Recruiting Report: Cade Moritz (2018)
Des Moines Roosevelt power forward Cade Moritz has fully settle into his role as the premier big-man for the Roughriders, and should post some of the best numbers on any big in 4A this winter.
The 6-foot-8 power forward transferred into Roosevelt from Norwalk for his junior year, and was forced to sit out half the season as a result.
He spent the latter part of last season nearly averaging a double-double with the ‘Riders, and played well enough to be invited to play with the Iowa Barnstormers 17U on the adidas Gauntlet.
In turn, his recruitment has spiked a bit, including his first offer, from D2 Upper Iowa, which he received late summer.
Several other schools are interested, too.
“I’ve talked to Sioux Falls a lot. I know Coach (Ben) Miller from Northwestern in Orange City, I’ve talked with him a lot. I’ve gone and done open gyms with Grand View, and have talked to them a lot,” said Moritz.
“For D2s, it’s mainly Upper Iowa and Sioux Falls that I’ve talked to. And I talked with Coach (Troy) Larson from Iowa Lakes. So it’s been anything from JuCo to D2 that I’ve been getting interest from.”
Moritz recently visited Upper Iowa, but made it clear that he wants to wait until after his senior season to make a college decision.
“I really enjoyed it, and liked the campus a lot, and feel like it could be a good fit for me,” he said. “But I told them I want to wait until after my senior season to commit anywhere, and just see how my season goes, and make my decision afterwards.”
Already a skilled post player with underrated athletic ability, Moritz has been working this past year to develop an outside game.
“I’ve worked a lot on my outside shooting, and a little more on driving and ball-handling. In this fall league I’ve been shooting a lot more from 3 and driving, while still being able to post up,” he said.
“So, I’m just working a lot more on being able to go and play outside against teams that might be looking to play zone against us. Just getting in the gym and getting up hundreds of shots everyday.”
With the Barnstormers this past spring and summer, Moritz served mostly as a role player, but says the opportunity to play with and against some of the best players in the country was a great opportunity.
“I really liked the group I played with, and we had good coaches. And then being able to play against some of the best players in the country, and having all those high-major guys on the team, I learned a lot,” said Moritz.
“And it definitely makes the game a lot easier here, and it was definitely a great experience to travel the country and play with those guys — definitely a once in a lifetime experience.”
As for recruitment, the goal is Division I hoops, but ultimately, Moritz will play wherever the best fit it for him.
“My goal would be to play Division I basketball; everyone who plays, their goal is to play at the highest level they can,” said Moritz.
“And I just want to find a place where I can fit in well and get a good education. Somewhere where I can have a really good basketball career, whatever level that may be.”