Jamal Murray thinks Barrett is 'more of a complete player' than Zion
Duke freshman Zion Williamson is all but a lock to be selected No. 1 overall by the New Orleans Pelicans on Thursday evening.
But if Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray held the top pick in this year's NBA draft, he'd select a different Blue Devils player.
"Zion has definitely overshadowed RJ (Barrett) because of the hype," Murray told The Undefeated's Marc Spears. "But I think RJ is more of a complete player in terms of what you are looking for. Zion is going to sell tickets. But if it was up to me, I would still take RJ."
Barrett agreed with his countryman's assessment.
"For sure," Barrett told Spears. "I worked my butt off, so definitely."
Barrett arrived in Durham as the top-ranked recruit in the class of 2018, and with every major individual high school award in his trophy cabinet. But the 19-year-old Canadian quickly took a back seat to Williamson and his nightly highlight show.
However, that doesn't mean his lone season with the Blue Devils was a failure.
Barrett and Williamson each scored a team-high 22.6 points per contest, with the former breaking Marvin Bagley's scoring record for a Duke freshman. Both players also earned first-team All-American honors this past season.