Duke basketball: What to make of peculiar Patrick Baldwin Jr. updates

The pressure is on two Duke basketball pledges to close Patrick Baldwin Jr.

Eric Bossi, a recruiting insider who just moved from Rivals to 247Sports, recently interviewed Hamilton (Wis.) small forward Patrick Baldwin Jr. and posted it for his new employer on Monday. While the top prospect on the 247Sports 2021 Composite didn’t give any conclusive answers regarding his recruitment, he did give insight into Duke basketball’s closing strategy:

“I think it is definitely a Coach K and [Jon] Scheyer conversation and then really a Paolo Banchero and AJ Griffin situation where they are really doing a lot of the recruiting now. They are just trying to put together final pieces for that class.”

It sounds like the responsibility for sealing the deal could fall on the two early 2021 Duke basketball pledges, Banchero and Griffin, who rank No. 3 and No. 6 overall, respectively.

ALSO READ: Cryptic tweet from Duke pledge Paolo Banchero?

As for whether Baldwin Jr. could see himself as one of the final pieces to the class, well, the 247Sports Crystal Ball sure shows that to be the case. It has from Day One. But when speaking about potentially playing alongside two fellow 2021 five-star forwards, the 6-foot-10, 205-pound picturesque shooter started off with a somewhat surprising statement:

“It is neither a benefit nor a drawback.”

Maybe this is just a case of Baldwin Jr. being careful not to tip his hand. However, one would think the presence of two other top 10 forwards would have to be either 1) a truly enticing proposition or 2) an absolute turnoff for the phenom.

That said, Baldwin Jr. did go on to imply to Bossi that Banchero and Griffin — not to mention Mike Krzyzewski and his assistants — would be ideal weapons to have on his side:

“Paolo and AJ are guys that almost anybody could step in with and be really successful with them. They are both unselfish players, and they can both get it done offensively and defensively. Really, when you have talent like that with a coach that makes their players buy-in, anybody can step in regardless of whether they are really highly rated or not and do really well.”

That’s all Baldwin Jr. had to say about the Duke basketball program and its class. And that, in itself, is also a bit peculiar considering the 17-year-old spoke just as long, and in some cases longer, about a few perceived underdogs in his final 10, which consists of Duke, Georgetown, Kentucky, Michigan, North Carolina, Northwestern, UCLA, Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wisconsin-Milwaukee.

While it’s totally understandable that Baldwin Jr. went on and on about the trust factor that draws him to his namesake, the head coach at UW-Milwaukee, his lengthy positive comments about UNC and UCLA suggest they also remain legit contenders despite many insiders discounting their pursuits in the past.

He referred to the UNC coaches as “one of the more consistently communicating staffs” and the virtual tours they’ve taken him on as “super special.” As for UCLA, Baldwin Jr. noted the chance to help return the program to dominance and finished with this: “Even though it is kind of far out there on the West Coast, it isn’t out of the picture because of the pedigree they bring.”

Yet most bizarre were the comments about Northwestern. Because Baldwin Jr. was a ballboy in Evanston when his dad was an assistant under Duke basketball alum and current head coach Chris Collins, some saw the Wildcats as bonafide players in the race. While that chatter has since dropped off, it is odd how he explained that Collins may not even have a spot for him anymore:

“Things stand pretty well with them in terms of relationship, but I think it would be pretty tough right now at this point because I don’t necessarily know if they have a scholarship for me. In terms of relationships, I love coach Chris Collins…Just kind of logistically at this point, I don’t know if it is a possibility…”

When will the primary Duke basketball target make up his mind?

Finally, in regards to his timeline for making a decision, Baldwin Jr. suggested he is not at all set on doing so in time for the early signing period in November. At the same time, though, he offered little in terms of specifying a month to watch for his commitment, essentially saying it could come as soon as November or as late as March:

“Throughout this entire process, I’ve never really had a real timeline. I’ve just known when it feels right it feels right, and I will do it…I think it is coming along a little quicker now, and I think I could start to wrap it up in the next two or three months, give or take one or two. I would like to get it done before the end of the year, but if it goes past then it goes past…so be it.”

Combining these updates with the observation that Coach K and his gang aren’t likely to back out of the battle until their prioritized target decides, it looks like the Blue Devils — Banchero and Griffin included — still have plenty of work to do in terms of a closing pitch.

All in all, it doesn’t seem as if Coach K, who extended an offer to Patrick Baldwin Jr. more than two years ago and hosted him for an unofficial visit in February, is as strong a favorite as many once suspected. In other words, it does seem his father and at least one or two others definitely remain in the hunt.

Meanwhile, Duke basketball offers are also still on the table to three other 2021 recruits, all five-stars: shooting guard Trevor Keels, small forward Caleb Houstan, and center Charles Bediako.

Stay tuned to Ball Durham for more on Patrick Baldwin Jr. plus other Duke basketball recruiting news and views.