Gray Announces Big Transfer
You don’t see transfers of this magnitude very often — a top-10 prospect in his class moving before his senior season. But after talking to Andre Gray Andre Gray 6'4" | SG Mpls North | 2021 State MN — the…
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Continue ReadingYou don’t see transfers of this magnitude very often — a top-10 prospect in his class moving before his senior season. But after talking to Andre Gray Andre Gray 6'4" | SG Mpls North | 2021 State MN — the #9-ranked prospect in Northstar Hoops’ 2021 rankings — it becomes clear that this is not a frivolous or meaningless transfer.
[player_tooltip player_id="532569" first="Andre" last="Gray"]A combination of factors led to Gray transferring from Hopkins to Minneapolis North. Things at Hopkins, a decorated and highly-proven program, were just not working out as originally visioned. And a family move near Broadway in North Minneapolis in the middle of Gray’s junior season made a homecoming make a lot of sense.
“I grew up in North, went to Meadowbrook in Golden Valley, then moved to Hopkins in junior high,” Gray said. “Then we moved back to North during the middle of last season.
“I’ve been thinking about this since 8th grade. We thought Hopkins was the best situation, and I thought about leaving again sophomore year. But I wanted to stay and be with my friends. I ended up breaking my hand sophomore year. Junior year went better in the last half of the season, but I just thought this was the best moment and opportunity to transfer. It’s been positive from the Hopkins staff, they’ve wished me all the best.”
After moving, the chaos of spring 2020 set in. Businesses on Broadway were vandalized until the neighborhood banded together to protect itself. “North Side Pride” took a stronger meaning than ever.
“I want to set an example for the young African-American children of the North Side,” Gray said. “You don’t have to go out to a suburban school to ‘make it’ or to be known. If you’re from the inner city, you should be able to stay here and make it big. This neighborhood has had players who went to the NFL like (Tampa Bay receiver) Tyler Johnson. Look at (UConn alum and NBA draft pick) Khalid El-Amin.”
Gray grew up playing with and against current Polars Davon Townley, CJ Brown and Willie Wilson Willie Wilson 6'2" | CG Minneapolis North | 2022 State MN . Brown is actually his cousin, so the familiarity is already there. And while COVID was at its peak, Gray hit the roads to re-acquaint himself with his old area.
“I took my time to get to know the city again,” he said. “Every day I rode my bike for almost 20 miles. I went to random places and followed the map on my phone. I got to know the neighborhood again, it feels like home.”
Gray is a legitimate Division I prospect with a scholarship offer from Western Illinois. He will play with Grassroots Sizzle’s 17U group and says he’s looking for a program with “a coach who is open-minded, really caring, makes sure his players are grinding on and off the court.” He is interested in studying the culinary arts.