By Brooks Hansen

At Butler High School in Huntsville, Ala., the Lacey family name has been a consistent presence for more than two decades. With a lineage that includes a father, an uncle and a cousin, the Laceys are continuing their legacy at Butler with junior Trevor Lacey playing under 28-year head coach Jack Doss.

“On both sides of his family, they were great athletes. I coached his dad, and his uncle was an All-American here,” said Doss. “His mom, her brothers were great athletes coming out of high school. I knew when he came here that he was going to be a great player because of his background and the genes he has.”

It was evident from an early age that Lacey was going to be a special basketball player, not only because of his genes but because of the level of competition he played against.

“Growing up in Huntsville, we thought Trevor was going to be a football player, but in about seventh grade we started to see flashes that he had a chance to be a great basketball player,” said William Pride, Lacey’s father. “He started playing against guys like Varez Ward [Texas] and Courtney Fortson [Arkansas] and the only thing they had over him was strength.”

Ranked No. 23 in the ESPNU Super 60, Lacey earns praise in his evaluation for demonstrating high levels of patience on offense, letting the game come to him. He does a great job for a young player of moving without the ball and has great size and strength. With his ballhandling and passing abilities, he is a shooting guard who can slide over to the point position at times to take some pressure off the PG. Displaying a smooth stroke from the perimeter, Lacey has the ability to create space with jab steps and rip throughs.

Much of Lacey’s development came from his time spent earning the respect of his family and elders on the court.

“All of my family went through Butler,” Lacey said. “Once my last cousin Chris Pride graduated, there was a five-year gap between the next set of Prides coming through and everyone was looking at me saying, ‘You’re not going to be as good as your dad or your uncles or cousins.’”

Using this as motivation, Lacey set out to earn a name for himself. “I used to play with the guys that played against my family and they figured out that I had a chance and figured out that I could play,” he said. “That gave me respect around the community.”

Spend time with the Lacey and his family and it is obvious how much they trust Doss. Trevor met Doss at a team camp in seventh grade. After two years at Huntsville Middle School, Lacey made the jump to Butler and started his development under Doss, just like many of his family before.

“Coach Doss is pretty much like a father,” Pride said. “Coach Doss also coached me, my brother, my cousins and nephew and now Trevor. He has helped him grow and mature while being consistent on and off the court. We have a lot of trust in him and basically look at him like a father figure.”

Under Doss, Lacey has helped Butler win two Alabama Class 5A state championships while being named the 5A Player of the Year twice. Only last week, Lacey added yet another honor to his long list of accomplishments. He was named Alabama’s Mr. Basketball as a junior, a feat accomplished by only one other player, Ronald Steele.

“When they announced me and I went up there, I didn’t really know what to say. I was shocked and felt very blessed by being able to win this award being a junior and not finishing the season. I didn’t even have a speech ready because I didn’t think I was going to win it. When I realized it was me, I was like, ‘How is this possible?’”

Lacey’s junior season ended prematurely when he injured his right knee in the state tournament’s regional final. Initial word on the injury was a ligament tear, possibly an ACL. Fortunately for the 6-foot-4 guard, the injury turned out to be minor, making a return to the court in time for spring AAU basketball attainable.

“I started rehabbing shortly after the injury for three weeks straight,” Lacey said. “I have to thank my dad and my coaches who pushed me.”

With schools like Memphis, Kentucky, Alabama, Auburn, Tennessee, Florida and UCLA vying for Lacey’s services, his performance this summer will be key to adding to the honors he has been given. Other than hoping to have a big showing in the AAU circuit this summer, Lacey is undecided and has no timeline for a decision.

“People in your surroundings pressure you more than anyone,” Lacey said. “‘You need to go here. You need to go there.’ A lot of people stop me and ask, ‘Where are you going?’ and you don’t want to tell them to stop asking that question. I just smile and say, ‘I don’t know.’”

Prior to his injury, Lacey was averaging 22.6 points per game and was the key to Butler being one of the top teams in the state of Alabama. After playing his AAU basketball last summer with the Alabama Challenge, Lacey will suit up this spring for Each 1 Teach 1, the Nike AAU team out of Florida featuring 2011 guard Austin Rivers. Each 1 Teach 1′s opening spring event will be the Boo Williams Nike Invitational starting on April 9.

Source: sports.espn.go.com