I had a chance to sit down and take a breath and think about all the prospects I saw this summer. Before I attack the high school and college basketball preseason, I do want to reflect on each class. I recently took a deep dive into the 2026 class HERE, and now I take a look at the 2027 crop.
Before I get going, I do feel the talent in 2027 is better than in 2026. I feel 2028 has something special brewing, but we will see.
2027: Starting At The Top
Baba Oladotun was my No. 1 player in 2027 before he made the decision to class-up to the 2026 class. Personally, I feel it was a great decision by him and puts him in the Top 5 in 2026. Now that Baba isn’t a 2027, Bruce Branch of Prolific Prep (now in Ft Lauderdale, Fla. starting with the 2025-26 season) is my No. 1 player now. At 6’7 with long arms, Branch is a big wing prospect that checks a lot of boxes. Athletic, emerging self creating skills and covers ground very well defensively. His consistency while playing 17U for Compton Magic on the 3SSB circuit while averaging 15 ppg, 5 rpg and 2 apg played a major part in his rise.
I don’t think Branch has a sizable lead at the top compared to Tyran Stokes in 2026. C.J. Rosser of Southeastern Prep (Orlando, Fla.) is a 6’9 forward with a real perimeter game. Dependable 3- point shooter, has a functional handle and can score it in multiple ways. Paul Osaruyi of Bella Vista Prep (Scottsdale, Ariz.) is an athletic, mobile big man that’s an explosive leaper. Marcus Spears Jr. of Dynamic Prep (McKinney, Texas) is a 6’7 forward that plays with an endless motor and is a problem inside the arc. Obinna Ekezie of Southeastern Prep (Orlando, Fla.) is a 7’0 center that makes his presence known in the paint on both ends. Moussa Kamissoko of Long Island Lutheran (Glen Head, N.Y.) is a 6’8 Swiss Army knife wing that can impact games without having to score much.
Those are the guys I have in contention for No. 1 behind Branch.
My next tier guys are Ryan Hampton of Dynamic Prep (McKinney Texas), Jordan Page of Broughton (Raleigh, N.C.), Nasir Anderson of Prolific Prep (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.) and Dawson Battie of St. Marks (Dallas).
Where 2026 is heavier on the SF and PF talent, 2027 contains a good wing and forward group but it is the guard play that stands out the most to me in the rising junior class.
LJ Smith of Lincolton (N.C.) is a 6’4 guard with skill and good positional size and speaking of positional size, combo guard King Gibson of SPIRE Academy (Geneva, Ohio) is 6’4 and effective as an off the dribble scorer with solid play-making skills. Cayden Daughtry of Calvary Christian (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.) is the one of, if not the best, shooter in the country regardless of class. Beckham Black of Southeastern Prep (Ft. Lauderdale, Fla.) is one of the smartest players in the country. Davion Thompson of Link Academy (Branson, Mo.) had a great travel ball season with Meanstreets and is a top 20 level player in the country, Jason Gardner Jr. for Indiana Elite via Fishers (Ind.) was impacting the game with his scoring and passing chops. T.J. Jamison and Martay Barnes are both automatic buckets. Anderson Diaz, Jalen Davis, Kevin Savage, Reese Alston, Chase Branham. You get the point. These are all within top 10-35 level talents in the country.
2027 Big Man Crop
The center crop has solid depth. I talked about Obinna and Osaruyi, but Isaiah Hill of Pike (Indianapolis, Ind.) will see a major jump in the national rankings by the fall update. I’m a big fan of Darius Wabbington of Sunnyslope (Phoenix, Ariz.). At 6’11 with an inside-out operating game. He can really pass as well which is also why I like him long term. I say that because bigs figure it out later and I do think a couple of guys will start to separate themselves or see a big jump in the rankings by this team next year. I’m intrigued by guys like Tyran Frazier, Theo Edema and Nicolas Mitrovic, just to name a few.
As I said earlier, there isn’t a lot of separation at the very top of this class, but a lot of guys that are very talented and hold tantalizing upside. The ones I haven’t mentioned before that hold a lot of promise are players such as Lincoln Cosby. At 6’8-6’9ish with the perimeter game he has, he should be in the convo for No. 1 player in his class but his motor comes and goes. Zion Green is tall, mobile and can put the ball on the floor, but the playing through physicality aspect of his game hasn’t kicked in yet. I think Jarvis Hayes will just get better and better. Strong basketball bloodlines and got noticeably better since the beginning of the club season. I think he will contend for top 15 in 2027. Demarcus Henry is a big wing prospect that has a lot of physical tools and his production is starting to match. The same thing applies to Dooney Johnson.
Conclusion
Even though I view the 2027 group as a very talented class, this crop will need to be consistent with their production and continue to make leaps in their development of their games during the upcoming scholastic and club season to live up to its promise as an above average class. The older these guys get, production is going to weigh heavily into what tier they ultimately land at, at the finish line.
The great thing is it’s up to them as the top players in this class control their own destiny.
