Brady Zimmer (6-4 G, Delavan H.S.) - Illinois Wesleyan Class of 2014

In 6-4 Delavan combo guard Brady Zimmer, Ron Rose has landed a big-time talent. As a senior Zimmer averaged 29.3 points, 8.7 rebounds, and 2.4 assists per game. He was 299-549 from the field (.545), 45-124 from 3 (.363) and 265-303 from the FT line (.875).

He was named the AP Class A 1st Team all-state, IBCA 1A/2A 1st Team all-state, and Chicago Sun Times Class A 1st Team all-state. So far he has been named the Pantagraph Area Player of the Year (all levels), and the Pekin Times 1A/2A Player of the Year. He holds the Delavan H.S. record for points in a game (46), season (908), and career (2048).

While his high school numbers are eerily similar to his brother’s (he passed Jordan on the all-time Delavan scoring list with the last basket of his career), Brady is a different basketball player. Whereas Jordan Zimmer (a 2/3) is a pure 3-point shooter first, Brady is a slasher. Brady does shoot it well…just not quite as well as Jordan. And while Jordan is learning to handle the ball a lot better, he doesn’t have the handles Brady does. With the skill set he has, Brady could end up being a very good player at the 1, 2, or 3 at IWU. He will have to work hard and develop, just as junior-to-be Jordan is in the process of doing as a collegiate player -- it is a huge step up from IHSA Class 1A to the CCIW. I think how he develops in handling the ball will determine if he ends up as IWU’s next point-guard, or as more of 2 or 3.

While different players, the biggest similarity between Jordan and Brady (outside of their long, thin frames) is their work ethic. Some of the articles linked to below really paint a picture of how hard they work. For example, from the Pekin Times piece…

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“My brother and I, our games aren’t very similar, but if you compare our work ethics, they’re pretty similar,” Brady said. “He was working really hard when I was a freshman, so I followed him because I figured that’s what I had to do if I wanted to be as good as him.

“I started going in the mornings with him, and we’d work together. We shot a lot of shots. That’s what gave me the year I was able to have. His work ethic showed me what it takes to be successful.”

“Brady has a work ethic second to none,” said Delavan coach Ryon Kramer. “He’s been blessed with God-given ability, but he has not just gotten by on that. He’s put in so much time and effort into becoming the player he is.”
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Brady Zimmer is a 4.0 student (as Jordan was at Delavan), and to say he is a “high character kid” would be an understatement.


Pantagraph Player of the Year

Pekin Times 1A/2A Player of the Year

IBCA 1A/2A all-state team

Pantagraph feature (Jan. 2010)