Top freshmen forge their own paths in picking schools
(AP Photo/Gregory Payan, File)Many of the nation’s brightest prospects in the most recent recruiting class didn’t necessarily select the most obvious schools. In the meantime, four of the top seven players chose Oklahoma State, Southern California, Stanford and Florida State. Jerry Meyer, the director of basketball scouting at 247Sports, says he noticed this trend starting in 2015. Barnes is ranked seventh in the 247Sports Composite and played high school basketball at Montverde (Florida) Academy. He was named the California male athlete of the year and the California basketball player of the year by USA Today.