Duke basketball: Father of elite recruit talks Blue Devil fandom, more

Part Two with the father of potential Duke basketball target Isaac Traudt

Ball Durham: So what would you say is your son’s main specialty as a player?

Brandon Traudt: “Different schools have looked at him for different things. He’s become a really high-percentage 3-point shooter. A lot of schools were initially looking at him as a stretch-four because they were questioning how well he could get to the rim. And so he really worked on that this summer — really worked — hitting the weights hard, with squats and hang cleans, deadlifts and box jumps, plyometric stuff to get more explosive. And that helped him a lot.”

In what ways did his hard work translate to the court?

“I would say toward the end of our AAU season, he was much better at attacking the rim. And then when he’s able to do that, it just opens everything up. He’s pretty good from midrange. Obviously, he’s pretty good from deep too. So adding that aspect that people questioned, I think that really improved him this summer.”

Is there a certain position he sees himself playing in college?

“Most people say they can see him as a wing, kind of that two- through four-spot, depending on the offense. He likes that. A couple of teams have said they see him more as a stretch-four. And not that there is anything wrong with that, but he definitely sees himself as more of a wing, more of a two/three than a four. But with his frame and the muscle that he’s added, I think most schools…if they can get him up to 230 or 240, they’re going to look at him as a four-man, I’m sure.”

What are some of the biggest names to have extended an offer?

“Wisconsin offered early. Iowa, Purdue, Oregon, Stanford, Notre Dame, Louisville. Creighton offered Isaac early on and has been in weekly communication.”

Which schools have been in contact with him as of late but haven’t offered?

“There’s a final tier of teams communicating with Isaac now, like Duke, Virginia, Gonzaga, Kansas, and Michigan State. Now, Michigan State has been probably the most consistent as far as communication with him, but they already have two 2022 commits. They have Emoni Bates, who obviously is the No. 1 player in the class, and they also have [center Enoch Boakye]. So they only have one more spot.”

So what is Michigan State telling him?

“So what they’ve told Isaac is they’re very high on him, and they think everything is trending toward an offer, but they need to see if one or both of those commits reclassify to 2021. So I think he’s probably one of the top priorities on their radar, but with two early commits from 2022 already for them, we probably need to wait and see what happens.”

How often does Michigan State call?

“Their coaches, Coach [Doug] Wojcik and Coach [Tom] Izzo, we’ve done probably three or four Zoom’s with them. I probably talk to each of them once a week. Isaac probably texts with each of them about two or three times a week, so we have a great relationship with them.”

Who has he heard from on the Duke basketball staff?

“Jon Scheyer is the only one either he or I have been in contact with. I’ve only talked to Coach Scheyer one time. He reached out three or four weeks ago. He talked to Isaac. Then he introduced himself to me. And then he has since talked to Isaac again. Basically, they have just kind of said that they look forward to seeing him more, that they were still finishing up their 2021 class and hadn’t made any offers for 2022, but that Isaac was going to be one of 10 or 12 kids that they have already seen, that they have liked, and that they are going to be in touch with and watching this winter.”