The former Edmond North guard recently announced he is headed to Missouri to finish his high school eligibility on the national level with nearby Link Year Academy in Missouri. In Memphis, he had a great start to the event with three straight doubles digit scoring games, along with stuffing the stat sheet throughout the weekend.

During a Sunday morning viewing of a dominant first half for Barrett and MoKan, the athletic guard was impressive with his efficiency, control and decision making.  He’s an elite defender on and off the ball. His combination of size, strength, lateral movement and instincts lead to him playing outstanding defense on the ball. On offense, his decision making looked improved as he drove with a purpose to create for others just as much as he looked to score. He finished the first half with a next level type drive and finish. Finding the right balance between “getting his” and playing within the flow in the offense is a good step for the high ceiling guard.

The high upside guard is an athletic game changer on both ends of the court. Barrett is an explosive player on offense with great quickness and leaping ability. He flashes good court vision and improving handles, as he’s currently finding the right balance of swagger and control.  When his feet are set, he’s become a quality shooter from beyond the arc.  As a defender he has a mixture of outstanding instincts to jump passing lanes, while also the strength and athleticism to play exceptional on the ball defense.  He’ll be playing with MOKAN in Atlanta.

Barrett saved some of his best plays for last. In overtime he drained his first three of the game to give the lead. Moments later he protected that lead with a skying chase down block. The lead guard finished with 10 points on the night and some of the biggest plays of the state tournament so far.

Edmond North guard TO Barrett TO Barrett 6'4" | SG Link Academy | 2024 #138 Nation MO has taken over the top spot in the Oklahoma 2024 rankings and that’s been a move that was pretty firmly cemented back in December. Coming into this season, Barrett was known as a top five overall prospect and an outstanding defensive guard. He’s arguably one of the best, if not the best defensive guard in the state. But Barrett made it pretty obvious early on that he’s more than a defensive stopper. He got his junior season off to a great start on the offensive end of the floor. His offensive game has made a massive jump from last season and he’s turned into the complete package as a prospect. The defense speaks for itself and he has shut down some of the best prospects in the state. But what has helped him take the next step and into the number one spot is his offensive playmaking. He isn’t just scoring, he’s getting his teammates involved and the Edmond North offense has turned into a well oiled machine with Barrett running it. Barrett has the Huskies ready to defend their Class 6A state championship over the next few weeks. Barrett’s progression over the last 12 months has been one of the bigger stories in Oklahoma basketball.

Barrett is one of the most naturally talented prospects from Oklahoma in recent years.  His jumper wasn’t falling on the night, but he sat the tone early on defense and as a creator.  Tasked with guarding one of the top scorers in the state, the junior made Barber’s life very difficult. An early snapshot of this was a sequence of his quick hands stripping Barber for a steal. Then a few possessions later he exploded out and blocked a three point attempt. Those were great examples of the natural gifts and mentality that Barrett uses to make himself an elite prospect.

A big step in the development of his game as a future Power 5 player will be understanding he doesn’t always need to “hit a homerun with every swing”. Early in the third quarter, North had him post up on the block and he scored easily over his smaller defender. That was his only post score of the night.  With Westmoore doing a good job of walling him off, he too often settled for jumpers aka swinging for the fences.  Knowing his size and athleticism advantage (plus he can pass out of double teams), the junior should’ve looked for more singles and doubles with post ups and other options, instead of falling in love with his jumper on an off shooting night.

An extension of his swing for the fences mentality was also shown in his passing. Barrett’s combination of velocity and vision puts him in rarefied air for recent passers from Oklahoma. He’s one of the few players in the state who actually pulls off real no look passes that misdirect the defense and setting up teammates with great looks. But he committed a handful too many turnovers by putting a little too much on the pass or a little too careless. Understanding when to make the easier pass instead of always swinging for the jaw dropping, no look type, will help make him a more efficient player. Barrett has top 50 in the country type talent, possibly even higher. Fully understanding his ability to change games as a playmaker will be a big part of him reaching his high ceiling.

Earlier this week we mentioned how defending champion Edmond North is still the team to beat in Class 6A and they again showed why on Tuesday night as they handled #8 Norman 63-47. The Huskies were dominant in the second half and leading the way once again was their junior superstar guard TO Barrett TO Barrett 6'4" | SG Link Academy | 2024 #138 Nation MO . The junior finished with a game-high 18 points to lead all scorers as he once again makes the case that he is the top prospect in the state’s 2024 class. The Huskies have won five in a row and have been rather dominant during that winning streak. They might get tested once or twice between now and the start of the playoffs. But with Barrett is producing on offense like we saw on Tuesday night, the Huskies are going to be tough to beat.

Edmond North was upset by Crossings Christian on Wednesday in the first round and a big reason was because star junior guard TO Barrett TO Barrett 6'4" | SG Link Academy | 2024 #138 Nation MO was in foul trouble and eventually fouled out as he missed the majority of the second half. But when Barrett came back on Thursday and Friday, he came back with a vengeance. He helped lead the Huskies to an easy win over Union on Thursday with nearly 20 points. Then on Friday, it was time for a showdown with two of the best players in the state’s 2024 class as Barrett and the Huskies faced David Castillo David Castillo 6'1" | PG Sunrise Christian Academy | 2024 #80 Nation KS and Bartlesville. Barrett won this match-up, both on the scoreboard and in the head to head match-up as he did a great job locking up Castillo and showing the complete package of his game. Scoring, playmaking, passing, defense, Barrett had it all working for him as the Huskies rolled to another win.

TO Barrett TO Barrett 6'4" | SG Link Academy | 2024 #138 Nation MO is an elite player and the #2 ranked junior in the state. He put on the most impressive and complete performance that I saw yesterday. He was doing everything yesterday: playmaking, rebounding, scoring, and defending. If you name it, he did it (outside of turning the ball over, because he barely did that). He showed the ability to shoot and finish around the basket. I have an article breaking down his scoring ability, click here. His playmaking was the best that I have seen this year, as it was spot on with jaw-dropping passes that led to assists. I also have an article breaking down his rebounding game right here. His defense was elite, to go along with his rebounding and offensive game. He harassed the offensive players all game, utilizing his athleticism to lock them down. This led to him coming away with one steal after another, to go along with a block. It was an impressive game by him in this one.

TO Barrett TO Barrett 6'4" | SG Link Academy | 2024 #138 Nation MO impacted the game in every single area in this one, including rebounding. He can shoot, score inside, knock down pull-ups, and knock down free throws extremely well. I am guessing that he had close to 20 points in this one. He is a phenomenal passer, as he made jaw-dropping passes to set his teammates up all game. There were several times that he grabbed the rebound and pushed the pace, setting up his team for the assist or him scoring. He hustled and got an offensive rebound and found the open teammate for a mid-range jumper. His teammate missed, but he still made the right play and displayed good court vision. He played great defense, both on ball and off the bal. He had several steals in this game and a block, as well. I recorded six rebounds for him, but it is possible that he had more. He impacted the game in every area. There is a reason why he is the #2 ranked prospect in the state for all juniors.

TO Barrett TO Barrett 6'4" | SG Link Academy | 2024 #138 Nation MO put on the best performance out of anyone I saw today. He is the #2 ranked junior in the state and showed why. He took over this game and affected it in every area. On defense, he harassed the ball handler all game, forcing turnovers and stealing the ball. He came away with several steals. When the player he was guarding was off ball, he was still right there locking him up and denying the pass. He had a block in this one, but his impact goes beyond that, as he had several great shot contest. He had multiple rebounds in this game and had a big impact on offense. He is a sensational passer, making some amazing passes that set his teammates up perfectly. He grabbed a rebound and threw a perfectly placed full-court pass, he drove and made a great behind-the-back pass, and he pulled off several other amazing passes throughout the course of the game. He threw a couple of perfectly placed alley-oops, as well. His scoring made a big impact, to go along with his passing. Shooting was not a problem, as he knocked down a couple of three pointers. One of the threes came after he broke the defenders ankles. He showed off his athleticism by finishing alley-oop dunks and getting to the rim to finish over a 7’0. He showed numerous times in the second half the ability to steal the ball and finish in transition. He made a huge impact in this game and was flat out impressive.