The college basketball season wrapped up in early April after an exciting Final Four. Houston edged out Duke, while Florida defeated Auburn. Todd Golden and the Florida Gators emerged as NCAA Tournament champions. Now, teams have begun building their squads for next season, and perhaps even beyond.
For the Duke Blue Devils, they have an exciting top target on their hands who is currently playing for Team Durant right now, Baba Oladotun. In their recent game against Kenny the Jet Smith’s Jet Academy team, Oladotun exploded for 20 points to bring Team Durant the big 88-64 victory.
Baba Oladotun Erupts For 20 Points as Team Durant Cruises Past Jet Academy
Seeing Oladotun make it to the Nike EYBL and play on Team Durant is fitting, compared to how Oladotun is already drawing comparisons to a young Kevin Durant. Oladotun now has led Team Durant to another victory over Kenny Smith’s Jet Academy after a fantastic 20-point performance.
Baba Oladotun (No. 1 ESPN 60) dropped 20 points against Kenny Smith’s Jet Academy 🔥👀
Team Durant: 88
Jet Academy: 64 pic.twitter.com/8Mef9GiZMT— SportsCenter NEXT (@SCNext) May 17, 2025
Oladotun possesses a unique skill set for a player so young, with a rare talent and drive that have some comparing him to another youth prodigy that emerged from the state of Maryland nearly 20 years ago, Durant.
As an eighth grader, Oladotun was invited to play in the prestigious Kevin Durant Nike Skills Academy, a coveted badge of honor for some of the top high school players in the country.
During one lunch break, while most of the other players grabbed some food, Oladotun stayed behind to get some shots up on an empty court inside the facility at Bowie State University. On the other end of the court, he heard someone else shooting around. As he glanced over his shoulder, he noticed that it was Durant.
The future Hall of Famer walked over and began to rebound for Oladotun. Within a few minutes, they began working out together.
“That happened so organically and I’m beyond thankful that God blessed me with that humbling experience,” said Oladotun. “That 45-minute workout, alone with KD, elevated my mid-post game with the things that he was showing and sharing with me.”
“He broke it down to a science in terms of pump fakes and creating space to get my shots off. And I realized that every shot he takes in games is all a byproduct of the hundreds of reps that he takes when he’s practicing.”
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“Baba was about seven or eight years old when I first saw him play and even at that young age, he was the closest thing I ever saw to Kevin,” said Wayne Pratt, Durant’s father. “As he continued to grow I saw it more and more. He can get his shot off against anybody and he can really shoot the ball.”
“He has an advanced understanding of the game, he’s humble, he loves basketball and has remarkable length at 6-foot-9 right now. And he’s still growing. He’s a great young man who has a chance to develop into something truly special.”
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