Duke point guard prospect R.J. Hampton waiting on Tre Jones

R.J. Hampton could be Duke’s next point guard, but he’s waiting to see what Tre Jones does next.

The 6-foot-5, 170-pound Hampton from Little Elm, Texas is considering Duke, Kentucky, Kansas and Memphis in his recruitment and has the option of going to college in 2019 or 2020. The No. 5-ranked recruit in 2020 according to 247Sports.com, he plans to wait to see how things shake out on the rosters of those four teams, with a keen eye on which point guards stay on campus and which head to the NBA Draft.

“With Duke, if Tre leaves, that is something I would look into,” Hampton said Saturday at the USA Basketball Junior National Team minicamp at the Jefferson Activity Center. “I have to talk to my family. But that’s definitely something I would look into.”

The 6-foot-3 Jones is currently projected as the No. 31 pick in this year’s Draft, according to ESPN.com. Fellow freshmen Zion Williamson, R.J. Barrett and Cam Reddish are projected at 1, 2 and 6, respectively.

“Duke’s message is just come in and lead the team,” said Rod Hampton, R.J.’s father. “And let’s be honest, everybody’s talking about the reclass and I can’t sit here and lie. There is a possibility.”

Rod added: “Even if we go anywhere in 2019, it’s going to depend on the roster. We’re not going to take a year to sit and learn. We want to play, we want to put the ball in our hands, we want to go to work.”

Rod said it might come down to what Jones does.

“I’m sure people are going to look and see what Tre is going to do, that’s [R.J.’s] position,” Rod said. “And Tre’s a very, very good point guard and I think he is a pro.”

A decision on reclassifying will “probably be towards the end of the summer,” Rod added.

Duke currently has a three-man recruiting class featuring guard Boogie Ellis, wing Wendell Moore and big man Vernon Carey Jr.

As for the other schools, the Hamptons will monitor their rosters, too. Kentucky freshman point guard Ashton Hagans is a projected second-round pick but has yet to announce his plans, while the team brings in another guard in Tyrese Maxey. Rod Hampton said Kentucky is known for playing multiple guards so that’s not a concern.

Kansas has freshman guard Quentin Grimes but he’s not in the mock drafts. As for Memphis, the Hamptons like the idea of playing with 7-foot-1 big man James Wiseman, who beat out Hampton and Arizona commit Nico Mannion for the Gatorade National Player of the Year award.

Hampton averaged 32.0 points, 9.7 rebounds, 6.4 assists and 3.9 steals per game this past season, leading Little Elm High School (24-10) to the second round of the Class 5A, Region 1 tournament. Hampton won gold medals with Team USA at the 16U FIBA World Cup in 2017 and at the 17U FIBA World Cup in 2018. The Texas Association of Basketball Coaches Class 5A Player of the Year in 2018, he concluded his junior year with 2,854 career points.

After battling a groin injury earlier this year, Hampton said he’s healthy and enjoying his time with USA Basketball this weekend. The players will also see the Final Four games in Minneapolis.

“He’s totally healthy, jumping out the gym,” Rod Hampton said. “You can tell, he’s jumping out the gym, enjoying basketball. “

Don Showalter, the USA Basketball junior national team coach, said Hampton’s ceiling is “as much as it wants to be.”

“I was really pleased with him today and this weekend,” he added. “He competed at a really high level the whole time. He did that pretty consistently so I was really proud of how he played. He’s going to be a point guard, that’s his best position, or it will be when he gets to the NBA, so I think he’s improved in that area a lot, making good decisions.”