Chadlyn Traylor was diagnosed with hydrocephalus, a buildup of fluid on his brain, when he was just three months old, and by the time he was 12 he had endured eight brain surgeries and three other procedures. Friday, Nov. 6, 2026, in Fairborn, Ohio, that same kid from Charlotte, North Carolina, scored 20 points, grabbed three rebounds and dished three assists as Wright State's new point guard, helping the Raiders blow past Florida Atlantic 97-71 at the Nutter Center without ever trailing.
The win, part of a roster overhaul that brought 10 new faces to Wright State this season, including five transfers, three freshmen and two redshirts, was the kind of performance that announces a player has arrived. But as Dayton Daily News columnist Archdeacon detailed, Traylor's path to that stat line runs through hospital hallways most 6-foot-3 guards never have to navigate. Doctors told his mother, Shaleah Blount, that her son might not walk or talk until he was six or seven years old, and that he might never play sports at all.
An IV Bag and a Basketball in the Same Hand
Blount has told the story of wheeling her son down an ICU hallway, an IV bag trailing beside him, as he dribbled a basketball, according to the Dayton Daily News account. Traylor has said his family takes pride in its faith, and that he believes God's grace carried him through the medical ordeal that defined his childhood. He was barred from playing football because of the contact risk, something he has openly acknowledged cost him a sport he wanted to play.
The surgeries were not a one-time scare. Traylor received a shunt and a feeding tube after an infection struck in third grade, sidelining him from sports for two or three months, per the Dayton Daily News reporting. Two years later, in fifth grade, he spent two months in intensive care and missed his own fifth-grade graduation during what turned out to be his final surgery, a detail also documented by highschoolot.com, which reported that Traylor recalled his mother telling him he'd had about eight surgeries between birth and age 12 or 13.
From Medical Clearance to State Champion
Doctors removed his shunt before he entered sixth grade, and that same year he was medically cleared to play basketball again. By ninth grade he was already the starting point guard at West Charlotte High, and the team won a North Carolina 3A state title with him running the floor, according to the Dayton Daily News piece. He later transferred to North Mecklenburg High, where he led the Vikings to state 4A titles as both a junior and a senior and was named Queen City Conference Player of the Year.
By the time highschoolot.com profiled him in February 2025, Traylor had become a four-year starter with more than 1,000 career points and an 87-28 win-loss record, with that earlier report crediting him with 13.5 points and 6.0 assists per game as a junior. College of Charleston's own signing announcement credited him with the same 13.5 scoring average but listed 6.0 rebounds and 1.7 steals per game that junior season, a discrepancy between the two accounts that remains unresolved. The outlet's reporting also had him averaging 9.5 points and 4.2 assists as a freshman, then 15.5 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.0 assists as a sophomore.
A Season at Charleston, Then a Move to Dayton
Traylor chose to play his first college season at the College of Charleston under coach Chris Mack, appearing in all 32 games last season and starting once, averaging 17.3 minutes and 3.8 points per game, per the Dayton Daily News account. He scored 12 points against Florida Atlantic last season in a game that foreshadowed his big night against the Owls this week. College of Charleston Athletics notes he earned his first career start against Evansville at the 2025 Paradise Jam, and separately reported 65 total assists on the season, the second-most on the roster, with a 4.1 assist-to-turnover ratio.
After the season, Traylor transferred to Wright State, saying he wanted a greater opportunity and a place that felt like home. He has said Wright State's coaching staff beat him in a shooting contest during his recruiting visit, a small moment that stuck with him. Wright State coach Clint Sargent called him humble, ultra-competitive and a proven winner, and described him as bringing experience, family appreciation, character and dynamic play to the Raiders, adding that Traylor was a perfect fit for what he called a winning program.
Blount traveled from Charlotte to watch her son's big night, accompanied by Traylor's six-year-old younger brother Chance, the youngest, along with her nine-year-old nephew, Kareem Artis. Blount has said her son never gives up and will not be denied on the basketball court, a trait she watched take shape long before he ever put on a Wright State jersey.
