UWM Panther Patrick Baldwin Jr. Sidelined by Injury but Ready to Resume Play

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Photo by Kahrima Winston

Patrick Baldwin Jr.

Patrick Baldwin Jr.

You’ve probably heard the name by now, especially if you are from Milwaukee and have been watching UW-Milwaukee men’s basketball games. Patrick Baldwin Jr. can often be seen—in his 6-foot-9 frame—walking UW-Milwaukee’s campus.

Nicknamed PBJ, he’s a five-star recruit, son of head coach Patrick Baldwin Sr. and Wisconsin native. Baldwin Jr. is, most importantly, the star forward for the Milwaukee Panthers. The star athlete skipped over five Top 10 schools to play for his father at UWM and stay local. He’s almost 20 years old and continues to capitalize on the name he made for himself, which began in high school when he led his team to the State Finals. He was then one of the top-rated high school players in the nation.

These days he sits as the No. 4 ranked player of the Class of 2021 and No. 8 on ESPN’s 2022 draft board. Baldwin Jr. is, at the very least, a basketball phenomenon with an inspiring story that is close to home. Since suffering calf and ankle injuries at the beginning of this season, he has been sidelined from the one thing he’s loved his whole life and is experiencing a limited amount of play during his highly publicized first year of college. 

He has heard the story all of his life and he’s here to tell the Shepherd Express all about his journey. 

Tell me about yourself and growing up in Wisconsin.

I was born in Green Bay. My dad was the head coach at Green Bay University. From there, I moved to Chicago when he was at Loyola Chicago. I’ve lived in Missouri for two years, and for Northwestern, back at Evanston for about four years. Now, I’ve been living in Wisconsin for the last five years. Growing up, I had a nice mix of a lot of different styles; basketball and just growing up around different cultural upbringings. People that really influenced my life in a lot of different areas of the world have really shaped me into who I am today. 

How did you get started in playing basketball? 

I got started around 3 or 4 years old. I got signed up for my first basketball team. Actually, one of my teammates for that basketball team would grow up to be Talen Horton-Tucker, who’s the guard for the Los Angeles Lakers. So, we’ve known each other pretty much since the sandbox and he was about 7 years old and I was 4 years old. That was my first basketball experience and from there, I’ve moved from different AAU teams and just played with a bunch of different people and found a way to high school in Sussex, Wisconsin. 

What AAU teams did you play with?

My first AAU team in the fifth grade were the Rising Stars and at the time, they were the big program in Chicago. They’ve kinda split up since. That’s when I started AAU. From there, I moved to Gametime Elite, which was an AAU team that I worked with some of my buddies. Some guys who played for that team were Bryce Hopkins, who’s a wing for Kentucky and Max Christie, who’s been a starting guard for Michigan State. Those are the two guys I’m super close with from that team. That’s been my AAU experience. 

Can you talk about your high school basketball experience?

I came into Sussex, Wisconsin kinda as the new kid. The freshman who didn’t really know what he was doing. That team really took me in. We made a good run in the finals. We ended up making it to the State Final Four my freshman year, and since then we had a pretty young group that year and we played three years together. We had a pretty good run that was cut short by COVID-19. We had a ton of success, personal success. My senior year kinda put that journey to an end pretty early. 

How did you go about overcoming that pressure of being the new kid and what did you like best about playing for Hamilton in high school? 

Putting aside the pressure of being the new kid that I’ve been through throughout my life just because of my dad’s moves and coaching at different universities, so I’ve been the new kid in a lot of different schools. Walking into high school was something that I was super comfortable with. My team helped me out with that a lot, and the coach helped me out a ton. They really helped our family throughout those first couple of weeks of school and then throughout high school. I think every kid could remember the times when you had to wake up at 7 a.m., go on road trips, and play basketball with your guys. 

Why did you choose to go to Hamilton? 

I think early on, my family didn’t want me to go to a prep school like Mount Vernon or IMG just because they wanted me to be close to home. I’ll have plenty of time to be out in the real world, but at that age, I think it’s important to be around your family and be super close with your siblings and that’s why I didn’t go prep early on. I just chose Hamilton over many schools in Wisconsin because of the atmosphere, the teammates, and the coaches. During my visit, they treated me like family from day one. If they treat me like family, then we treat them like family as well. 

That brings me to an important part of our conversation. Why did you decide to come to the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee? 

I think playing off of the whole family thing that I hold dear to my heart. I had a lot of great offers on the table to go play for a ton of great coaches at many established universities. At the end of the day, I just felt for however long I’m in college, I think I would look back on it as a missed opportunity if I didn’t get to play for my dad. However the season turns out or my personal season turns out, I think I’m super happy that I got a chance to play for my dad for one year. 

How has the program at UW-Milwaukee helped you? 

In practice, my father has made me super comfortable. I feel like going to other Universities—not saying it wouldn’t be tough—but I think I wouldn’t have to step out of my comfort zone as much as I would here, especially with my injury and with my history of how I’ve played with my guys and how I fit in with teams. Coming here as a freshman and having these guys demand me to step up as a leader on the court as well as off the court. It’s something that I never really experienced. It was going to be a learning curve regardless of where I went if I was put in that position, but at the end of the day, I’m glad I’m experiencing this curve. 

What stood out at first about the program at UWM? 

I mean, there’s not a single person when I walk in that office that I’m consciously avoiding or not wanting to converse with. Everybody in that building is super friendly and they all love the basketball game. That’s something I really appreciated when I stepped into that office about 4 years ago and I took note of that. At least with the basketball team, you have good coaches that have been around the game for a while. They’ve played European ball, professional ball, etc. They have really good insight and good ways of making a person and a player. 

What do you like about UWM? UWM’s campus life?

One of the main things I love, especially during the Winter, is that everything is about a five-minute walk between each other and that is something that I just love about this campus. Being at Northwestern and seeing bigger campuses, I don’t particularly like the way it’s spread out when you’re walking. I just really like the convenience that the layout provides and that’s something I like a ton. Obviously, I just like being in the big city near Madison, Chicago, and in Milwaukee. So, it’s being right here near downtown, so that’s super special as well. 

How have you juggled being an athlete and being a student? What has your daily life been as a student-athlete? What classes did you take this fall semester? 

As a student-athlete, I’ve had to cut down a lot of extra time and really just make sure I’m filling my schedule with stuff that helps me in the future. Cutting out all of the extra video games that we play or the time when I’m really not in the gym or in the classroom. Just making sure I’m either in the gym or in the classroom and doing something to supplement those two other activities. That’s something I’ve really tried to focus on my freshman year and get a lot better at as a freshman. Hopefully that mindset can carry on. I do want to go out and pursue a career at whatever career I decide to pursue. Last semester, I took an Economics course, an Intro to Business course, a Meteorology course which was hybrid online, and I took a public speaking course, which is something I enjoyed a ton. It was just researching different subjects and then speaking on it. 

How has your dad, Patrick Baldwin Sr., been an inspiration in terms of basketball and off the court? 

To answer your question in short, I really started playing basketball because I saw him play basketball. The reason I started is because of him. But as I got older, he really started teaching me the nuances of the game, ins and outs, offense and defense sides. The sheer amount of hours he puts into this team every night just shows me that I have a lot of work to do in terms of work ethic to get up to his level. Being around him every day is an inspiration to me and knowing where’s been and what he’s seen and who he’s been around is something that I take super seriously. 

How has he been as coach versus personal? Are there any conflicts? 

There are times when there are conflicts between personal and coach, but I think we really did a good job of mellowing out those issues early in preseason. So, we stepped in-between those lines where we step in the office and we watch film and talk about basketball. Or we can step outside the gym and we can talk about our family and we can talk about how we can get better as a people. I think we’ve done a good job of kinda avoiding those conflicts and not saying there aren’t conflicts within those separate sectors, but I think we do a good job of talking to each other, communicating, and separating the two. 

How has the transition been from being a HS standout to a college athlete? 

Like I said, there’s a learning curve. One thing I can give a great testament to is my dad and this team. They’ve thrown me in with the wolves early. It’s up to me to come out and fire. I think that’s just one thing I’ll take away from this team forever and I know it’s made me a better person and player. I’ll forever thank him for that.

What are you looking to bring most to UW-Milwaukee?

When I come back, I think we’re all committed to getting a high seed in the tournament and really competing. I really like the guys in the locker room and I think we’re really close to getting over that hump. I think me stepping in really helps us get over that hump. I just hope I can come in and compete, provide us a boost, and be the player I really was before the injury. 

Speaking of your injury. Everyone who’s been watching UW-Milwaukee this year, knows you did suffer an injury. How has that injury affected you and your mindset and game at UWM?

One of the big things I’ll never ask for is pity, so if I step on the court, I should be able to give my all. At certain points in the back of your mind, you’re not completely focused on the game when you have an important part of your body in a lot of pain. I’ll take this time to rest and get back into shape. It’s something you’ll see vividly when I come back to the court.  

How have you handled the pressure of being a college athlete, playing for your dad’s team, your injury, and other pressures?

I think I’ve handled it great. I’ve always said there’s more pressure in the world than being a basketball player. There’s single mothers fighting for their kids. There’s more examples of pressure than being a basketball player. I just go out there and play basketball. That should never be pressure. Some people look at it as pressure, but I just think it’s a part of the game. It’s a part of the growing pains of being a freshman, being a person in my position. I just accept it, take it on the chin, and move on.  

What are some of your basketball inspirations? 

One of my inspirations, leadership wise, is Draymond Green. I know people don’t say that too often. With his leadership style, I don’t think people understand that in order to be that type of vocal leader, you have to be that guy who brings it every single night. Since I’ve watched Draymond in college and in the NBA, he’s been a guy who brings it every single night. Obviously, the late Kobe Bryant is another one I’ve taken a lot of inspiration from. Kobe Bryant used his way into my workouts and work habits, probably not to the extreme level of Kobe yet, but he’s definitely given me a lot of nuggets and a ton of inspiration throughout my entire career. 

Who are or were some of your favorite basketball players growing up?

I was a big Kobe guy. My dad would always throw on the VHS tapes and put on Michael Jordan and Scottie Pippen. Those were big guys. More recently, Jayson Tatum’s been a guy. I put on Celtics games and I enjoy watching him tear it up every night. Obviously in town, Giannis Antetokounmpo and Khris Middleton are two guys that I just quite frankly enjoy and love watching play. So, those are guys I really take inspiration from.

Lastly, what do you think about the collegiate atmosphere now with endorsements? What is your opinion on the whole college athletes being paid and the new rule of college athletes getting endorsements?

I’m a little split on that. Because at the same time, I think it does open the doors for athletes who otherwise wouldn’t have the right to make money off their name and bring inflow to their family. At the same time, I think that rule is still for 1 percent of NCAA athletes, especially at the major level. It’s tough for many other people to make money off their name or market themselves correctly, and I think that ruling is still for the 1 to 5 percent of NCAA athletes who have put themselves at the top of social media or are standouts in their sport. I’m a little torn. I like the rule. I think it’s a step in the right direction. But I do think there are some things that maybe don’t come off as they seem.