2026 Rankings Update: Backcourt stock-risers

With the turn of the new year came an update to our statewide rankings for the class of 2026. Keep reading for a look at some of the biggest stock-risers among the class' guards.    A poster child for making the most of a post-grad year, Vigo finished his time at Allentown Central Catholic with just an assortment of D2 interest but has taken off as a bona fide mid-major D1 prospect at Phelps, culminating with his recent commitment to Buffalo. Vigo has continued to catapult up the rankings while setting fire to the prep school scene, using his unique blend of strength, explosiveness, and overall savvy to fill whatever role the Lions need on either end of the floor. His versatility is his ultimate calling card, but Vigo has also done a lot of work to show he can comfortably project as a true guard at the next level, sharpening his handle and refining his jump shot while still being the downhill battering ram that got him recognized in the first place. Vigo's ability to consistently win possessions should make it hard to keep him off the floor in college and gives us reason for confidence in elevating him well into the statewide top 10.     A familiar name in the top 10, Sajid took a bit of a tumble in our last update after a series of scattered performances in front of our staff, but has been playing like a man on a mission so far this season to put himself comfortably back on the rise. Now back comfortably among the top handful of prospects in the state, Sajid has been torching the nets as a scorer all season long, but most importantly has been doing so while putting P-W in the thick of position for a run at district and state titles. He's learning to trust his teammates, pick his spots, and use his scoring gravity to set others up for success, doing so while also getting stronger and more explosive playing through physicality. The Towson commit has also had some nice moments on the defensive end, which will be key to any success he expects to have under coach Pat Skerry at the next level. It's been a statement year so far for Sajid and he's rewarded with a noteworthy bump back into the top 10.     With his college commitment in the rearview, Yates has been able to put full focus on steering Neumann-Goretti back to Catholic League supremacy, and in the process has been playing as well as any guard in the PCL. Yates has been a consistent triple-double threat despite regularly being the smallest player on the court, dictating games from the point of attack with his blinding speed, deceptive strength, and innate two-way instincts for the ball. The future Cal Vulcan consistently finds his way to the front of the rim with an advanced sense for converting layups through and around traffic, and has developed into a consistently reliable threat to stretch defenses out to the arc. He's also grown from more of an energetic change-of-pace into more of a true lead guard, learning how to pick his spots and make team-friendly decisions throughout the course of a game. Yates' play so far this winter, coming off what was already a strong AAU season, earned him nearly a 10-spot bump in this update of the rankings.     Among the biggest risers in the entire rankings update, Esposito jumped nearly 100 spots into the top 50. A post-grad via Hoboken (NJ), Esposito has been a consistent focal point for a balanced Phelps prep team that's competed with some of the better prep programs in the Mid Atlantic so far this winter. Coming off a nine-inch growth spurt in the span of a year, Esposito brings a simple recipe from a prospect standpoint in the form of size and shooting. Now blessed with standout size for the wing, he's proven to be a knockdown threat from beyond the arc with the ability to thrive in a clearly translatable off-ball role offensively. He brings some auxiliary scoring punch in flashes along with using his length to help crash the glass and defend bigger players on the other end. Esposito recently received his first offer from D2 Molloy and should be a hot name for scholarship-level schools looking for shooting help late in the cycle.     Jumping over 120 spots to sit comfortably in the top 100 of the updated rankings, Gamble has stepped up as a consistent threat on the perimeter for a Haverford team that figures to be in the thick of the Inter-Ac title race to the very end. Having shown flashes over the years, Gamble has seen a notable uptick in his consistency along with a spike in opportunity with a move into the regular starting lineup. He stands out with his size and length at the point of attack, using a slick handle and quick first step to get north-south and put pressure on the rim. Gamble is playing his best basketball at the right time and with continued development as a shooter could wind up looking like a steal at the small-college level.

With the turn of the new year came an update to our statewide rankings for the class of 2026. Keep reading for a look at some of the biggest stock-risers among the class' guards.