It’s been some time since the Carmichael brothers duked it out in a game of one-on-one hoops.
The days of Hogan, a senior at Summit High School, dominating his junior brother Pearson have long passed. With it, so has the friendly, or sometimes no so friendly, competition.
“Every time we’d play one on one I’d end up crying,” Pearson admitted. “I was a crybaby back then.”
Despite just a one year age difference, Hogan always made sure to assert his physical dominance over Pearson during their youth. He was always the bigger one, always the stronger one. And he still is, in some regards.
Hogan roughed Pearson up off the court and bullied him on it. But come 2020, the dynamic began to shift. A 6-foot freshman, Pearson — nicknamed “Peanut” for his small head at birth — tacked on four-to-five more inches.
“I had to stop playing him once I realized he might be better than me,” Hogan said.
Summit’s Pearson Carmichael (11) attempts a layup during a game.Courtesy of Summit High School
His foresight was the silver lining because he still sports an undefeated record over Pearson. And what started as an inkling has turned full-blown revelation.
“He’s way better than me,” Hogan added.
It was tough for him to stomach, although he’s gotten used to it. It’s taken a bit longer for the rest of the state to adjust, however.
Pearson, now grown to 6-foot-7, is the tallest, and perhaps most skilled, player on a Summit team (14-5, 9-2 Intermountain Conference) that’s been defined by its devastating size. He’s the leading scorer, as well as a strong candidate for Conference Player of the Year for the Storm who have supplanted themselves as the No. 1 boy’s basketball team in Class 5A, according to the OSAA computer rankings.
After a guard-heavy attack pushed Summit to an undefeated finish in league play last season in 6A Mountain Valley Conference, the Storm slid down to 5A and are presenting teams with a far different look.
They start the 6-foot-2 Collin Moore at point guard and have surrounded him with four big wings, two of which include the Carmichael brothers.
Pearson, who held onto his guard skills despite his vast growth spurt, has taken over as the go-to scorer after spending last season as a role player.
“He has just blossomed into just an incredible talent,” Summit coach Jon Frazier said. “He can get a shot at pretty much anytime he wants… He’s really kind of a mismatch nightmare for opponents.”
Frazier called Pearson’s swift rise “unparalleled.” Before he’d started a game for the Storm, he had already garnered Division I interest. The forward recently committed to continue his playing career at Boise State.
Hogan’s locked in a Division I opportunity, too. Summit’s quarterback and the 5A Offensive Player of the Year, he committed to the University of Idaho football program earlier this month.
He’s brought football to the basketball court this year, serving as the team’s enforcer inside and, at 6-foot-4, a stretch big man on offense.
“He’s like the Draymond Green of our basketball team,” Pearson said. “He does everything our team needs. He’s our captain. He’s our leader.”
Together, the brothers have helped render the Storm — a group which returned zero starters from last season — title contenders.
“They’ve done some really special things for us this year,” Frazier said. “And I think they’re gonna be the real key to us as we make a playoff run.
“There’s just something different about brothers and the way they play together.”
Summit’s Hogan Carmichael (13) dribbles the ball up the court during a game.Courtesy of Summit High School
And it was a long time in the making. The duo has been in Summit’s youth program since they each entered middle school. Hogan added football to the repertoire early. Pearson even gave it a run of his own, playing wide receiver for Summit as a freshman. But by then, Hogan was already up with varsity.
So began the wait for the brothers to truly share a playing field.
It’s come about this year in a big way and Frazier has relished watching them coexist. As Pearson has ascended into one of the state’s top players, he’s had Hogan right beside him keeping him in check.
“He’s the kid I look up to,” Pearson said.
If Hogan has something to tell Pearson, the younger brother shuts his mouth and opens his ears., He admits that nobody quite gets through to him like Hogan does.
Often it comes during games. Hogan will approach Pearson about his shot selection or the pace he’s playing at if he’s gotten ahead of himself.
The duo shares a true admiration for one another. For as competitive their relationship understandably was with its athletic roots, there’s a reason Pearson locks in that much more when it’s Hogan addressing him. He trusts him. And perhaps nobody knows him, his game, or his personality better.
“Sometimes he needs to be reminded who big bro is,” Hogan joked.
It’s one of Hogan’s only opportunities for that these days. Long gone are his days of dominating Peanut on the court.
