NCAA Basketball: Impact of RJ Hampton opting to go overseas for 2019-20

RJ Hampton won’t be playing NCAA Basketball next season, choosing to go to Australia. How much does this impact the three teams vying for him?

Big news on this Tuesday that five-star guard RJ Hampton will not be playing NCAA Basketball next season. He announced that he’ll instead go overseas to play for the New Zealand Breakers overseas, getting paid immediately. The combo guard will spend a year there before entering the 2020 NBA Draft, where he’ll be a lottery pick or better.

While NCAA Basketball as a whole will be losing out on watching him in the states next season. The three listed finalists (Kansas, Memphis, and Texas Tech) has to be feeling the worst. Each of them could’ve used him and will have to find other means to bringing in a capable guard for the 2019-20 season. Here’s a closer look at the impact of Hampton going overseas for each team.

Memphis Tigers

Already with the No. 1 overall recruiting class for 2019, adding Hardaway would’ve been the ultimate cherry on the top for the program, creating Final Four and beyond expectations for the team. Memphis would’ve been on national television for as much as possible and there would have the head coach on a shortlist for best college recruiters.

It’s not a devastating blow on the court for the Tigers since they were able to land another combo guard in Boogie Ellis earlier this offseason. Had he not left Duke a month ago, the miss of not landing Hampton would hurt more. But since he opted to go overseas, this technically isn’t a recruiting “loss” for Hardaway either.

Texas Tech Red Raiders

Although they may have needed Hampton the most, Texas Tech may have actually benefitted the most from this decision. Most importantly, he doesn’t go to Big 12 rival Kansas for next season, the presumed favorite to land him. And if Hampton never truly intended to go to college anyways, the Red Raiders got a nice boost by just being mentioned for his services.

They still have their highest-ever recruit coming in Jahmius Ramsey on the perimeter along with the returning Davide Moretti. But unlike both Memphis and Kansas, Texas Tech was never viewed as a viable option to land Hampton. But between the nice PR boost and the Jayhawks striking out as well, this wasn’t really that bad a day for them.

Kansas Jayhawks

Had Hampton opted to play in college, Kansas would’ve been the likely option. That’s what makes this really hard for the fans and staff to take, along with the ramifications. In the next couple of days guards Devon Dotson and Quentin Grimes will be making their NBA Draft decisions, with the odds for both around 50/50. If one or either leaves, Kansas would be short in the ball handler department. It would also be the first time in a while the program fails to land a top-50 recruit in a class.

But the Jayhawks have had some good news, with big men Udoka Azubuike and Silvio De Sousa able to play for next season. And the clarity also frees them up to pursue impact grad transfers now. Hampton’s recruitment also opened the door for top-50 prospect Jalen Wilson to possibly land at Kansas as well, so it may not be a total loss in the process. The next few days will play a big role in the team’s outlook for next season.

The biggest impact may be with NCAA Basketball itself. Unlike other past circumstances regarding players going overseas, Hampton had to academic issues. Between the G-League upping pay and overseas possibly becoming more viable an option, more star high school recruits may never play a minute in college. Just another new aspect that coaches will have to deal with when it comes to recruiting and roster construction.