When Braylon Mullins steps onto the hardwood at Hinkle Fieldhouse this Wednesday night, there’ll be a familiar buzz in the building. Not just because the UConn Huskies are in town to face Butler in a key Big East matchup, but because Mullins, a hometown kid from just 30 minutes away in Greenfield, Indiana, is back on Indiana soil - and doing so in a Huskies uniform.
That’s where things get interesting.
Mullins, a smooth-shooting 6-foot-6 freshman guard, had his pick of the in-state powers - Indiana, Purdue, Butler - but chose to take his talents to Storrs. And while dozens of friends and family will be in the stands to support him, there’s a good chance a few fans in the Butler crowd might not be so welcoming. That’s the nature of basketball in the Hoosier State - passion runs deep, and when a local star heads out of town, some folks take it personally.
“You’re always going to have negative fans who are pissed-off he didn’t go there,” Braylon’s father, Josh Mullins, said. “It was bad early, but not so bad now. I guess they’re trying to worry about their team now.”
That’s a fair point - especially considering Braylon’s UConn team is sitting at 22-2, while some of those local programs are still trying to find their footing. But don’t get it twisted: Mullins is making noise on the national stage.
He’s averaging 11.7 points per game, shooting 38% from beyond the arc, and in Big East play, that number climbs to a blistering 41%. He’s firmly in the conversation for Big East Freshman of the Year.
And he’s done all that despite missing five games due to ankle and knee injuries suffered in preseason.
“He got lucky it wasn’t a year-ending injury,” Josh said. “He was able to fight back.
I don’t think he’s got the athleticism back yet. He’s still working on that part of it.
It cost him some of his mobility.”
Even at less than 100%, Mullins has shown flashes of brilliance. He came out firing at Madison Square Garden on Friday night, scoring eight quick points before fading from the offensive picture. That didn’t sit well with his dad, a former Division I guard at IUPUI.
“FIND HIM GOD*****,” Josh tweeted from his seat at MSG.
“It drives me nuts, man,” he added later. “I’m a basketball player.
You get mad in the moment, then you let it go. They’re all still kids.
Hell, I was there once too. I think they're fine.
They've got to clean some things up.”
Mullins isn’t alone in making waves as a freshman this season. He’s part of a loaded class that includes names like Darryn Peterson, Cam Boozer, A.J.
Dybantsa, Keaton Wagler, Brayden Burries, Koa Peat, Darius Acuff Jr., and Chris Cenac. It’s a group that’s already reshaping the college landscape - and will soon be jostling for position in the 2026 NBA Draft.
Right now, mock drafts have Mullins anywhere from a lottery pick (as high as No. 8 or 12) to the back end of the first round. That kind of projection brings with it a major decision: stay at UConn for another year, or make the leap to the pros?
Josh and his wife, Katie, will be part of that conversation. Josh coached Braylon at Greenfield-Central for four years before stepping down to follow his son’s college career more closely.
He’s currently a school resource officer and plans to return to full-time duty next year after his twin sons graduate. But Braylon?
His future could involve something a bit more lucrative.
“I love college basketball,” Josh said. “The NBA is generational money.
It’s hard to pass up if you’re a top-20 pick, or especially a lottery pick. But it wouldn’t hurt my feelings if he came back to UConn.”
That decision won’t come until after the season. For now, the focus is on finishing strong - pushing through the Big East schedule, making a run in the conference tournament, and chasing a national title. If the Huskies pull it off, it would be their third in four years - and they’d do it in the most poetic of places: Indianapolis, just down the road from where Braylon grew up.
“We’ve talked about it,” Josh admitted. “I guess that’s the storybook ending to come back home.
But it’s hard. It’s not easy winning games in the tournament.
All it takes is one bad matchup.”
Josh knows the grind firsthand. Back in 2003, he was the third-leading scorer on an IUPUI team that made the NCAA Tournament as a 16-seed and ran into a juggernaut in top-seeded Kentucky.
“The biggest thing is staying focused as a team,” he said. “Braylon’s staying focused.
UConn doesn’t let the outside stuff get to them. He’s locked in.”
And that’s what makes Wednesday night’s game more than just a homecoming. It’s another chapter in a season that could end with confetti falling in Indy. For Mullins, it’s a chance to show the hometown crowd what they’ve been missing - and maybe, just maybe, what they’ll be celebrating come April.