2008 KANSAS BASKETBALL
57
They led Pembroke Hill to two consecutive state championships.
Kareem won another his senior year after JaRon graduated.
Then it all crashed down. In 1999, JaRon's sophomore year at UCLA and Kareem's freshman year at Missouri, Amateur Athletic Union coach Myron Piggie was accused of giving money to several of his players including JaRon and Kareem. The state championships were gone. The Rush legacy was tarnished.
Brandon stepped into their shadow when he entered high school in 2000. They were Kansas City legends for their on-court excellence and off-court imperfections. Brandon had to play the same kind of game, but make different decisions. That's pressure.
"Being JaRon and Kareem's little brother," Brandon said, "it was always, I have to be better than they are or at least where they are at. I just played my type of game. I didn't listen to what people had to say."
Junior guard Brandon Rush takes a shot over Missouri guard Matt Lawrence and Missouri forward Leo Lyons. Rush was the top scorer for Kansas with 19 points.
in Brandon. They saw a player who had an all-around game, evident by his averages of 21 points, six rebounds and five assists per game his senior year. Brandon left high school ranked as the 13th best prospect in the country.
Perhaps more importantly, his high school career didn't include tales of shoeboxes full of dollar bills and questionable AAU coaches.
Mindy Ricketts/KANSAN
It wasn't easy for Brandon at first. He bounced through three Kansas City-area high schools before he finally found his niche at Mt. Zion Christian Academy, a basketball powerhouse, in North Carolina. His game improved away from the pressures of home.
Recruiting experts took notice. They saw JaRon's athleticism and Kareem's jump shot
"He saw the mistakes JaRon made," said Jeanette Jacobs, Rush's grandmother. "He didn't want to make the same ones."
SILENCING THE WHISPERS
Brandon surprised no one when he entered the NBA Draft in the spring of 2005. He'd talked about going pro since his junior year of high school ended. Heck, he didn't even visit a college campus his senior year.
But it was a surprise when he withdrew his name. All of a sudden, college was his top option. He chose Kansas and enrolled shortly after school started that August.
KU fans should've been pumped: an NBA prospect had landed in their laps at the last second.
Lawrence is a short drive from Kansas City, short enough that everyone was familiar with the Rush family. Fans remembered how
They weren't.
JaRon criticized former Kansas coach Roy Williams' playing style. They knew about Myron Piggie and assumed Brandon was no different from his brothers.
He heard the whispers. "Lazy" and "stupid," that's what they called him. He took it to heart.
"I wanted to prove to people they were
wrong," Brandon said. "I had to prove to them I was able to do the work and stay in college."
He proved it by leading the team in scoring his freshman year and becoming the first freshman named to the All-Big 12 first team.
SEE RUSH ON PAGE 58
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN