Joe Hampton, Ladies and Gentlemen!

I am truly blessed and honored to say I am committing to penn state university ⚪️ ⚪️ #PSU #WeAre — Royal J (@JoeH_25) August 2, 2014

Hometown Hyattsville, VA High School Oak Hill Academy Class 2016 Position F AAU DC Premier Height 6'6" Weight 235lbs

Starz 'n Sheetz



Rankings: 247Sports - 4-star, #102 composite, #80 overall / Scout - 3-star / ESPN - 4-star, 85 rating / Rivals - 4-star, #60 overall

Offers: Xavier, DePaul (Interest from Boston College, Clemson, Georgetown, Kansas, Maryland, Miami, Notre Dame, Syracuse, Virginia, West Virginia)

Cinema

(Hampton is wearing #25; he had 21 points and 21 rebounds in a DeMatha win)

The Tale

It's hard to find the words to describe exactly what the hell is happening to Penn State's basketball program, because it's transforming into something I am wholly unfamiliar with. Try to wrap your head around this: the Nittany Lions received a commitment from 1) a consensus four-star recruit, who will 2) play two more seasons at Oak Hill Academy, one of the most storied high school basketball programs in the country, and oh yeah 3) he's the number one player in the state of Maryland in his class. Joe Hampton, even more than Mike Watkins and Josh Reaves, who are both four-star players in their own right, signals a departure from the diamond in the rough-style recruiting Penn State has had to rely on for so many years to merely be competitive in a conference that continues to grow exponentially in difficulty.

Hampton's commitment is especially impressive when you consider all of those factors and then throw the University of Maryland into the mix. The Terps were the clear favorites if we're going by 247's Crystal Ball (though it should be mentioned that Mark Turgeon reportedly had yet to offer Hampton). The hiring of Dwayne Anderson continues to pay major dividends for Pat Chambers - Hampton is the third DMV-area prospect to commit to the Lions since Anderson's hiring a year ago, and now three of PSU's stable of unsigned commits were recruited by the former Villanova forward.

Joe Hampton on Penn State: "It's like a family you know I'm very familiar with the coaching staff and I love the (Continues on next tweet) — Pat Lawless (@GiveNGobball) August 2, 2014

Joe Hampton on Penn State continued: "the way Coach Chambers coaches. The basketball team is so close they are like brothers!" — Pat Lawless (@GiveNGobball) August 2, 2014

PSU assistant Dwayne Anderson continues to do major work in the DMV. Nittany Lions have had the inside track for Joe Hampton last few months — Josh Stirn (@Josh_Stirn) August 2, 2014

Penn State continues to reel in talent. Top-60 rising junior Joe Hampton has a lot of similarities to current Nittany Lion, Brandon Taylor. — Alex Kline (@TheRecruitScoop) August 2, 2014

Big get for Penn State in Joe Hampton. Don't think they are done with top players in the DMV for 2016, either. — Scott Greene (@TerrapinNation) August 2, 2014

Hampton is a highly-skilled, left-handed tweener forward who would probably carry a five-star rating were he a few inches taller. The former DeMatha student will join up with Reaves this season at Oak Hill, while continuing to play with a few other Penn State targets on his AAU squad, DC Premier. In this video, courtesy of the Washington Post, Hampton discusses transforming his body and moving to small forward in preparation for college (h/t commenter CvilleLion).

Welcome, Joe!

Scholarship Matrix

2014-2015 2015-2016 2016-2017 2017-2018 1 G - DJ Newbill^ F - Brandon Taylor G - Geno Thorpe C - Julian Moore^ 2 G - John Johnson F - Donovon Jack C - Julian Moore^ F - Payton Banks^ 3 F - Ross Travis C - Jordan Dickerson F - Payton Banks^ G - Isaiah Washington 4 F - Brandon Taylor G - Devin Foster G - Isaiah Washington G - Shep Garner 5 F - Donovon Jack G - Geno Thorpe G - Shep Garner F - Michael Watkins 6 C - Jordan Dickerson C - Julian Moore^ F - Michael Watkins F - Deividas Zemgulis 7 G - Devin Foster F - Payton Banks^ F - Deividas Zemgulis G - Josh Reaves 8 G - Geno Thorpe G - Isaiah Washington G - Josh Reaves F - Joe Hampton 9 C -Julian Moore^ G - Shep Garner F - Joe Hampton 10 F - Payton Banks^ F - Michael Watkins 11 G - Isaiah Washington F - Deividas Zemgulis

12 G - Shep Garner G - Josh Reaves 13







Left 1 1 4 5 Senior Junior Sophomore Freshman