Just two weeks after updated rankings were announced in the class of 2027‘s rising seniors, the 2028 cycle has now been fully updated in time for the summer recruiting period. This latest update — and expansion to a total of 125 nationally ranked prospects — comes after the 247Sports team spent the past few months traveling to every major circuit, national camp, USA Basketball trial and numerous events in between.
The culmination of that work is a list that is based not on reputation but in-person scouting and supplemented by video analysis to create the most impartial and informed rankings in the industry.
Of course, when we’re talking about players who are only halfway through their high school career, projection plays a big part in these evaluations. In other words, it’s not solely about who a player is today, but where we believe they’re going.
The biggest question for the class collectively, particularly at the top, is who will weigh a reclassification to 2027. That reclassification trend has been gaining momentum with each passing year.
It used to be that players who were old enough to be one-and-done eligible would often contemplate reclassifying up to be a year closer to a potential NBA payday. Now, though, with the type of money that is being spent in college basketball, players don’t need to get to the NBA in order to earn millions of dollars.
We’ve already had one player make the jump as Adan Diggs is currently the class of 2027’s No. 4-ranked prospect.
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Who else could follow him? If history is any indication, we have to consider the possibility that virtually every top prospect atop the class will have a chance to do so.
1. AJ WILLIAMS, FIVE-STAR SF | MCDONOUGH (GA.) EAGLE’S LANDING CHRISTIAN ACADEMY
AJ Williams is currently the country’s No. 1-ranked prospect. The jumbo 6-foot-6-plus wing is a powerful, athletic shot creator with an extremely solid baseline of skill.
He’s also just days removed from his 17th birthday. If he were to end up in 2027, he’d be old enough for 2028 NBA Draft eligibility. That’s the root of reclassification speculation already generating some significant momentum.
Whether or not it ultimately comes to fruition, only time will tell. Regardless of class, though, he’s one of high school basketball’s best prospects.
