walk-on met with Mills in the concourse of Koch Arena, the coach intently listened to McBride explain how much it pained him to give up basketball but why it was best for his body.
When McBride was done, Mills had an offer: He knew McBride didn’t want to repeat the day-to-day grind as a walk-on player, but what about rejoining the team as a special student assistant?
“When someone like coach Mills wants you to stay around, it definitely makes you feel good and feel appreciated,” McBride said. “It’s kind of the best of both worlds because I still get to hop in drills sometimes and scratch that basketball itch, but at the same time, I’m not putting all of that pressure on my body every day. Now I can focus a little bit more on school and my degree, but I still get to help out the team in a different role, which is what I always wanted. I’m not someone who needs the glory of suiting up and being a player, I just want to help out the team any way I can.”
The newly created role for McBride doesn’t come with a job description, but he will wear many hats.
He’ll be like a graduate assistant at times because he sees the game like a coach. He’ll be like a student manager at other times, helping tape the floor before a practice and rebounding for players before and after practice. And then he’ll be like a walk-on again when WSU occasionally needs an extra body in a drill.
“I’ll do anything that they ask, anything that they need,” McBride said. “I’m basically a student manager, but there’s not many managers who get to practice with the team sometimes.”
The best part? Because McBride is no longer a player, Mills was able to pull from the program’s funds to provide some financial relief to help him finish out his degree.
He may no longer technically be a teammate, but McBride will still find a role to help the team.
“His dad is a coach, so he understands the significance and value of every person’s role who is involved in the organization propelling the team forward,” Mills said. “If you have somebody who can simulate what the other team is doing or have a capable player who can mimic what you may see in a game, that’s pretty significant. Trevor is one of those guys who is good enough to jump on and go against and provide a quality look, whether it be in a skeleton drill or full throttle.”
McBride said he plans to stick in the role at WSU for his final two years of school, which will allow him to explore his passion for coaching.
Will he follow in his father’s footsteps as a coach? That’s a question he doesn’t have the answer to at this time.
But after thinking he was giving up basketball just two weeks ago, McBride is fulfilled with his new journey in the sport he loves.
“I’ve watched my dad have 16 straight winning seasons at Basehor-Linwood, then to be able to learn under a coach like coach Mills and his staff is such an honor,” McBride said. “I’m not sure if I’ll want to coach or go use my degree somewhere, but it will be great to have those connections. It’s kind of like a trial run for me and then I can decide what to do next in two years.”
This story was originally published August 29, 2024 at 5:03 AM.
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