Prospect Spotlight: Zae Baines (2020)
With today’s world of social media and people scouting kids younger and younger, it isn’t surprising to see a talented player being hyped up before he even plays a high school game. For Zaewaun Baines out of Roanoke, that was the case after he showcased his athletic ability as an eighth grader with VA All Stars.
Despite the hype, which usually only sets players up to disappoint, Baines showed that he has a bright future in his freshman season, leading his North Cross team to a 26-6 record and taking them to the VISAA Division 3 State Semifinals before losing to eventual state champs Williamsburg Christian.
While the season had a bitter ending to it, Baines feels it was a successful season both from an individual and team standpoint.
“Beginning of the year my goal was to take my team to the state championship,” Baines said. “We came up a little short, but that’s okay. I was trying to get mentally prepared for this stage, with this being my first year of high school basketball, and I think I played the way I wanted to play.”
Baines may not have reached his ultimate goal, but he showed that he’s one of the most physically and athletically gifted guards to come out of the Roanoke area in the last decade or so. At 6’2”, he has a good frame and good length already as a young PG, and he plays with a poise that’s well beyond his years.
While he’s been able to get by and dominate kids his age because he’s matured much more than his peers, Baines knows that it will take more than just raw talent to be able to make it at the next level.
Baines will be running with Virginia All-Stars this summer.“I’m definitely trying to improve on my size, getting bigger, stronger and faster,” he said. “I need to continue to improve on my handle and my shot as I get ready for the next level.”
This summer, Baines won’t be joining a shoe circuit team of any kind, instead he will be running with the same VA All-Star group that he’s played with throughout middle school. While many big time prospects are worried about getting exposure at his age, he’s more focused on getting better and helping his team win, both in AAU and next year in high school.
“Hopefully we can do better than we did this year. I just want to improve as a team everyday, hopefully get to the state championship and win it next year.”
His competitive mindset, along with his unselfishness and improving skill set, Baines has a chance to be a very good point guard in the 2020 class. He doesn’t have to worry about growing like some prospects his age, and his stellar play has already caught the eye of a division one school in Southern University who offered him before the high school season started.
If he can continue on the right path, you can be sure to hear more about Zae Baines as time goes on.