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NCAA Basketball: 25 biggest offseason winners heading into 2021-22 season

By Tristan Freeman

TUCSON, ARIZONA - JANUARY 04: Remy Martin #1 of the Arizona State Sun Devils in action during the game against the Arizona Wildcats at McKale Center on January 04, 2020 in Tucson, Arizona. The Arizona Wildcats won 75-47. (Photo by Jennifer Stewart/Getty Images)
TUCSON, ARIZONA - JANUARY 04: Remy Martin #1 of the Arizona State Sun Devils in action during the game against the Arizona Wildcats at McKale Center on January 04, 2020 in Tucson, Arizona. The Arizona Wildcats won 75-47. (Photo by Jennifer Stewart/Getty Images) /
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Sussex Hamilton forward Patrick Baldwin Jr. NCAA Basketball Sussex Hamilton basketball
Sussex Hamilton forward Patrick Baldwin Jr. NCAA Basketball Sussex Hamilton basketball /

15. UW-Milwaukee Panthers

When five-star prospects include mid-major programs outside of Gonzaga, the odds of them going to that small school is less than 1%. That’s especially true when the likes of Duke and Kentucky are involved in the process.

So when top-5 overall recruit Patrick Baldwin Jr. was reportedly down to Duke and Milwaukee, anyone who wasn’t an “insider” was predicting him to go to the blue blood Blue Devils. But with his father being the head coach of the Panthers, that proved to be too much for Duke to overcome, with the Panthers and Horizon League getting its highest-ranked recruit ever.

This is huge for Coach Baldwin and UW-Milwaukee, who has been at best a mid-tier program in the Horizon League. But with this five-star forward, they have their best chance in a long time to win the league. Leading scorer DeAndre Gholston (16.8 ppg) and Baldwin form the best 1-2 punch in the conference, while transfers Samba Kane and Moses Bol gives them frontcourt depth.

Without Baldwin Jr., no one outside the program would care about the Panthers for next season. At the bare minimum, Milwaukee will now be appointment television, just to see how good the star freshman is on the court.

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