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Marvin Bagley III commits to Duke, will re-classify

By Chris Stone

LOS ANGELES, CA - AUGUST 05: Marvin Bagley, Jr., the top high school recruit in the class of 2018, drives to the basket during a Drew League game at Los Angeles Southwest College on August 5th, 2017. (Photo by Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CA - AUGUST 05: Marvin Bagley, Jr., the top high school recruit in the class of 2018, drives to the basket during a Drew League game at Los Angeles Southwest College on August 5th, 2017. (Photo by Brian Rothmuller/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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Marvin Bagley III will re-classify and play at Duke.

Marvin Bagley III is headed to Duke. He will attempt to re-classify into the Class of 2017 in order to play this season. The NCAA will announce a decision regarding his re-classification in the coming days or weeks, according to ESPN’s Jonathan Givony. He previously visited Arizona, UCLA and USC.

Bagley is a legitimate superstar in the making. He is widely considered the top prospect in all of high school basketball even dating back to last season when Michael Porter Jr., DeAndre Ayton and Mohamed Bamba — the other top recruits in the 2017 class — also roamed high school courts.

Bagley is a 6-foot-11 jack-of-all-trades who initiated the offense for his Nike EYBL team as often as the team’s point guard. He’s comfortable scoring at all three levels and is a willing passer. The 18-year-old isn’t the same athlete that highlight phenom Zion Williamson is, but he’s also no slouch in that department.

There are, of course, some warts that he needs to improve to fulfill his potential. Namely, he hasn’t been an efficient shooter and his decision-making is far from where it needs to be, but the tools are there for him to be a major contributor — even a potential All-American — on a Final Four contender in college this season. Factor in the fact that his EYBL squad, Nike Phamily, lacked the type of talent he’ll have around him with the Blue Devils and it’s easy to expect him to make a leap forward as a college freshman.

Next: 5 things to know about Jontay Porter's Missouri commitment

Assuming Bagley is eligible to play college basketball this season, he’ll play alongside fellow top 10 recruit Wendell Carter in the frontcourt, relegating former 5-star recruit Marques Bolden to the bench once again. Perimeter talents like Trevon Duval and Grayson Allen will help open up the floor for Bagley as well.

Bagley’s decision is a legitimate game-changing event for the college basketball landscape and it will likely vault the Blue Devils to the top of many preseason polls.