Joey Baker was always tabbed as a kid who was going to be a top tier recruit in 2019. Everyone knew it, but allowing him to grow and learn in a controlled environment was important to Trinity Christian coach Heath Vandevender. See, Trinity Christian didn’t have to rush Baker as a freshman. They had another superstar on their hands. That superstar was Dennis Smith Jr. However, Dennis Smith Jr’s knee injury prior to his senior year threw all of those plans out the window.
“The original plan was for Junior (Dennis Smith) to play with this freshman group,” said Vandevender at the time.