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Scottie Barnes was the first 2020 recruit to receive a scholarship offer from the Kentucky Wildcats, and it seems the coaching staff continues to show him how big of a priority he is.
Both John Calipari and Kenny Payne attended Barnes’ early morning game on Saturday at the Nike EYBL session in Atlanta. While that is nice and all, what really impressed the rising senior is how long they stayed.
Despite a blowout, 45 point victory, Coach Cal was there from tip to buzzer to watch and support Barnes and his team. Barnes later talked to the Herald-Leader about what that meant to him.
“That shows that he really cares about me,” Barnes said. “He’s taking time out of his day to watch me the whole entire game.”
Barnes’ final eight consists of Kentucky, Duke, Kansas, Miami, Oregon, California, Florida State, and Ohio State. He says that he has not seriously started discussing reducing the list, but plans to move toward a final decision...later on.
“It’s probably going to be late,” Barnes told the Herald-Leader. “I’m just trying to take my time with all of it. I’m not really worried about it now.”
Barnes is a versatile, skilled player with a big, 6-8 210 pound frame. He is very strong defensively, and has shown the ability to guard four positions. He can make plays on offense, with our without the ball. And he is a very team oriented player.
In his junior high school season, Barnes averaged 14.4 points, 7.6 rebounds and 5.7 assists per game while leading his team (alongside Vernon Carey) to a second consecutive Florida state championship. In the opening weekend of the EYBL, he put up 12.5 points, 8.0 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game.
While Barnes has yet to comment on his final list of teams, there are those out there that feel they have a handle on what he is thinking. Corey Evans of Rivals told the Herald-Leader that the Oregon Ducks and Miami-Florida Hurricanes appear to be the two teams standing out right now. Oregon was Barnes’ dream school growing up, while Miami is the in-state school that could keep him close to home.
Read more about what the Herald-Leader heard from Scottie Barnes and Corey Evans here.