Texas Longhorns Set to Host Elite 5-Star Hooper

Who is Deron Rippey Jr.?

Standing at 6-foot-2, 175 pounds, Rippey is the No. 1 point guard in the country, the No. 1 player in the state of New Jersey, and the No. 11 overall player in his class.

“Rippey is an explosively athletic lead guard who can set the tone on the defensive end of the floor,” 247Sports director of scouting Adam Finkelstein wrote on his scouting report. “He pressures the ball, picks up the length of the floor, gets over ball-screens, and is ideal at the point of attack. While there could be times down the road where his lack of size and length could be targeted on that end, that’s strictly theoretical right now.”

As one of the best players in the nation, Rippey has drawn a ton of attention to himself. He has accumulated offers from 44 different programs, including fellow SEC members Tennessee, Kentucky, Alabama, Texas A&M, Auburn, Georgia, and LSU.

Rippey is also set to visit the Syracuse Orange on Sept. 26, the Kentucky Wildcats on Oct. 3, the Duke Blue Devils on Oct. 21, the Tennessee Volunteers on Oct. 25, and the NC State Wolfpack on Nov. 7.

“The bottom line is that his defense and athleticism separate him, and he has the motor to maximize both,” Finkelstein wrote. ”He’s also a worker who has cut-up his frame and established a track record of consistently improving his game.“

On Friday, Rippey, five-star small forward Anthony Thomas and four-star shooting guard Jasiah Jervis are all set to arrive in Austin for the weekend.

The new-look Longhorns are set to spark the Sean Miller era when they take on the Duke Blue Devils on Nov. 4 in the Dick Vitale Invitational. Texas is set to open SEC play on Jan. 3, when it hosts the Mississippi State Bulldogs at the Moody Center.