Winters Grady, 4-star basketball prospect, transfers to Prolific Prep; Oregon Ducks 'strong contender'

Former Lake Oswego (Oregon) four-star basketball recruit Winters Grady is headed to Prolific Prep (California)

Former Lake Oswego (Oregon) four-star basketball recruit Winters Grady will play his final two seasons at powerhouse program Prolific Prep (California).

The 6-foot-7, 205-pound forward officially made the move earlier this month, but. the school officially announced his enrollment Thursday.

Grady, the nation's No. 81 overall prospect, averaged 27.4 points per game as a sophomore at Lake Oswego before briefly transferring to Tualatin (Oregon), the back-to-back 6A state champions. 

“He lives across the street from Tualatin, and he's played with these guys his whole entire life until he went freshman year to Lake Oswego,” Tualatin coach Bubba Lemon told OSAAtoday in June. “We're just excited that he came back.

“The guys are thrilled to get to play with him again. They're all best friends. They have such meaningful relationships. He's really excited to play with them again.”

While the move allowed Grady to play for Tualatin in June tournaments - the WIBCA DI Showcase in Issaquah, Wash., and in the Section 7 Tournament in Phoenix - he kept his options open.

That led to his eventual transfer to Prolific Prep.

“It was obviously really difficult," Grady said of the decision. "All of my friends are at Tualattion. It ultimately came down to me wanting to play with the best of the best in the country, because that’s what guys are doing now.’

Grady is the third major Oregon high school boys basketball talent to transfer to an out-of-state powerhouse program in recent years, following in the footsteps of Lamar Washington (Jefferson to AZ Compass Prep; class of 2022) and Mookie Cook (Jefferson to AZ Compass Prep; class of 2023). 

For his family, the choice to compete out-of-state came down to fully committed to his dreams of playing basketball at the highest level.

“In general, we’re a pretty serious family," Grady said. "If we’re going to do something, we’re going to go all in. Both my mom and dad played college basketball, so they know what it takes.”

So far, Grady holds scholarship offers from Portland, Portland State, San Francisco and Weber State, but a host of high-major programs have begun to crank up their recruiting efforts.

"Oregon is recruiting me pretty hard," Grady said,. "They’ve been at most or all of my games this summer. Utah is recruiting me pretty hard... Colorado State, UCLA, New Mexico and Gonzaga.”

Despite the out-of-state transfer, the former Lake Oswego star said returning to Oregon for college is an appealing option.

“Oregon is definitely a really strong contender," he said. "They are probably at the top of my list right now. No matter where I am - New York, California or Oregon, it doesn't matter, Oregon will be at the top of my list.”