Drake Dobbs Talks Liberty Commitment
Eden Prairie guard Drake Dobbs is one of the most talented guards in the state of Minnesota. A number of college basketball programs had interest but Dobbs found what he was looking for early in his recruitment. Dobbs pushed EP…
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Continue ReadingEden Prairie guard Drake Dobbs is one of the most talented guards in the state of Minnesota. A number of college basketball programs had interest but Dobbs found what he was looking for early in his recruitment.
Dobbs pushed EP to a 22-10 year leading the team in scoring 18.4 points per game shooting an impressive 46.2 percent this year as a guard against Minnesota’s toughest schedule. Throw in five assists and four boards a game and you have an all state junior basketball player.
That said, the Eagles had dreams of a state title and losing ten games was not something they expected at first (even though injuries to a pair of starters – Austin Andrews and John Henry – hurt). But EP is/was in the Section of Doom so putting a nice run together at the end of the year was a big positive.
“We started off decent this year with a couple one possession games (Chaska, Shakopee, Park Center, and Lakeville North, games they split) and we faced a lot of adversity this year (injuries) so we are super proud of us getting this far,” Drake said.
“At some point we lost three straight one possession games (Shakopee, Wayzata, Minnehaha Academy) so we had to bounce back from that and we had some injuries later in the year. So I am super proud of how this season went. We battled through a ton of things. Like when we were down to Prior Lake at halftime and battled back to win the section championship. Overall it was a good season.”
Dobbs is still just a junior, something that is tough to remember as he has seemingly been playing varsity forever. This year Dobbs took more things on his shoulders in games and in practice, vocally and with his actions.
“Over the four months I had to be more of a leader out on the court,” Drake explained. “I had to be more vocal. I had to be more vocal with this team and be more of a passer. I can score I know but getting guys open shots is a way I also improved. So creating for others and being more vocal are ways I improved.”
Dobbs has already committed to Liberty which is a great pick up for a team that made the NCAA Tournament this year and beat Mississippi State in round one. Dobbs told Prep Hoops why he knew Liberty was right for him.
“When I went to Liberty I really didn’t know what to expect when I went there for a visit,” Dobbs said. “I knew the coach Ritchie McKay and when I got there I was like ‘woah’. It’s a huge came, about 7,000 acres. The facilities are unbelievable.
“But even more was the way the coaches and players interacted. I have never seen people so personal on a social level. Everybody was talking to me asking me how my family was and every other aspect of my life. I really loved the coaching staff and the players a lot.”
Dobbs now has the edge of competing this 17u season with D1 Minnesota focused on improvement and winning. His college choice is made so games will be played with the focus on getting better and making the D1 17s a top squad.
“It’s going to be awesome. We get to play with some of the best players in the nation as we picked up Kendall Brown and Steven Crowl. I’m looking forward to that and playing against some of the top competition at the 17u level. I want to help get guys some looks scholarship wise and I want to keep being the point guard out there. Winning a couple tournaments would be awesome.”
D1 Minnesota plays there first games in two weekends as part of the Adidas Regional qualifiers.