Column: Ethan Mgbako is Mark Byington's Breakthrough High School Recruit

Nashville—-Ethan Mgbako milled around in a roped-off area on the sideline of FirstBank Stadium alongside Vanderbilt coach Mark Byington and a few of its current players as if he was soaking it all in.

Perhaps watching Mgbako share a laugh with Vanderbilt freshman center Jayden Leverett would indicate to some along the sideline that Vanderbilt may be a leader for the four-star swingman. Those who have been around and followed Vanderbilt’s recruiting under Byington may have chuckled and acted as if they knew better, though.

Perhaps a moment like the one that was visible with Mgbako was reminiscent of ones that Chance Mallory, Sebastian Williams-Adams, Jermaine O’Neal, Nyk Lewis, Jaden Toombs, Jerry Easter, Derek Dixon and London Jemison had prior to their commitments elsewhere. The aforementioned players all had varying levels of interest in Vanderbilt before Byington’s first season at the helm and all chose to take their talents elsewhere. Vanderbilt had a relationship with each player. With a few of them it had the highest bid, too. Yet, it finished the 2025 class without a top 150 player in the class committed.

It’s not as if Byington and staff didn’t have the capability to land a player like Mgbako, but how could anyone believe until they proved that they could do it? All anyone had to do to tap in to their fair share of negativity was remember any of Vanderbilt’s highly-touted 2025 targets.

Mgbako is different than any of them, though. The No. 65 player in the 2026 class room Vanderbilt up on its offer and committed to it.

All types of players of Mgbako’s caliber have lived it up in Nashville for a weekend and heard Byington out on his vision. Many of them have had Vanderbilt as their second school when it was all said and done. Many have struggled to commit to something that nobody else of their stature has before.

Mgbako is the first one to tell them yes, though. He’s the first one to give Byington evidence that the words he spoke at his introductory press conference have some believability. Byington talked that day about how he should have an easy pitch to recruits, how they should want to gravitate towards the school. He talked about how he should be able to get players of Mgbako’s caliber.

“Vanderbilt is committed, and they want to be successful. And that matches my vision,” Byington said. “It’s a great league, and we’re going to find players who aren’t scared of a challenge.”

Turns out Mgbako–the brother of Texas A&M wing Mackenzie Mgbako–is up for the challenge that Byington has worked at since taking the job a few springs ago.

Byington has had all types of high-profile, highly-compensated transfers. He’s yet to have a high schooler of Mgbako’s caliber since taking this job, though. Mgbako could feasibly come in make an impact for Vanderbilt right away. He could be a rotational piece as a freshman.

Vanderbilt likes what it has in its three-man freshman class of Jaylon Dean-Vines, Chandler Bing and Leverett, but it never brought those players in with the idea that they would be fixtures of its rotation. When you bring in a player like Mgbako, that’s what you sign up for.

This Vanderbilt staff strays away from guaranteeing anything to anyone, but it won't overlook the 6-foot-6 wing and the maturity in his game. He's already performed against the best of the best on the circuit and in the best high school league in the country.

At this stage Mgbako has already demonstrated a mature feel for the game and when to pick his spots to go alongside his ability to score it at all three levels. Perhaps Mgbako isn't as athletic as his brother and doesn't have the immediate NBA hype to go with his name, but he's a practical prospect that checks all types of boxes.

Who knows how it all plays out, but Vanderbilt landing a player like Mgbako matters. Landing players with Mgbako’s pedigree—who played at the NBA Top 100 camp, was an EYBL standout and is a go-to guy at one of the country’s premier prep schools—shows others like him that Vanderbilt is a realistic place for them.

Perhaps all it had to do was get the first one.