Back in December, Dwayne Aristode was still settling into the spoils of being considered a “can’t miss” prospect for 2025.
The 6-foot-7 wing was new to the states and suiting up at national powerhouse Brewster Academy after playing in Spain for three years with Club Joventut Badalona then dominating for Netherlands in the U16 European Championships, where he averaged 15.3 points, nine rebounds, 3.1 assists and two steals a game.
Now, Aristode is taking time to soak in the campuses of the myriad of colleges that are hot on his trail.
“I went to Arizona in January and that was a really good visit,” Aristode said. “I was there for their game against Utah and it was a really good game.”
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Aristode particularly liked the highlight of the night when point guard Caleb Love threw down a monster dunk on the break and soaked in the atmosphere at McKale Memorial Center.
“I stood up on that one,” Aristode said of Love’s dunk. “Yeah that was tough, then Oumar Ballo got to 1,000 points so that was cool. I had a good time.”
Lately, Virginia, Duke, Connecticut, Wake Forest and Xavier have been reaching out most frequently in addition to the Wildcats, according to Aristode, who said he plans to take a visit to “either Duke or UConn” in the next two weeks.
“The coaches like that I play with a lot of energy, but they mostly like that I play both ways,” Aristode said. “I take a lot of pride in playing defense. I’m a good on offense, but I love defending. As a freshman in college, you’ve gotta play defense to get on the court, so I try to bring a lot of energy on that end.”
Aristode has taken the same approach at Brewster Academy this season, emerging as, arguably, the top two-way perimeter player in the Nike EYBL Scholastic, home to national powerhouses like Montverde Academy and Long Island Lutheran.
Last weekend, Aristode averaged 15.5 points and six rebounds a game at the Bob McKillop Classic where the Bobcats finished 1-1.
“At this point, I’m just trying to get to know the coaches,” Aristode said. “They’re showing me everything about their programs from how the players play to how they live and everything like that. I like that, because any kind of information I can get will help my decision.”
