IU basketball recruiting: Hoosiers offer 2026 top-20 guard Deron Rippey, Jr.

Indiana has formally entered the mix with an offer to one of the top guards in the 2026 class, New York-based point guard Deron Rippey, Jr.

Rippey reported the offer on his Instagram page.

The 6-foot-2 Rippey is from Brooklyn, N.Y. and attends Blair Academy in New Jersey, where he was named that state’s Gatorade Player of the Year this past season. He led the Bucs to a 24-4 record and the Prep Open State Tournament title as well as the Mid-Atlantic Prep tournament championship this past season. Rippey averaged 16.2 points, 5.3 assists, 4.9 rebounds and 2.2 steals per game as a high school junior.

Based on the average of the national recruiting sites, he’s a 4-star, the No. 18 overall player in the 2026 class, and the No. 4 point guard.

For travel ball Rippey plays for New Heights on the Adidas 3SSB Circuit. This spring he averaged 15.3 points, 4.1 rebounds, 4.1 assists, and 2.3 steals per game. He shot 49.4% overall, including 42.2% from three.

Rippey is a downhill, two-way point guard who has improved considerably as a shooter over the last year. Already this month he’s made first team at the Adidas Eurocamp & the NBPA Top 100, the latter coming in front of the full IU staff.

Rippey is in the early stages of taking visits. He has taken one official, to Louisville last fall, along with a pair of previous unofficial trips to Villanova and Rutgers. He’s scheduled to officially visit Alabama in September.

Along with IU, Rippey has offers from Kentucky, Louisville, Alabama, Villanova, Purdue, St. John’s, Illinois, Kansas, Michigan, North Carolina and several other high major programs.

Rippey’s highlights from this spring including this week at the NBPA top-100 are below.

For a complete look at all of Indiana’s 2026 through 2028 offers and prospects, GO HERE.