On Monday, elite Canadian basketball prospect R.J. Barrett announced his decision to reclassify for the 2018 college recruiting class, making his talents more easily seen nationally one year earlier than originally expected.
This is great news for basketball fans and for the 17-year-old, himself – well, maybe.
While it’s likely very exciting for the Mississauga, Ont., native to know he will be able to begin his collegiate career a year early, it comes with a bit of a trade-off. Barrett has been highly touted as ESPN’s No. 1 prospect for the class of 2019. Since he reclassified to 2018, however, he’s seen his stock take a slight hit.
According to ESPN’s 2018 top 100 list, Barrett is No. 3 behind power forwards Marvin Bagley III and Zion Williamson. He’s still considered the best small forward in the class, but he no longer holds the distinction of being the cream of the crop like he was with the 2019 recruits.
On Rivals.com’s 2018 list Barrett is ranked No. 2 behind Bagley with Williamson slotted in at No. 3.
The 2018 class is considered to be among the strongest in recent history with Bagley and Williamson, along with the sons of Manute Bol and Shaquille O’Neal in Bol Bol and Shareef O’Neal.
Barrett is only strengthening an already premier group, joining a strong Canadian contingent that includes Simi Shittu (ranked No. 10 on ESPN), Luguentz Dort (No. 25) and Andrew Nembhard (No. 70).
What exactly the No. 3 ranking means for Barrett is yet unclear as he’s still likely to draw attention from just about every major NCAA program.
However, it could be used as a motivating factor for him. As his performance at the under-19 world championships proved, he doesn’t seem like a young man who will settle for anything but first place.
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