Brandon Adams shooting: Teen arrested after LEAD Academy basketball star's shooting death

Mariah Timms
The Tennessean
Brandon J. Adams

A 16-year-old was arrested Thursday in connection with the October shooting death of 18-year-old Brandon Adams. 

Timothy Frazier was arrested after he arrived at Maplewood High School to take a test. He has been charged with criminal homicide, attempted criminal homicide and two counts of especially aggravated robbery.

The Tennessean is naming the suspect due to the seriousness of the charges he faces. 

An investigation shows that Adams was injured as he drove away from the parking lot of McGavock High School on Oct. 13. He was taken to Skyline Medical Center, where he died. A relative who had been with him was also treated. 

Frazier is believed to have been the shooter, Metro Nashville Police reported.

Timothy Frazier

A beloved basketball star

Adams was a standout basketball player at Nashville charter school LEAD Academy, where he helped lead the Panthers to consecutive 20-win seasons. 

“I think it took a lot of people by surprise,” Adams’ former coach Matt Barksdale, who is now the head basketball coach at Centennial High School in Roswell, Georgia, said in October. “He was great. I can’t say a bad word about him.”

Adams, who garnered all-state honors as a senior last season, averaged a team-leading 16.9 points and 5.4 rebounds per game while helping lead the District 7-A and Region 4-A runner-up Panthers to a 25-6 record.

“He was one of the hardest workers I had on the team,” Barksdale added. “The kid flat out worked his butt off day in and day out for two years. He went from being a junior getting spot minutes to an all-state player as a senior. He was just the hardest worker.” 

Friends hold candles during a vigil held  Sunday, Oct. 21, 2018, to remember Brandon Adams who was shot and killed in the parking lot of McGavock High School, in Nashville, Tenn.

The October shooting

Police believe Adams and a relative drove to the school in a Honda Civic to meet other individuals. Police did not specify the nature of the meeting in a news release. 

Adams and his relative arrived first and parked on the right side of the school, near the softball fields. The other vehicle pulled beside theirs.

Police said an occupant of the other vehicle got into the backseat of the Honda Adams was driving. A second occupant of the other vehicle got out and threatened Adams and his relative with a pistol. 

As Adams sped off, the gunman began shooting, police said, hitting Adams several times. The Honda crashed near McGavock Pike.

The person in the backseat is believed to have fled just prior to or after the crash, police said. The investigation is continuing as detectives work to identify that individual and anyone else who may have been involved.

Anyone with information on the shooting is encouraged to call CrimeStoppers at (615) 862-7400. 

This story has been updated. 

Michael Murphy and Natalie Alund contributed to this report. Reach Mariah Timms at mtimms@tennessean.com, 615-259-8344 and on Twitter @MariahTimms.