Texas Basketball Recruiting: Early look at 2019 class pre-signing period

The other in-state signee in this 2019 Texas basketball recruiting class just ahead of National Signing Day is the most promising among the three, five-star Westlake High School center Will Baker. The thought of the ceiling that Smart could have working with Baker and Jones in the paint is limitless.

Baker is one of the nation’s top 25 2019 high school prospects and the No. 8 center in a loaded recruiting class at the position. Smart and the Longhorns managed to pry Baker away out of the grips of the Stanford Cardinal, UCLA Bruins, Georgetown Hoyas, and the North Carolina Tar Heels. He literally had offers spanning from coast-to-coast.

However, Baker has the ability to space the floor, work down low, and defend multiple positions within the three-point line. His agility and foot speed also allows him to keep up in transition and threaten opposing defenders from almost anywhere on the floor. It was a shame that he was snubbed from the McDonald’s All American Game rosters.

Baker also has solid positioning in the paint and can be a regular double-double producer for Texas down low. He can post up and spot up shoot from three. If his handles and facilitating ability develop during his time on the Forty Acres, he can be a legitimate first round prospect here in the next few years.