51ºÚÁÏ

That afternoon, another tall fellow roamed the sideline, though he wasn’t really recognized by many. His name was Toni Bryant.

But on Monday, when the Florida high school senior Bryant agreed to play basketball for Mizzou next season, he became the third-highest-rated recruit ever to choose Mizzou.

The second-highest-rated recruit? That’s Jason Crowe Jr. — another high school senior who will play with Bryant in Columbia beginning in 2026-27.

This is an extraordinary development — perhaps the biggest thing to happen to Dennis Gates’ program (though beating No. 1 Kansas last year sure was something). Both players are five-star recruits, per ESPN and composite ratings.

The 6-foot-9 Bryant is the No. 23 player in the senior class on 247sports and No. 14 on ESPN.

The 6-foot-3 Crowe is No. 3 on 247sports and No. 5 on ESPN.

Of course, here is where we point out that great teams get two five-star recruits all the time. And there are times it doesn’t lead to success — shoot, just this past season, the Rutgers Scarlet Knights had freshman Dylan Harper (No. 2 pick in the 2025 NBA draft) and Ace Bailey (No. 5 pick), and Rutgers had a 15-17 record.

OK, but for Missouri, which has never reached the Final Four, getting two five-star recruits is a substantial development. With all the transfers, it’s difficult to determine how a season will play out two years from now, let alone this year, but what a base for Mizzou: a five-star guard and a five-star forward on the floor.

And Mizzou matters, man. Gates is onto something. He went 25-10 in his first year. Had a forgettable run his second year — but still crushed it in the transfer portal. And he went 22-12 in his third year of 2024-25. For this winter, he brings back Duke transfer Mark Mitchell, who could be one of the best forwards in the Southeastern Conference, and defensive wizard Anthony Robinson II. And he currently has Annor Boateng, the sixth-highest-rated Mizzou recruit since 2000, as a rising sophomore.

Gates is an architect, a Gehry of hoops teams. He and his staff are audacious builders. And they’re seemingly recruiting the right way. Obviously, it’s now legal to pay players through name, image and likeness deals now. But character apparently still (really, really) matters.

I love this quote from Jason Crowe’s father, Jason Sr., to MissouriOnSI: “I’ve seen all this stuff, about (big payouts) and about all this type of stuff. Well, my family, that’s not our desire. Our desire is for our son to be able to be in an environment where he can enjoy himself, be coached hard and be able to elevate, be able to bring value to a program.�

So what do we know about Toni Bryant?

I spoke briefly Monday with his coach at his new high school, Zephyrville Christian Academy in Florida.

“I can tell you he’s a gym rat; he’s in here everyday. We love him,� Spence Jones said.

And as I watched some film and read some scouting reports, it sure seems like Bryant can dominate a game in transition. The Tigers, incidentally, were ninth in the nation last year in points per game and thrive with a run-and-gun mindset.

Bryant plays travel ball with Tre Mann Elite, and last year, he attended North Tampa Christian High. There, Bryant averaged 21.0 points, 11.8 rebounds and — not a typo — 6.5 blocks. He made 43% of 3-point attempts, too. Again, we’re talking about one of the 25 best players in the country.

Now, there were many frustrating things regarding Michael Porter Jr.’s injury-plagued lone season at Mizzou. And when he first signed with the Tigers, I thought his presence would help Mizzou attract other five-star talent to Columbia. But he didn’t really have a season. There was no body of work to prove that a star high school player could star in Columbia.

But all these years later, MPJ’s presence is helping Mizzou basketball. There he was last Saturday on Faurot Field at Memorial Stadium, along with other recent Tigers such as Kobe Brown (now with the Los Angeles Clippers) and Tamar Bates (Denver Nuggets). Toni Bryant was surrounded by them all.

And now, Bryant is heading to Mizzou — and it brings back memories of 1999, when the Tigers signed Travon Bryant, who was a McDonald’s All-American. We’ll know in about five or six months if Travon’s namesake will earn that same honor — and if Jason Crowe Jr. will, too.