Recruiting Report: Dain Dainja (2020)
Dain Dainja’s constant presence in whatever gym he can find his made him the player he is today. Prep Hoops spoke with Dain today about his season at Park Center and recruiting. The Pirates have earned the number one spot…
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Continue ReadingDain Dainja’s constant presence in whatever gym he can find his made him the player he is today. Prep Hoops spoke with Dain today about his season at Park Center and recruiting.
The Pirates have earned the number one spot and Dainja is excited for what the future holds.
Last weekend Park Center traveled to the Granite City Classic in St. Cloud defeating St. Paul Central and Robbinsdale Cooper. Dainja put up 18 points and 18 rebounds in the win over Central followed by 31 points on 13 of 18 shooting plus 17 rebounds and six blocks in a dismantling of Cooper. Dainja is now averaging 18.6 points a game for the number one ranked Pirates (8-0).
Park Center Head Coach James Ware spoke with Prep Hoops about Dain after his team’s win over Cooper on Saturday.
“The first thing that I think is unique about Dain is that I believe his love for the game of basketball is just higher than so many others,” Ware explained. “I was a player that lived in the gym and I see a lot of the same things in Dain. He doesn’t care who he is playing with as long as he is playing. Dain will get out and play with our freshmen team, practice with little kids, there is always something he is doing in the gym. There is always something that Dain thinks he needs to get better at so he always working to find a way into the gym.
“With Dain the tough thing is he has such a unique blend of size and skill, it’s up to him on how he chooses to try and dominate a game. Are you going to beat them up inside? Dain has perimeter skills so he can handle the ball. He can shoot the three. So really at times it’s like ‘Dain, where do you feel you want to dominate tonight?’ Each game he attacks and decides how to do it.”
Dain’s love for the game, as well as being in the gym has led to him being likely the most low post skilled player that we’ve seen in Minnesota since Royce White in 2009. Dainja attributes this to his constant skill work with several people.
“All season I work my butt off,” Dain said. “With my trainer, with my dad (former Gopher Dana Jackson), every off-season every day we are working in the gym. Even in the season. We really work on footwork which is a big part of it plus quickness and speed. I just work on my low post game a lot. I work every day before school, I go to the gym. After practice I work on a few moves.”
Dainja isn’t just a low post talent, he also has ability facing the basket. GI has been present at three games Dain has played this year and in every one Dainja has been seen playing lead guard at some point.
“Being 6-foot-9 and still being able to get my teammates involved by bringing the ball up is something I love to do,” Dainja stated. “Being able to make the right passes, I think that is a big part of how I can help our team, just by making the right passes from many spots on the floor. Giving my teammates the right passes to help them make plays.”
And how have the Pirates come together so well this year?
“We just work our butt as a team,” Dain explained. “That’s our 6am workouts before school, staying after school working out before practice starts, after practice still getting shots up, I just think we are the hardest working group in the state.
“Our goal every day is to be better. Build team chemistry. As you get closer to playing for state, we have to stick with each other when things aren’t going our way. Bring it together in the huddle and talk together about stuff. Not just fall out all over each other. We have to have each other’s backs. That’s going to be one of the biggest things.”
The long list of offers for Dain Dainja include Nevada, Western Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgetown, Clemson, Texas A&M, Marquette, Illinois, Minnesota, Northwestern, Kansas State, West Virginia, Iowa, Baylor, DePaul, Iowa State, Pitt, and Xavier among others.
Among those schools we asked Dainja who he is hearing from most commonly this winter.
“Everyone of the schools stick out to me really,” Dainja said. “Baylor has been on me a lot, West Virginia, Iowa, Iowa State, Louisville has been the new one calling, Gonzaga is a new school calling as well, and a Michigan State came to our game the other day. Illinois, Georgetown, others.
“I plan to take some visits in January. I was going to go Iowa last week but some things got messed up. I’m looking forward to take some visits soon. Nothing is set yet.”