For Gary Trent Jr., historic streak of 30-point NBA games traces to teachings from Dad and Kevin Garnett

Thank you for checking out Basketball Across Minnesota, my weekly look at some of the state's top hoops stories, from preps to pros. — Marcus Fuller

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With his father in the crowd as the Toronto Raptors beat the Miami Heat 110-106 on Tuesday night, Gary Trent Jr. had flashbacks to all the hours they spent working to make his jumper something that could be his ticket to the NBA.

The former Apple Valley and Duke standout never imagined, though, that his smooth shooting stroke would help him set scoring records in the league at 23 years old.

The basketball world was buzzing this week when Trent tied former Raptor DeMar DeRozan's franchise record of five consecutive 30-point performances. The Raptors beat the Bulls 127-120 on Thursday, but Trent's streak ended when he scored 16 points.

"He was there from Day 1, ever since I was a little kid, working on every single move and jump shot you see out there," Trent said Tuesday about his dad, former Timberwolves forward Gary Trent Sr. "After seeing it finally full circle and in full play after years and years and years of repetition and working, it's a great feeling and I know he's happy."

Growing up around the Wolves because of his father, Trent had a front-row seat to greatness, spending many nights in an NBA locker room around future Hall of Famer Kevin Garnett.

"He had an uncle relationship with him," Gary Trent Sr. said. "Gave him advice on what it was going to be like in the league."

The younger Trent took what he learned from KG and even recently surpassed his legendary mentor in one category. After blossoming following his trade from Portland to Toronto last year, the 6-6 guard's five consecutive 30-point efforts were one more than KG's high with the Wolves.

Trent's scoring streak is the most compelling individual accomplishment for the Raptors since Kawhi Leonard earned NBA Finals MVP honors in leading them to the championship in 2019. Leonard's longest 30-point run was only four games that year.

"It's not something I'm chasing," Trent said. "I'm just going out there playing and whatever comes with it comes with it."

The Raptors are 4-1 during Trent's scorching stretch. He's averaged 32.2 points on 51.7% shooting from three-point range (31-for-60), which includes a career-best 9-for-15 shooting from beyond the arc in a 106-100 victory against Atlanta.

In a sign of things to come, Trent averaged 16.2 points in 17 games with Toronto last season, highlighted by a career-best 44 points in a win against Cleveland. Surely that aided him in signing a three-year, $51.8 million extension last August.

Trent doesn't seem like he's slowing down anytime soon. Neither does the next generation of NBA players from Minnesota making a name for themselves this year.

There's former Minnehaha Academy and Gonzaga guard Jalen Suggs, who returned from a thumb fracture in November to have seven consecutive double-figure scoring games last month, including 22 points in a 116-105 loss to the Lakers. Suggs was named to the NBA All-Star Game's Rising Stars rookie roster on Tuesday.

And, of course, there's ex-Gophers guard Amir Coffey having a breakout season since becoming a starter recently with the Los Angeles Clippers in his third year. In his past 10 games, the former Hopkins star was averaging 15.5 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 0.9 steals and shooting 50% from the field and 40% on three-pointers.

"I'm just trying to stay consistent," Coffey said after his 27 points in a 122-116 loss at Indiana on Tuesday. "Continue to stay within our game plan, continue to be aggressive. Just give the team whatever we need from a night-to-night basis."

Coffey's father, Richard, also played for the Gophers and in the NBA. Like Trent, Amir Coffey has had immense family support since the beginning, but their growth now is about continuous work, confidence and opportunity.

"I've been putting a lot of work in," Coffey said. "Just staying confident and letting it fly when I'm open. Just rolling with it."

Fuller's Five

Five Minnesotans who stood out in the week:

Eli King, Caledonia

The Iowa State recruit and senior guard scored 21 points, including the game-deciding jumper, in a 68-67 victory Saturday over Class 3A, No. 1 Totino-Grace. Caledonia erased a 20-point halftime deficit.

Alyssa Ustby, North Carolina

The sophomore guard from Rochester Lourdes scored 20 points for the Tar Heels in last week's 78-62 upset against rival and No. 21 Duke, shooting 9-for-15, with six rebounds and three steals.

Gianna Kneepkens, Utah

The former Duluth Marshall guard earned Pac-10 Freshman of the Week honors for the second consecutive time Monday and leads the Utes in scoring with 13.7 points per game in conference play.

Ja'Sean Glover, Madelia

The senior guard and Minnesota Mr. Basketball candidate had the highest-scoring game for any high school player in the state this season with 60 points in an 88-50 win Monday vs. Cleveland.

Jasmine Choi, Carleton College

The Maple Grove native and sophomore forward was named MIAC player of the week after scoring a career-best 24 points in a 63-48 loss to St. Benedict and recording 19 points and 14 rebounds in an 59-49 upset over league-leader Augsburg, stopping a 13-game win streak.

Statistically speaking

5 — Consecutive years with a Minnesota boys' or girls' player named to the McDonald's All American team after Hopkins senior Maya Nnaji received the honor last week.

18 — Number of years since the Macalester men's basketball team won at least five consecutive MIAC games, accomplished by Scots coach Abe Woldeslassie's team Saturday.

40 — Augustana (S.D.) recruit and Hutchinson senior Sam Rensch had back-to-back 40-point games in the past week, including 47 against Southwest Christian.

1,000 — Career victories for New London-Spicer's Mike Dreier, the 15th girls' basketball coach in the nation and first in Minnesota to reach that milestone.

Games to watch

Columbia Heights boys at DeLaSalle, Friday, 7 p.m.

The Islanders have a five-game winning streak since they lost to Columbia Heights on Jan. 11. This rematch involves two top-five teams in Class 3A and the Tri-Metro's top title contenders.

Augsburg men and women host St. Olaf, Saturday, 1 p.m. and 3 p.m.

The Auggies men's and women's basketball programs are having impressive seasons in Division III with a combined 24-1 conference record, including the men's seven-game win streak.

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Basketball Across Minnesota will be published weekly on startribune.com. Don't be a stranger on Twitter after reading, as chatting about these stories makes them even more fun to share. Thanks, Marcus (@Marcus_R_Fuller on Twitter)