Recruiting Report: Isaiah Folkes (2021)
It’s always nice when you watch a kid at a young age and say “he has a chance,” then a few years later you see that he’s reaching that potential. That’s the case for Middleburg junior guard Isaiah Folkes, who I saw as an impressive sophomore at Stonewall Jackson who is now starting to come into his own and getting recognized for it.
The Dragons have started the year on fire, sitting at 3-1 with Folkes being a major part of it. An athletic freak at the point guard position, he often leaves defenders and crowds in awe with his huge dunks despite being just over 6 feet, and his quickness of the bounce makes him very tough to stay in front of. He’s also a good defender which helps set the tone for his team on both ends of the floor.
Folkes is happy with the start, but knows it’s early and there’s a long season in front of them.
“We’ve got off to a great start,” Folkes said. “We have some great chemistry on this team and great players, we just have to continue to bring it moving forward.”
Last year, Folkes was a junior at Stonewall and one of the best players in Prince William County. He decided to reclassify this past summer and head to Middleburg, giving him an extra year to develop and get more exposure. He says it’s a big reason that he’s been able to improve so much over the past year.
“It’s getting me ready for the college level as I’m getting stronger, my basketball IQ is getting better and it’s allowing me to work on my craft and get better,” he said.
Folkes has seen that extra year already paying off as he holds offers from a number of schools including Elon, Lehigh, JMU, Radford, ODU, Norfolk State, Stetson and Youngstown State. He also says he’s been hearing from the likes of Murray State, William & Mary, Delaware and many more.
With a handful of offers already, I asked what Folkes believes he could bring to a team and what he needs to improve on moving forward.
“I can be a great point guard, I get everyone involved, I push the basketball, I’m athletic and I play defense. I know I need to work on shooting off the dribble more and being more consistent with my jumper overall.”
With a mix of athleticism and skill set, along with good grades as well, Folkes is likely to see his stock continue to rise, especially if Middleburg continues to impress the way that they have. With the way it looks early, they should be one of the top teams in all of VISAA D2, and Folkes is one of the main reasons for that this year.