Inside Trevan Leonhardt's rise from mid-major walk-on to Nebraska standout

Before Trevan Leonhardt could get the words out, he burst out laughing, remembering the day an observer with no context would quickly dismiss the idea that he was a Division I player. Leonhardt’s career has been defined by a tireless self-belief, but on this day he likely wouldn’t have blamed anyone for making assumptions about what he couldn’t do. 

Leonhardt had just returned home after spending two years away from his Kaysville, Utah, home and basketball as a whole on a Mormon Mission that took him to Scottsdale, Arizona, for and Santiago, Chile. He learned plenty about life, about people, about his faith. But he all but forgot how to dribble. 

“I was shocked that it felt so awkward,” Leonhardt told Basket Under Review. “I would dribble the ball and the ball just wouldn’t go back to my hand. I was super confused. I thought I was gonna come home and my shot would feel like it felt two years ago, but the shot felt like muscle memory and dribbling just felt super awkward and weird.”