At 6'10", PSU Senior
Tre-Vaughn Minott got a lot of attention at his high school in Montreal and at the NBA Academy he decided to attend in Mexico City his senior year. He ended up playing for three years at South Carolina, an SEC school. But his game didn't really take off until he joined the Vikings three years ago.
After a year at the NBA Academy, he drew interest from Clemson, New Mexico, Arkansas, Providence, UMass Lowell and Creighton. Then, Covid hit and the academy closed. Minott went home to ponder his future. As things began to loosen up, he found he had only one offer, from South Carolina in the SEC.
Carolina Coach Frank Martin "reached out to me and said they desperately needed a big. I was sold."
There, he averaged 1.8 points, 1.7 rebounds and 12 blocked shots. A new coaching staff "wasn't huge on my game…this was also the year I lost my mother to lung cancer. It was a difficult year overall so I knew I needed a change in scenery to elevate my basketball career," Minott recalled.
His first call when his name hit the portal was from PSU Associate Head Coach
Matt Dunn, who had recruited Minott out of high school while at another school. Dunn understood Minott's potential.
"I was really intrigued by his potential back then. Even though I knew he'd likely end up at a higher level, we continued to talk," said Dunn. Dunn contacted Minott immediately when his name popped up in the transfer portal. "On his visit, it was clear he was eager for a fresh start and a real opportunity, which stood out to us, as we have had success with similar types of guys," he said.
"As soon as he called, I did my research on the coaching staff and program. Coach Coburn ….after several conversations with him, seemed very intense and was running a tight ship, which is something I really needed. So, I went on a visit. When I saw everybody in that gym improving their game and trying to get better, that's when I knew this was the place for me," Minott said.
His statistics were similar to those at South Carolina his first year as a Viking. He was frustrated at himself and at his lack of playing time.
"Even though he brought good energy off the bench and stayed engaged during games, you could tell he was frustrated with his role. Like a lot of newcomers, his expectations didn't match reality. This can often go different ways… sulk, point fingers or buy-in and put in the work," said Dunn.
During a long Christmas road trip, Dunn took Minott aside and laid it out. If he wanted to play more, he had to fully dedicate himself, because, while the ability was there, the commitment wasn't at that point.
Minott remembers that conversation.
"I think it was the last week in December. I wasn't playing a whole lot. My work ethic wasn't the greatest. Coach Dunn and I sat down and he told me I was either going to going to continue the same way and not play or I could build a new work ethic and we'd see what happens," he said.
Today, Minott credits Dunn with much of his progress.
"He'd seen the potential in me for a long time and he was a huge factor in my development over my three years here. He was patient with me, which isn't the easiest job in the world. He was dedicated to spending time with me to be able to get better. He's taught me so many life lessons. He's taught me how to work better and efficiently," he said.
Some days were hard physically and mentally, Minott admitted, "but we pushed and I can never thank him enough. From there, we built a schedule and a routine to start on January 1. Everything took off and I could see my improvement. I could also see how hungry I was."
"When we returned from Christmas break, he took that to heart. He started working out at 6 a.m. five or six days a week and even when his playing time didn't increase immediately, he stayed consistent. He continued those workouts all spring and summer, adding conditioning, lost significant weight and got himself into tremendous shape…and with that came confidence," said Dunn.
Last season, Minott's efforts began to pay off. He began to stand out in practice, earned more playing time and eventually moved into the starting lineup where his growth took off. He fulfilled the coaching staff's expectations by becoming a dominant big man in the Big Sky Conference. Minott was named the Big Sky Conference Defensive Player of the Year and led the Vikings in rebounding and blocked shots.
So far this season, he has earned Big Sky Player of the Week following a 96-69 home win over Sacramento State where he scored 23 points, with 20 rebounds and four blocked shots. The rebounds matched the most by a Viking player in 30 years of Big Sky play. He's averaging 10.8 points per game on .651 shooting, 8.8 rebounds a game and has had 28 blocks leading into the season's final two weeks of play.
"The increase in scoring is a direct result of his dedication and daily habits. He committed to a routine, doing things like 300 Mikans (big man layup drill) and 250 hook shots daily and working on his free throws and his shots from six feet away. It's tedious. It's boring and it's not glamorous, but it works," Dunn said.
Minott has hopes of a professional basketball career following his time as a Viking. He's hoping for the NBA but would play in Europe if that's the opportunity presented.
He's received a lot of family support at this point in his career. To begin with, he got genetic help from his parents. His mother (Michelle) was 5'10"and played netball in Jamaica. His dad is 6'5 and played basketball and volleyball in Haiti and his sister (Anne Marie) played basketball.
"My family has always been supportive. My sister is always keeping up with the games; she'll text me before and after every game. My father watches every game and he loves to give me a full rundown," he said. Even his former pre-academy coaches continue to be in touch and provide support.
He said "family means everything to me."
And, reading between the lines, he really has two other families.
His team, the other Vikings, of course. And then there's a group involved in his music world.
Minott plays seven musical instruments with keyboard and bass guitar being his favorites. He loves to make music.
"I like to make any kind of music... music that makes your head nod, music that makes you want to dance, music that makes you want to jump off your bed and around the house," he said. "Because of music I've met some wonderful and talented people I never thought I would meet."
He has his own record Label, VISIONARYSOUNDS, which he'd like to continue developing after his basketball days. He helps in producing his own in-house records and helps distribute the music to streaming labels under the label's website. Currently the organization consists of a couple artists and producers. He sees his producer job as helping artists find their sound and market their releases.
"I personally don't necessarily write my own music, but I do help artists as a producer in putting the song together which makes me a songwriter. For beats I make, I write the melodies, which means creating the chord progressions, the composition and melody of the track. Also, I add my own drums in there to make it complete," he explained.
He's also involved teammate
Sebastian Tidor who's "basically the entertainer. He's very good with being in front of a camera, hosting things and bringing a sense of enthusiasm and energy to things," Minott explained.
Minott has an undergraduate degree in Communications and Advertising and is currently in a postbaccalaureate program studying music theory and music production in sonic arts.
"After this year, I would definitely want to pursue a professional basketball career, hopefully in the NBA. I would also love to keep building my brand "Tellavision" as the producer and take my record label through the door with me into the music industry and have an impact there."
If hunger and determination are keys to that kind of success, his time at PSU is probably just an early chapter of a very interesting life.
