No. 1 Prospect R.J. Barrett Commits to Duke

I know it’s a little late, blame RDT. I just got off a plane for his wedding. That said there was some important news that happened tonight. R.J. Barrett, the No. 1 recruit in the class of 2018 announced his verbal commitment to Duke over Kentucky and Oregon.

You may remember the name R.J. Barrett due to him absolutely destroying Team USA in the U-19 semifinals this summer. This absolutely solidifies Duke’s recruiting class for next year as they now have Barrett, Cameron Reddish (one of my favorite players in the class) and Tre Jones (Tyus Jones brother). It truly is impressive what Duke and Coach K is doing on the recruiting trail.

Barrett is a 6’6″ wing who has a real herky-jerky style of play and I mean that in a positive. He changes direction quite a bit and gets himself to that midrange area he likes to attack from. He’s super long, which allows him to guard multiple positions and disrupt shooters. He’s not necessarily a great shooter but when he gets in the zone – as we saw against Team USA – he can really get hot.

All in all this just shows that K is still dialed in on the recruiting trail – as is his staff. This is now the 3rd straight No. 1 recruit to commit to Duke. I really like this class as you now have two wings and a point guard, more importantly a true point guard, with plenty to build around. In the mean time here’s a video of Barrett to watch.