Duke basketball: Three signs Coach K ends up with No. 1 recruit
By Matt Giles
Why Duke basketball pledge Paolo Banchero deserves No. 1: HEAD-TO-HEAD SIGN
OK, no offense to Jalen Johnson, Matthew Hurt, Wendell Moore, or any other current Blue Devil, but many Duke basketball fans seem to agree that Paolo Banchero would be the supreme talent on the 2020-21 Duke basketball roster if the 17-year-old was in Durham right now.
The same might be said, though, for Patrick Baldwin Jr., who was chosen to be on the Team Midwest roster this weekend alongside Chet Holmgren but, like AJ Griffin, was unable to attend.
That said, the most recent evidence supports the notion that Banchero is a bit too much for Baldwin Jr. to handle, especially defensively. At the Grassroots Showcase in Indianapolis on Sept. 5, Banchero proved more dependable by guiding his Seattle Rotary AAU club to a 59-52 defeat of Baldwin Jr.’s Phenom University.
Baldwin Jr. struggled mightily in the matchup, going 0-for-3 from downtown and scoring only nine points. Meanwhile, Banchero blew past the 6-foot-10, 205-pound sharpshooter on more than one occasion as part of his 20-point, nine-rebound winning effort, which Jerry Meyer of 247Sports all but forecasted a few days prior:
“[Baldwin Jr.] is a superior shooter than Banchero. But Banchero isn’t a bad shooter … Also, I like Banchero’s defense and his versatility on that end. He has the lateral quickness, strength, and explosive leaping ability to adequately defend most any position … Baldwin Jr. brings little impact to the game on the defensive end at this point. And I much prefer Banchero as a rebounder.”
Then, Meyer provided a simple explanation for his choice of Banchero over Baldwin Jr. (and Holmgren):
“Banchero gives a team the best chance of winning because he is the better basketball player.”
Sure, the level of talent that Banchero has been practicing against in recent months may have something to do with that…