Grayson James Allen was born October 8, 1995, in Jacksonville, Florida. His father, William Allen, was a government contractor. His mother, Sherry Allen, worked in human resources. Neither parent coached or played basketball. Grayson Allen’s career was self-made.
He was an only child, but not entirely. When Grayson was young, his parents took in his best friend from school, Tonan Ferrell, whose mother had given him up. Tonan became the closest thing Grayson had to a brother. The two grew up together in the Allen household, and Tonan remains part of the family today.
Grayson attended Providence School in Jacksonville, a small private school where he earned an AP diploma and starred on the basketball team. He led Providence to a 90–10 record, a state championship in 2013, and two state semifinal appearances. Senior year: 29.3 PPG, 10.6 RPG. McDonald’s All-American in 2014. At the All-American game, he won the Slam Dunk Contest — jumping over future Duke teammate Jahlil Okafor, the 6’11”, 270-pound #1 recruit in America.
His parents stressed academics from the beginning. Getting a Duke degree has always been a goal and a dream of mine. He was active in his church, Grace Lutheran, in Jacksonville. Coach K visited the Allen home, and Grayson committed — then waited a few days to announce because he didn’t want attention at a Nike tournament. Those were the longest days of my life.
Some nights during freshman year, after practice, Grayson would wait until the facility emptied. Then he’d sit alone in the stands at Cameron and look around, trying to make sense of the fact that he was actually there. This was where Grant Hill and J.J. Redick had played. He was blessed to be part of that brotherhood.