Basketball Recruiting: Darrick Wood
By Mark Knight
2012 combo guard Darrick Wood (6’4, 175) has recently picked up interest and an offer from Washington. He is quickly becoming one of the main targets for UW for 2012, especially since Demarquise Johnson decided to go to Washington State and Wood has expressed mutual interest with Washington. Wood is a de-commit from St. John’s University and he now holds offers from all over the country.
The Husky Haul was able to catch up with Wood and talk to him about his recruiting process.
The recruiting process:
“I want to take my recruiting process slow, I rushed it with St. John’s and it wasn’t the right fit for me or my family.” Wood said about his de-commitment from St. John’s. He now plans to really evaluate all of the schools that are recruiting him and pick the one that fits what he is looking for in a school.
“I want to go to a school that has a good basketball program and a great environment,” Wood said.
The schools that are recruiting him are Washington, Texas, UCONN, Memphis, Maryland, Providence, Oklahoma State, Oregon State, and Oregon. He doesn’t plan to narrow down this list until after the season. He will then work on setting up visits and seeing some of the schools that interest him.
As for what school is recruiting him the hardest right now, Wood says it is Washington because of Coach Raphael Chillious. Texas is a very close second in terms of recruiting him the hardest.
On Washington:
He spoke highly of Washington and Coach Lorenzo Romar, that he really likes that Romar “puts guys in the league.” And Wood looks up to his friend, Isaiah Thomas, “I have always liked Washington because of him (Thomas).” When he asks Thomas what he thinks of UW, “He is telling me it’s a good school, lots of cool people, and that Romar just wants the best for you.”
Even though Wood is from Washington D.C. he says that distance is not a problem. That he has been in prep schools and he said his mom understands that he may have to live away from home to make his dreams happen. He actually likes what he has heard about Seattle, “I have never been to Seattle, but I have heard it is a great city. I grew up in the city, so that is what I am used to. I don’t really want to go to a country place. I don’t want to get to bored. ”
His playing style:
Wood is a highly sought out guard because his ability to not only play both the point and the shooting guard but his athleticism ranks amongst the best in the nation. He describes his playing style as, “I am an up and down guy that is a combo guard. I can play both the one and the two. I am very athletic and that is what helps me get my shot off, I use my quickness to get it off in front of bigger guards. I can take it to the rim and create contact or I can shoot it from outside.” And when it comes to shooting free-throws Wood says, “That is a free point, you have to make that.”
Rivals has Wood ranked as a 4-star prospect and Scout has him as a 3-star. Washington is known to be pursuing guards in the 2012 class and Wood is quite possibly the best of their guard targets.
Stay tuned for more.