The hype surrounding Baba Oladotun has been loud since his freshman year of high school. But there haven't been many chances to scout Maryland's incoming five-star recruit lately against top competition, in part because he missed much of his senior season, and in part because his suburban public high school doesn't play top competition.
But he did get a chance to show his stuff against other elite prospects last month at the Nike Hoops Summit in Portland. How did the 6-10 small forward from Silver Spring look among his peers? Corey Tulaba and Albert Ghim of the No Ceilings NBA podcast were there to watch.
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"Baba Oladotun is this 6-foot-10, Giannis-y kind of raw prospect," Tulaba said, comparing him to NBA superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo. "Super skilled. He's been shooting the ball really well. His shot isn't the prettiest, but its not ugly. He's been shooting the ball really well. "
Oladotun, who was the No. 1 player in the Class of 2027 before moving up to this year's senior class, is known for his skill level at 6-10. But he also made a splash in the paint.
"At one of the practices at the Moda Center, he had this offensive tip-dunk with his left hand that he kind of flew in out of nowhere, that I was like, 'Oh my goodness.' He is really, really interesting. He is a name to watch. High motor. He, to me, is probably the player that I'm most intrigued with long term and from an NBA perspective, at least in that top grouping, because he just got the NBA size and versatility. I think he can sit in a stance and defend, and I think he's tall enough to rebound and protect the rim a little bit. He's really interesting."
Oladotun will test his skill against elite competition again this summer after he was invited to the USA Basketball U-18 trials. Ranked the No. 11 player in the Class of 2026, he's also one of the youngest because of his decision to reclassify. At 17 years old, he's not just younger for his grade than most elite prospects, who are often older than their non-athlete peers -- Derik Queen is four years older, for perspective -- but he's young for a college freshman in general. Oladotun won't turn 18 until December.
That might mean it'll take him a minute to adjust to college basketball's physicality, but it also means he has more upside than a lot of other more physically mature top prospects.
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"He is very interesting," Ghim said. "To your point, he's really tall, very skinny, very skinny legs, very skinny frame. But there's a lot to be interested because of the length, the size and the skill set he has."
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