For those of you who cannot wait until Midnight Madness tips off this fall, you can see the stars of tomorrow in a couple of weeks at the FIBA U19 World Cup. Featuring the best basketball players in the world ages 19 or younger, the USA will try to defend its gold medal from 2019 when it was led by several players who are expected to be lottery picks next month including Cade Cunningham/Jalen Green/Jalen Suggs. 1 of the finalists for this year’s USA roster is Patrick Baldwin Jr., who was selected as the Wisconsin Gatorade Player of the Year in 2020, became a McDonald’s All-American last February, and was named to the USA Nike Hoop Summit Team last March. Team USA will head to Latvia next week to try to win another gold medal, but before they do HoopsHD’s Jon Teitel got to chat with Patrick about choosing Milwaukee for college and whether the Bucks will win an NBA title next month.
As a freshman at Hamilton High School in Wisconsin you scored 22 PTS in the state semifinals but Carson Smith missed a 28-footer at the buzzer in a 1-PT loss to top-ranked Oshkosh North: did you think that Carson’s shot was going in, and could you tell at the time that Tyrese Haliburton (who made the All-Tourney team at the 2019 FIBA U19 World Cup) was good enough to become a lottery pick? I had only been around for a year at that point but after that game we were pretty sure that Tyrese would have a great future. It was a heartbreaking loss but Carson had a good look, which is all that we could ask for.
In 2020 you were named Gatorade Player of the Year for Wisconsin after averaging 24.3 PPG/10.8 RPG: how do you balance your scoring with your rebounding? The big thing on defense is securing the possession so I do whatever I can on the boards to make that happen. I need to produce for our team to win so scoring is also important.
During the second game of your senior season you suffered a season-ending ankle injury: how bad was the injury, and how is your ankle doing now? The ankle injury was not as bad as I thought. I am 100% now and it will not affect me long-term: it was just a freak accident.
In February you were named a McDonald’s All-American: what did it mean to you to receive such an outstanding honor? It meant the world to me to put my name up there with the past great players who I grew up watching. I shared the honor with my parents/coaches: it is still surreal. I wish that we could have actually played the game this year but it was still pretty special.
You are 6’10”: what position did you play in high school, and what position will you feel most comfortable at in college? I played a combo forward (3/4) in high school and occasionally slipped to the 2 guard: we were just out there playing basketball without worrying about positions. I was most comfortable as a 3 but will play anywhere on the court in college since my dad is the coach!
Last month you committed to play for your father at Milwaukee, becoming the highest-rated recruit to ever commit to a Horizon League program: how difficult was the decision, and how excited are you about joining a team with so much other size (7’1” Moses Bol/7’ Samba Kane/6’10” Joey St. Pierre)? I am super-excited to get going with my dad. It is the 1st time in a while that I have played with so much good size, which will take a lot of pressure off me on both offense/defense and allow me to be more creative on the court.
1 of the many great schools that you got an offer from was Duke: were you surprised when Coach Mike Krzyzewski announced a few weeks ago that he was going to retire next year? I was super-happy for him. I watched a lot of his teams growing up featuring players such as Shane Battier/Justise Winslow/Jayson Tatum: they were on TV anytime you turned it on. To see him go out with a bang will be special. Coach Jon Scheyer (his replacement) recruited me and has known my father for a while.
On Monday you were named a finalist for the 2021 USA Basketball Men’s U19 World Cup Team that will play in Latvia next month: what does it mean to you to represent your country, and how do you like having another player from Wisconsin on the roster in Jonathan Davis? Playing with Jonathan has been great. Showing what our state can do is special because not a lot of people know about the talent that we have here. Wearing USA on my chest is great and with COVID going to the wayside I am happy for the chance to compete for a gold medal.
Your father Pat (basketball) and your mother Shawn (volleyball) were both athletes at Northwestern: who is the best athlete in the family? We have this debate at the dinner table all the time but I will have to give the nod to my father: he wins it pretty handily.
This is a great time for basketball in Wisconsin: how far do you think the Bucks will go next month?! They have a really good chance to win a championship this year. I went to Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals and enjoyed seeing how Giannis Antetokounmpo plays on offense and how Brook Lopez spaces them defensively. I am excited for them to keep it going because the more they win, the more games I get to watch!