Ranked No. 2 overall in the class of 2021, combo forward Patrick Baldwin Jr. is everything that a program – and eventually the NBA – could want in a forward prospect.
Now pushing 6-foot-10, the rising senior at Sussex (Wisc.) Hamilton in the Milwaukee area is one of the best jump shooters in the land, handles the ball extremely well, is a playmaker for others and has the type of versatility that is craved in the era of positionless basketball. Even better, as the G League and other professional leagues continue to try and get talent to skip college, Baldwin is most likely heading to school.
In May, the high-scoring and highly skilled Baldwin announced that he is down to a final 10 of Duke, Georgetown, Kentucky, Michigan, Milwaukee, North Carolina, Northwestern, UCLA, Virginia and Wisconsin. Here are the top contenders for his commitment.
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2020 Rankings: Rivals150 | Team | Position
2021 Rankings: Rivals150 | Position
2022 Rankings: Top 75
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1. DUKE
Whether it has the commanding lead that many consider it to have remains to be seen, but for a while now Mike Krzyzewski’s Duke program has been considered the team to beat for Baldwin.
After all, Duke is Duke, and they have a history of rangy or versatile combo types like Jabari Parker, Brandon Ingram, Jayson Tatum and Zion Williamson to name a few. Baldwin isn’t exactly like them and they aren’t exactly like each other, but Coach K and his staff have showed a willingness to showcase players like Baldwin in recent years. They will likely be doing it again with another Wisconsin product, Jalen Johnson, this season.
Baldwin has been on campus, everything behind the scenes sounds good for the Blue Devils and their status as the favorite seems to be earned.
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2. MILWAUKEE
It isn’t all that often that mid-major programs find themselves fighting it out with blue bloods for an elite prospect like Baldwin. But not many have the prospect’s father running the program.
When Baldwin discusses the possibility of playing for his father Pat Baldwin Sr. at Milwaukee, he’s not just talking. We’ve seen elite prospects be more and more willing to skip out on the big-name schools for situations that are set up for them to star and the chance to play for his father is a big part of Baldwin’s thinking.
"My dad hasn't said this, but my kind of mentality is that no coach will have your back greater than your dad. So whether he's at a D3 or a D2 school he's still going to have my back better than any coach in the country ever will,” Baldwin told Rivals.com during the winter.
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3. KENTUCKY
John Calipari and the Wildcats aren’t exactly strangers to helping potential one-and-done talents like Baldwin succeed. There will be plenty of need for a guy like him in Lexington during the 2021-22 season.
Baldwin would be an ideal replacement for a player like B.J. Boston who isn’t likely to spend more than one season at Kentucky. Again, not completely similar players, but the role of floor stretching wing with size who can create for others is something that Baldwin would fit into nicely.
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4. NORTHWESTERN
The ties to Northwestern run deep for Baldwin and he’s been around the program for much of his life. Not only did his father play there, but he also served as an assistant coach under Chris Collins before landing his current role as head coach. His mother is also a Northwestern graduate and played volleyball for the Wildcats.
Northwestern is off to a hot start with the class of 2021 and adding somebody like Baldwin would be totally game-changing. The odds aren’t great, but at least they have a chance and Collins has been establishing a relationship with Baldwin since before high school started.
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5. NORTH CAROLINA
Roy Williams and the Heels have hosted Baldwin and Williams evaluated Baldwin’s father as a high school player years ago when he was making noise at Leavenworth (Kans.) High. Baldwin was one of UNC’s first targets in the class of 2021 and Williams has had success with players like Harrison Barnes, Justin Jackson and Cameron Johnson, so it isn’t like he doesn’t know how to incorporate a talent like Baldwin.
