RJ Hampton will graduate high school early and reclassify to 2019.
Hampton will be eligible for collegiate basketball this summer and could declare for the 2020 NBA Draft. Hampton was the No. 4 recruit in the ESPN 100 class of 2020.
"I've decided to reclassify to the 2019 class," Hampton told ESPN. "I am doing this because I feel that from a development standpoint, this is the right move for me at this time in order to play against the highest level of competition possible. I am eager to test myself against older and more physically developed players in order to help improve my weaknesses and prepare me for reaching the ultimate goal of playing in the NBA."
ESPN has moved Hampton to No. 6 in their 2020 mock draft.
"This is a move we've been contemplating for some time and we don't take lightly," RJ Hampton's father, Rod, told ESPN. "As someone that played in college as well as professionally in Europe, I know that you can't skip steps in a player's development. Thankfully, because of the hard work that RJ has put in in the classroom -- achieving a 3.75 GPA and a 1280 SAT -- he was able to have this option. This weekend playing against the top players in high school basketball at the Nike EYBL, as well as earlier this month at USA Basketball, my wife Markita and I realized that RJ is ready to take the next step and challenge himself by taking the next step in level of competition."
Hampton is considering Kentucky, Kansas, Memphis and Texas Tech.