Reports: Five-star Canadian guard Jamal Murray to reclassify for 2015
Five-star Canadian guard Jamal Murray will reclassify to the class of 2015 and hold a signing ceremony this week, according to multiple reports.
The ceremony will be Tuesday in Toronto, CanadianBallers.com’s Sonny Bairos reports. SNY's Adam Zagoria also reports Murray will reclassify and announce his decision this week.
Murray is expected to choose Kentucky or Oregon, Zagoria and Bairos report. The Ducks are the consensus front-runners, according to Bairos.
Reclassifying would allow the star prospect from Ontario’s Orangeville Prep to play immediately after signing with a school. The 6'5" combo guard is ranked as the No. 15 prospect in the class of 2016 by Rivals.com and the No. 21 prospect for the 2016 NBA draft by DraftExpress.
Murray’s stature rose significantly at April’s Nike Hoops Summit, when he was named game MVP after scoring 30 points in the World team’s 103–101 win over a USA team that included top prospects Jaylen Brown, Luke Kennard, Malik Newman and more.
In his recap of the event, SI.com’s Ben Golliver wrote the following on Murray:
The guard crop at this year's Hoop Summit skewed more toward game-managers rather than franchise-changers, but Murray enjoyed a nice breakout on Saturday. Playing in his second Hoop Summit, the 6'5" Canadian led all scorers, finding points from beyond the arc, in the paint and from mid-range.
USA coach Eric Flannery made a point to praise Murray's confidence, and although there were some wild moments (three turnovers) and a few questionable shots, his attack mentality did stand out, particularly during a first half in which the teams were still feeling each other out. The 18-year-old Murray must decide soon whether he wants to reclassify and take his game to the NCAA level next season.
- Mike Fiammetta
