Recruiting Report: Taquan Woodley (2021)
This year’s Will Barton Elite Camp featured some of the top talent from around the country. Of that group was 2021 forward Taquan Woodley. Woodley hails from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and is a standout at Camden High School. I caught up with the 6-foot-7 forward to talk about a variety of topics including his production from this spring and summer, his recruitment and his overall game.
“I started out this summer with the 17s and we got off to a really good start,” Woodley said of his spring with WeR1. “Then I got moved down to 16s because they were struggling. When I started playing with them we started winning. The summer went pretty good. I got MVP of the last tournament we played in.”
Woodley asserted himself at camp as a dominant inside presence. He was making a valiant effort on the glass and was a handful for his match up to guard in the post. There were instances where he showed some versatility out on the wing as well.
“For me, defense always comes first in my game,” Woodley said when asked to describe his playing style. “Defense leads to offense, so I’m more of a defensive player. Blocking shots, giving good outlet passes and guarding any position. I feel like I can guard any position. Offensively I can score at will if it’s needed. I usually like to do the dirty work though like put backs and dunks. Something to give people a highlight.”
Woodley did plenty of that throughout the game portion of camp. It showed why he is being recruited by a couple of power 5 schools.
Rutgers, South Carolina and Manhattan have all offered, while other schools like Georgia, Penn State, Temple and LaSalle have all initiated a relationship with Woodley. South Carolina was the first school to offer back in 2018, and while they maintain a steady relationship with Woodley, he told Prep Hoops that Rutgers is in constant communication with him.
He’ll take an unofficial visit to Georgia September 21 and Penn State, but doesn’t have a date set in stone.