Brad Stevens - Early Life

Early Life

Stevens grew up in the Indianapolis suburb of Zionsville, Indiana, where he developed his love for basketball. Starting at age five, Stevens would watch taped basketball games "before he went to afternoon kindergarten". His father would often drive him to Bloomington to watch Indiana Hoosiers games. "It's hard not to be when you're a kid growing up in Indiana", Stevens later said.

For his eighth birthday, Stevens received a new basketball. He would get up early to practice shooting at a local gym before school. The hard work paid off as Stevens made the varsity team that same year. By the time his high school career was complete, Stevens had set school records for career scoring, assists, steals, and three-point field goals. As of 2010, he still holds the records for points (1508), assists (444), and steals (156), as well as the single-season points record (644 in 1995). Stevens was named to the all-conference team three times. In 1995, he was named the sectional MVP and was the leading scorer in state sectional play (32.3 ppg).

Stevens made the academic all-state first team and received the Straight A Gold Medal Award all four years. He was a member of the National Honor Society, graduating seventh in his class of 165. He earned three letters in basketball, three in track, and one in baseball during his days at Zionsville. During summers, he traveled the country playing AAU basketball.

Although Stevens had a strong passion for the game, he realized that his basketball skills were modest and not likely to get him very far. As such, he chose to attend academically oriented DePauw University for college. During his stay, he played in all 101 DePauw games, earning four varsity letters. He earned multiple all-conference and academic all-conference awards, and was a three-time Academic All-America nominee. He was a team captain his senior year, and averaged more than 8 points per game three of his four years. His career highs were 24 points and 8 rebounds in a game. After his senior year, Stevens received the Coaches’ Award. Coach Bill Fenlon later described Stevens as "one of the most selfless, team-oriented person I've ever been around."

While at DePauw, Stevens was a member of the Management Fellows Honors Program and the DePauw Community Services’ Sports Night executive board. He was also a brother of the Alpha Tau Omega fraternity. During summer vacations, Stevens spent time teaching at Butler basketball camps. He was named to the Dean's list and graduated in 1999 with a degree in economics.