VIDEO EXCLUSIVE: U.S. Basketball Olympic Star Dylan Travis On 3×3 Play: ‘You Got To Be Ready To Go Into A War’

U.S. Olympic 3×3 basketball player Dylan Travis described how 3×3 basketball is distinct from traditional five-on-five in an exclusive video interview with uSports.

Travis attended Daniel J. Gross Catholic High School in North Bellevue, Nebraska, where he was named first-team All-State, and he averaged 24.9 points, 5 assists and 8.9 rebounds in his senior season.

“It feels like you got to be ready to go into a war,” Travis told uSports before the Paris Games in May. “You’re going to get hit, you’re going to fall down, you have to be in great shape.”

The Olympian added that practicing twice daily was crucial for succeeding in 3×3 basketball.

Despite having an insane stat line for a senior, Travis received no Division I offers. The Omaha native committed to Midland University to kickstart his collegiate career. Travis played 25 games as a Midland Warrior, averaging seven points a game before transferring to Iowa Central Community College in 201 – he was the team’s scoring leader and received All-Region tournament honors.

The former Midland Warrior was eligible for the 2016 draft, but no team selected him. He took a job as a special education teacher at Omaha’s Westside High School.

Travis took up 3×3 after a friend wanted him to try it. It was a good choice, as Travis won the U.S. a gold medal at the 2022 FIBA 3×3 AmeriCup and the 2023 Pan American Games. Travis was selected to play on the national team at the 2024 Paris Olympics, signaling the first time the U.S. qualified for the Olympics in 3×3 basketball.

In Paris, he finished seventh overall. 

Article by Christian Bongiorno