2018 F Rey Idowu talks decision to go post grad, offers and more
Rey Idowu has decided to do a post grad year at Clearwater Academy International.
The 6’9″, 230-pounder spent his high school career with Holy Trinity. The Tigers went 21-7 last season and appeared in the Class 5A region semifinal, losing to Melbourne Central Catholic.
Idowu said last season was a maturing process for him.
“I struggled with the playing style at Holy Trinity which was frustrating but I had to continue buying into becoming a better player,” Idowu told Prep Hoops Florida. “I definitely learned most about defensive rotations and my defensive awareness which both improved tremendously. Out of all my skills, my motor and athleticism improved the most over the course of last season.”
Playing with Team Speights the past two years, coach Aaron Holmes grabbed Idowu’s attention. He says Holmes has been invaluable in his recruiting process and he’s the reason why he’s attending Clearwater Academy International.
“Taking this post grad gives me another year to get better while keeping conserving my eligibility,” Idowu said. “My role there will be to lead, as I am the team captain. I have to keep everyone accountable.”
As for this past summer, Idowu said he spent that preparing for college and developing his all-around game.
“The experience this past summer was great. I got to play against some of the best competition nationally and showcase what I could do in front of many coaches,” he said. “The coaching staff at Team Speights is second to none.”
Idowu first touched a basketball at age 1 and three years later played in a league at the YMCA. He says he started training seriously for the game during his freshman season.
In terms of his biggest strengths, this is what Idowu rattled off.
“Right now, I’d say that is my motor, strength, athleticism, rebounding, post skill set and my defensive versatility being able to guard both bigs and guards,” he said. “My shooting has come a long way and continues to improve. My ball handling is good and continues to get better which adds versatility to the floor offensively.”
Currently, Idowu has nine offers from Fort Wayne, Illinois St., Cornell, New Hampshire, Louisiana Tech, Canisius, Lafayette, Arkansas Little Rock and Richmond.
He’s also drawn interest from Wichita State, Saint Bonaventure, Boston, Princeton, Yale, Rice, Columbia, Alabama Birmingham, USF, Northwestern, Creighton, Furman, UT Chattanooga and Albany.
An honest evaluator of his own game, Idowu knew he had to take that next step. Choosing to do post grad at Clearwater Academy International under Holmes and his staff will only help the big man grow as a player and person. This is a good spot for him to be in. Look for many more Division I programs to be watching Idowu this high school season.