Nolan Sexton '24 Recruiting Profile

Family is the most important thing in my life. Through my family, I’ve learned the values that are most important to me. These include helping others, working hard for success, making education a priority, and having fun. I feel lucky that basketball, the sport I love to play, brings these values together for me and why I want to pursue opportunities to continue playing at the collegiate level.

I am a junior at Evergreen Park Community High School near the south side of Chicago. I have started on the varsity team since I was a freshman and have grown significantly as a leader, player, and student in my three years. On the court and off the court, my family values drive me to always work harder and lead by example. I earned All-Conference and The Mustang awards in both my freshman and sophomore seasons on varsity. I was also inducted into the National Honor Society.

I am interested in pursuing a degree in finance and accounting to prepare for success as a future entrepreneur. I understand being a college student-athlete can be hard and I am committed to putting in the work to be successful in both areas. I am looking to be part of a college program that supports me as a basketball player and student.

I am a program-first player. On the court, my strengths lie in my three-point shooting ability both off the dribble and off the catch. Offensively, as lead guard, I'm strong at getting the team into offensive sets and controlling the game with my leadership and patience. Defensively, I am an on-the-ball defender and able to guard the ball full court. I am a presence in the locker room.

I treat my team like my family. Off the court, I organize team meals and team building events. I pull everyone together for off-season skill work outs, open gyms, and weight training.  I also recruit as many teammates as I can to volunteer at our community center to help coach basketball to kids in kindergarten through eighth grade. All these activities make us stronger as a team. How we interact with each other off the court is just as important as on the court. We have fun together and that is important.

The summer season before my junior year, I did not perform to my ability. I was tired, I couldn’t shoot or finish. My confidence was down because I felt I wasn’t putting in as much hard work as I could have. I felt I let myself, my coach, and my teammates down. That was unacceptable to me, and I took the steps and time to fix it. I woke up at six every morning to go shoot, I committed to strength and conditioning workouts, I started eating better and getting more sleep, and I started mental performance training. By the start of my junior season, I was healthier, faster, and physically and mentally stronger. So far this season, I am averaging 18 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists per game.

I want to continue to develop my skills and be part of a team at the next level. The opportunity to play in a fast-paced offensive and defensive system at the college level excites me. I know I can help a program succeed. I look forward to finding a program who will challenge me to becoming better on and off the court.