Recruiting Update – Cruz Veliz (2025 Woodburn)

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>After a great run to the 5A state tournament last season, Woodburn is looking at making it back to Linfield and [player_tooltip player_id='1368274' first='Cruz' last='Veliz'] hopes to lead them there. The 6-foot senior point guard earned Mid-Willamette player of the year honors last season and while he's the odds on favorite to do it again, he's got bigger goals in mind. He's aiming for a state title while also hoping to find the right college fit, so he spent the off-season working hard to hopefully achieve both in 2024-25.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>"It was a fun experience, especially over the summer," Veliz said. "I played for [program_tooltip program_id='2198275' first='More' last='Than Hoops'] and those coaches are super cool, super tough on you. It made me play my best and it was overall a super fun experience. It was like a team of a bunch of guys that I haven't really played before so the first tournament was a little rough, but we had some close games against some good teams. And then after that, we kind of clicked. And playing with Diggy (Griffin) and some of those guys was super fun."</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Veliz detailed what he worked on and what went well for him in club basketball. "I shot the ball really well, and just my overall playmaking and decision making," Veliz said. "I probably had close to like a 5-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio in all the tournaments which was, for me, was something I like to try to do, passing the ball and stuff."</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>There's always a market for smart point guards that can shoot the ball, and a number of college programs watched Veliz on the circuit. He picked up a scholarship offer from Bushnell and there are numerous other schools interested, from NCAA D-II all throughout the programs in the NCAA D-III Northwest Conference and NAIA Cascade Conference. He's keeping all of his options open.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>"Just somewhere where I can feel like I can be myself and somewhere I can develop," Veliz said. "You know, with a lot of older guys in college now, your first couple years are going to be tough. I think I'm ready to compete in a college program right now, but just somewhere I can develop and become the best player I can be. Some schools and some coaches have been pretty cool to me so far, but I'm just kind of keeping it open and make a decision at the end of the season."</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>While his recruitment sorts itself out, Veliz is honed in on this upcoming season, his last at the high school level. He's excited about the possibilities ahead.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>"It's coming together great," Veliz said. "Last year we had four returning varsity guys, so the first two weeks was trying to get everyone on the same page and all that type of stuff. This year we have 8 or 9 seniors, all returning guys so it's like we're all already on the same page. We all know where we need to be on defense, where we need to be on offense. I'm just super excited. These guys are my best friends and they've been my best friends my whole life, so it's fun playing with them."</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Veliz currently ranks as the #20 player in the PrepHoops Oregon Class of 2025 rankings.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->