R.J. Barrett narrows list to Top 3, Oregon makes cut for No. 1 prospect in 2018 class

The No. 1 prospect in 2018 basketball class, R.J. Barrett has narrowed down his college choices to a Final 3 list that includes Oregon, Kentucky, and Duke. The Canadian star made his official visit to Eugene last weekend.

With a simple tweet that included nothing more than a picture, Barrett put the elite programs on blast. The Ducks are here and they’re messing with the big boys’ lunches now.

The Barrett drama made quite the leap in the last four months.

Entering the summer, he was the top basketball prospect in the 2019 class. Following a historic run at the U19 World Cup in Cairo that saw Barrett lead Team Canada to Gold, his stock went through the roof.

Nearing the end of summer, Barrett decided to reclassify for the 2018 class and college basketball went on full tilt. Some head coaches had to leave their offseason vacations to build a plan of attack for the new No. 1 player for ‘18.

For Dana Altman, he kicked his feet up on a table, threw his hands behind his head and grinned. Oregon’s head man has been recruiting Barrett since day one. And let’s not forget the persuasion tactics of UO Canadian’s like Dillon Brooks and Dylan Ennis.

Oregon’s Canadian pipeline has been making waves for years. However, this could be a splash of tsunami-like proportions if Barrett commits to the Ducks. They would love nothing more than to continue the lineage of Canadian stars at Oregon like Brooks, Chris Boucher, and Ennis to name a few.

For now, we have seen the Ducks part of each ‘cutdown’ by Barrett. Honestly, it feels like a rose ceremony on The Bachelor. Will he pick us? Does my hair look good? At least the annoying guys, who only show up to be famous, are gone. Now, it’s the final three.

As for Barrett, he met with Duke and head coach Mike Krzyzewski last Wednesday (9/27). It was actually two days after he left Oregon’s campus. As we saw with the signing of Louis King, sometimes the last place you visit is the one you remember best.

It shouldn't be long before we have an answer on Barrett’s college choice. Will his commitment tweet include a #GoDucks in it? I believe so, but most don’t have a preference on how to receive the greatest present in program history. Believe.

Stay tuned, if you want to; Twitter @TheQuackFiend Gram @eugene_levys_eyebrows