Duke basketball: Ranking the chances of 10 finalists for Patrick Baldwin Jr.

Is the Duke basketball recruiting machine the best bet among the remaining hopefuls for one of the top high school players in the country?

Likely, not even Hamilton (Wis.) five-star small forward Patrick Baldwin Jr. knows where Patrick Baldwin Jr. will play in college. And the 6-foot-10, 205-pound sharpshooter doesn’t intend to announce his destination until late summer or early fall. But now that the Duke basketball target has trimmed his list of suitors to 10, including the Blue Devils, it’s time to size up the competition.

ALSO READ: Five 2021 recruits who’d gel devilishly well in Durham

We’ll look at all 10, one by one, in the order of their perceived probabilities to end up with the No. 3 overall prospect on the 247Sports 2021 Composite. To come up with this ranking, we’ll take into account opinions from various sites and recruiting insiders; also, we’ll consider Baldwin Jr.’s contact with his pursuers, pertinent ties he might have to particular schools, and any past comments his camp may have made about the coaches and how he might fit in their plans.

First, starting with the above video evidence, we’ll give this reminder as to why the Duke basketball staff’s recruitment of Baldwin Jr. warrants this in-depth analysis of the entire top 10 in the first place. Here’s how Chicago Tribune columnist Teddy Greenstein recently summarized the potential prize:

“Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski has told friends he views Baldwin as the ‘perfect recruit.’
High basketball IQ. Great family. Relentless worker. A skilled stretch-four likened to Klay Thompson.”

Now, let’s begin with the finalist that is least likely to land the versatile gem…