Most basketball players concern themselves with their legacy. Rhyjon Blackwell went ahead and published his.
25 years old and entering his sixth season of collegiate basketball, the path of transfer graduate student guard Rhyjon Blackwell is a winding one, but one thing has remained consistent: his drive. He’s seen every level of college basketball, battled severe injury and has bet all-in on himself with nowhere to fall back on in order to keep his career alive.
From Combine prep school to Florida SouthWestern (JUCO), then McNeese State (Division I), to USC Aiken (Division II), and now Marist, Blackwell is ready for his return to Division I after experiencing his fair share of setbacks.
During his time at McNeese State, Blackwell penned his own book, The Art of Becoming: The Most Dangerous PG, that was meant to guide any aspiring guards in their journey with the knowledge he had accumulated up until that point. His decision to write a book was an impulsive one.
“I keep a notebook next to my bed. I wake up in the middle of the night, and the title of the book just pops in my head. As soon as I wrote it down, the chapters started flowing. I just kept going with it, and I was like ‘Dang, I just wrote a whole book.’” said Blackwell.
Writing the book in the pages of his notebook is one thing, and Blackwell was quickly met with logistical roadblocks before he could call himself an author
“As soon as I wrote the book, I was like ‘Dang, what do I do now?’ I got to revise properly. How can I do that? I’m a college student, I wasn’t making no money—I put it in Grammarly.”
What’s next?
“I gotta get a book cover. So I picked a picture from my camera roll of me dunking—Fiverr did it for like $20.”
And now?
“I gotta get published. Getting published is like $3,000. How can I do this? Amazon publishes for free, print-on-demand. It just came step by step.”
Spanning 32 pages and seven chapters that cover different aspects of a point guard’s game, it immediately matches the idea that a busy DI hooper sat down in the middle of the night and wrote it, but the passion shines through regardless. It features a touching preface and afterword that clearly communicate that Blackwell did not write the book for profit or clicks, but because he genuinely felt he needed to.
“The whole reason why I wrote it was because it was my story, but I also want to inspire the youth. If you have a dream, chase it.”
The seven chapters are as follows: The Deceptive One, Handles, The Shooter, The Aggressive One, The Relentless One, Know Your Personnel and The Confident One.
With so many aspects of emphasis, Blackwell believes the utmost important trait for a point guard to have is being an extension of the coach; with that responsibility comes the importance of being a strong leader.
The Long Island native prides himself on his ability to lead. Through six years of post-grad basketball, Blackwell has been thrust into countless uncomfortable situations—teammate problems, coaching disagreements, morale sinking—you name it, Blackwell has been in the room for it. As a leader, he’ll always make his voice heard.
“Anytime you challenge someone where something’s uncomfortable or someone doesn’t want to hear anything from you, that’s the challenge. I’ve been through that so many times,” reflected Blackwell. “Some things have to be said for the betterment of the team.”
In The Deceptive One, Blackwell outlines the ways a point guard can prepare for a game and how they can mask their intentions on the court, focusing on watching film and pace of play.
Blackwell prides himself on his discipline in watching film; it’s what gave him the upper hand in prep school and JUCO and still remains an integral part of his game, whether it’s on his matchup or himself.
“If I’m watching film on myself: I want to watch my body language, how I’m reacting to certain situations, if I’m holding my follow-through on my shot, how I’m reacting to my teammates, how they’re reacting to me—I watch little things like that.” said Blackwell. “I’m watching if [the defender’s] slacking, how he reacts, if he’s emotional, his weaknesses, if he’s showing his right hand, his left hand, what he likes to do, his attributes, how he reacts to his teammates. If he messes up, how does he react? Let’s say he misses a shot, he gets emotional, I’ll bump him.”
Blackwell is familiar with the mental side of basketball, and he’ll take advantage of any opponent he feels runs a little too hot-blooded, but he has had moments where his emotions have gotten the better of him on the court—a side of his game that he’s tried to cool off.
In a game against Columbus State in 2024, he fell victim to some of his own tactics. Blackwell logged only 18 minutes, despite starting, due to picking up three quick fouls in the first half.
“They had a real good scout against me, man. They were doing little chippy things, my shot wasn’t falling, they would bait me into fouling them. They got me out quick,” sighed Blackwell. “After the game, I’m like, ‘Damn, they got me. I gotta do better.’”
Blackwell is a speedy guard who can attack and shoot, but he cites his pace of play as not only an area that he needs to improve in, but one that is crucial for any aspiring point guard. The ability to use the threat of speed as bait to get a shot off, typically by having the ball on a string, is what chapter two is all about.
“I can shoot the ball well, get my teammates involved, [I’m working on] controlling my pace, because I’m naturally fast,” said Blackwell. “There are times when I have to remember to slow myself down, and it’s something I feel like I’m still working on to this day.”
In “Know Your Personnel,” Blackwell asserts that without extensive knowledge of the other four players sharing the court with you, you will never put your team in a position to succeed. Whether it’s broad knowledge like their hot spots or nuanced information like their shooting pocket, Blackwell demands that the point guard keep that data in mind at all times.
But it also has to do with team chemistry. Blackwell couldn’t dare call himself a leader if he wasn’t someone who meshed with his team. Now, a couple of months in with this Marist unit, Blackwell has got a sense for his new team.
“I think we have a real good chance to do something special here this year. Everyone is together, everyone’s cool with each other,” said Blackwell. “We have some young cats on the team who are willing to learn. I see really high, good character people.”
With so many seasons under his belt, Blackwell has years of experience to offer to the incoming class of freshmen.
“I get shots up with some of the young guys, me and Ricky [McKenzie] get shots up together, I give him pointers here and there,” said Blackwell. “I’ve had so much experience playing at these different schools and different levels, giving some of these young guys guidance, I’m doing what I can to help the team in any shape.”
However, just because he’s the oldest member of the team does not mean he can’t still sharpen his craft.
“Best believe I’ll take some pointers from them without them even knowing. [Jadin Collins-Roberts], I’ll watch his pace, how he stays under control. I’ll watch how Elijah [Lewis] gets to his spot, how he gets his mid-range off.”
Blackwell hails from Deer Park, Long Island, raised in a household where competitiveness is as natural as drawing breath. His father, Korey Blackwell, spent six years in the NFL despite being an undrafted free agent, no stranger to the war it takes to secure a roster spot. After his pro football career wrapped up, he translated that same drive to the administrative ladder, rising through the ranks to become New York City Probation Assistant Commissioner.
“He always told me, ‘Man, I’m a pro! I’m a pro! This is what I do!’” mocked Blackwell. “That aggressive mindset, it translates to whatever he does.”
Encouraged by his father, Blackwell and his older brother, Karon, went at it every chance they had. Karon went on to play college basketball at Dillard University, acting as the perfect role model for Blackwell to walk in his footsteps.
Present-day, Karon’s collegiate basketball career has finished, and he’s now his younger brother’s personal trainer. With Rhyjon still working through the ups and downs of his own journey, he has Karon to fall back on for guidance.
“He knows how to push me when I don’t want to be pushed. He helped me tap into a different level of myself that I didn’t even know was there. He was there for me in my lowest moments, through the injuries. My brother is my everything.”
His brother isn’t the only trainer Rhyjon has added to his cabinet. Following Karon to one of his training sessions, Blackwell was introduced to Jerry Powell, a renowned NBA trainer based in Long Island. Powell’s portfolio is rife with All-Star talent—names like LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Paul George and Jrue Holiday.
Walking into Babylon Town Hall Annex, Blackwell sat down and expected to just watch his older brother work out, maybe take some pointers and head home.
“Jerry looks at me and he goes, ‘Yo, what’s up? Why don’t you have a basketball? What are you doing?’ Ever since then, I just kept going back to Jerry,” said Blackwell.
Citing Powell as “Sensei” in his book, Blackwell has now developed a close relationship with the Long Island basketball legend. Just this summer, he was given the opportunity to rebound for Devin Booker and Kyle Kuzma.
Coming out of Baldwin High School, Blackwell had zero offers from any program at any level despite averaging 15.5 points and 7.2 assists per game as a senior to earn All-Conference and All-County.
Refusing to let his basketball dreams die, he enrolled at Combine Academy, a notable prep school in North Carolina with a well-established DI pipeline. If he couldn’t perform at a high level and garner at least a JUCO offer by the end of the season, his collegiate career would end before it could even begin.
On a clock with everything to lose, Blackwell began to sharpen his competitive edge. Combine played in a competitive circuit, frequently giving Blackwell opportunities to square off against touted prospects and future NBA players, including the Murray twins, Keegan and Kris. When those games were looming, he would transcribe the names of the players he wanted to outplay onto his “Kill List.”
“I was trying to make it out; it was all or nothing. I made it my top priority when I played against high-level cats, I was going to do my best to destroy them.”
Rhyjon Blackwell
He kept killing, and as he did, the offers started to trickle in. First, from DII schools like Limestone and, ironically, USC Aiken and finally DI programs like Purdue Fort Wayne and USC Upstate.
But Blackwell turned those down, opting to commit to Florida Southwestern, a JUCO school in Cypress Lake.
While it appears to be a confusing decision on paper, Florida Southwestern is quietly a hotspot for high-level DI transfers—since 2017, 50 students have made the jump to Division I. The most notable alum is Sacramento Kings defensive specialist Keon Ellis, who holds numerous program records.
“It was run like a Division I program; it didn’t feel like a junior college,” said Blackwell.
Moreover, Blackwell played at Florida SouthWestern while he was at Combine, and was thoroughly impressed with the program. He established a relationship with their head coach Eric Murphy, who’s now an assistant coach at Western Kentucky. They texted constantly throughout the rest of his season, and by the time he was forced to pick a school, it was an easy call.
“You want to be where you’re wanted.”
Stepping into his first collegiate basketball environment, it was cutthroat. Every teammate Blackwell had was equally his competition and an obstacle keeping him from the higher levels. With these circumstances in mind, Blackwell was ready to work.
“JUCO was a dog house, man,” Blackwell said, with memories flooding in. “Everyone is trying to make it out. It’s a two-year institution. You’re on a clock.”
But JUCO got the better of Blackwell in his first season. It was the lowest point in his life—Blackwell averaged just four and a half points per game and lost half of his scholarship. Now confronted with what could be his final season of basketball, back against the wall once again, Blackwell needed to make a decision.
“Right then, I told myself, I can tuck my tail in, or I can stay here, fight, and make it out.”
Ryhjon Blackwell
Fought he did. In his second season with Florida SouthWestern, Blackwell doubled his scoring average to 8.5 points per game on an accurate 41% from behind the arc. He tied the program single-game record for threes made with eight, his sharpshooting earned him 7th all-time in single-season three-point percentage, and he made second team all-conference. Florida Southwestern went 24-6 and appeared in the NJCAA District Tournament semifinals.
Now, more Division I offers flooded in, with Marist ironically making an appearance. Blackwell had a Marist visit scheduled after McNeese State, but never made the trip. He was convinced on the spot to commit to the Louisiana university and officially made it to the DI level after three years post-high school.
However, misfortune struck Blackwell nine games into his junior season. Starting four games in a row, his playing time slowly depreciated as he realized he was toeing the line between playing through injury and damaging his body further. He suffered a hernia and tore both his right oblique and hip flexor.
“I had never been hurt before in my entire life. Really being hurt and sitting down, not being able to do something when you really want to—I couldn’t move.” recalled Blackwell. “It was the first time in my life where I was without a basketball, and that taught me a lesson within itself. Controlling the controllables.”
Blackwell transferred out of McNeese after his junior year, scaling down to USC Aiken, a Division II school that was amongst the best in their conference, appearing in the NCAA DII tournament three straight seasons, twice with Blackwell.
His first year at USC Aiken, Blackwell averaged a tame 8.1 points and 3.2 rebounds, but his second season is when he blossomed into the sharpshooting scorer that attracted the attention of Marist head coach John Dunne this off-season. In his fifth post-high school season, Blackwell poured in a career-high 13.3 points per game on a consistent 37.6% from deep, draining a team-high 65 threes. 65 of his 128 total makes on the season were from behind the arc. He was also second on the team in assists (63) and steals (40).
With his sixth season of college basketball starting on Monday in Marist’s 66-62 loss at Xavier, in which Blackwell led the Red Foxes with 24 points, he hasn’t lost any steam. While this year could be his last—he’s in the midst of appealing for a seventh—he has no intention of stopping after college. The only thing he could see himself doing other than basketball? Writing more books along the way.
Edited by Ben Leeds
Graphic by August Lieberman
Photos by Marist Athletics
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