EDINBURG, Texas (ValleyCentral) – Trevor Hudgins’ “no quit” attitude has propelled him to new heights for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers this season.
The six-foot point guard has been counted out his whole life. Coming out of Manhattan, Kansas, Hudgins was not offered a division one scholarship, instead, Hudgins took his talents to Northwest Missouri State.
As a Bearcat, Hudgins got a taste for success quickly.
“We won three national championships in my four years there,” point guard for the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, Hudgins said. “From there, I guess I got some publicity.”
On top of the three national championships, Hudgins was back-to-back NABC Division II Player of the Year in 2020 to 2021 and 2021 to 2022. Hudgins became only the fourth NCAA Division II player to earn the award in back-to-back seasons.
After graduation, Hudgins entered the draft process. He went undrafted in the 2022 NBA Draft, but the Rockets came calling.
“Draft night, I get the call,” Hudgins told ValleyCentral. “They offer me the two-way. I just took it. I just said ‘yeah, I’m on board,’ so I rolled with it.”
The two-way contract brought him here to the Rio Grande Valley. The Vipers one of the most successful G League franchises, winning four G League titles.
However, Hudgins did not know what to expect once he accepted the Rockets’ offer.
“At first, I didn’t know what Edinburg was or RGV,” Hudgins said. “I thought Edinburg was going to be, you know, kind of like a country town or something like that, but I love it here. It’s way bigger than what I thought it was going to be. People are very nice here and the crowd is great.”
In his rookie season, Hudgins, so far, averages 22.0 points per game and 5.7 assists per game. Adjusting to the G League has been a learning curve for the point guard. However, his coaches have been impressed with what they have seen from him.
“He’s coming to his own as far as leadership,” Head Coach of the Vipers, Kevin Burleson told ValleyCentral. “I’m kind of pushing them towards that because if you’re the point guard, you’re on the ball, and you got to be that way, right? I love coaching him and I think he has a bright future.”
Hudgins is a three-point specialist for the Vipers. He knows, though, that he needs to continue to develop his game if he wants to take it to the next level.
“I could shoot the three and everyone runs me off the line,” Hudgins said. “Now it’s my decision-making when I drive. That’s where I feel like the most growth has been for me this year.”
Of course, every player has that moment when they realize they have officially made it to the NBA. For Hudgins, two moments stand out.
“The first day of summer league when he was running out of the tunnel and onto the court, he just remembered seeing the whole place filled up,” he said.
The second moment, he said, “Was probably seeing Giannis Antetokounmpo in person.” That game was Hudgins’ first career game in the NBA with the Rockets.
Hudgins and the Vipers are set to face the Austin Spurs Sat., Jan. 28, to wrap up the team’s 5-game home stand.
