City of Basketball Love

By Owen McCue (@Owen_McCue)
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When he arrived at Father Judge last season and was thrown into the throngs of the Philadelphia Catholic League, Everett Barnes found out he was still a little ways away from realizing his potential as a Division I big man.

Going up against the likes of Archbishop Ryan’s Georgetown-bound big man Thomas Sorber and Roman Catholic forward Shareef Jackson gave Barnes a glimpse at what it would take to compete with the best of the best.

“Definitely playing against Shareef, Thomas Sorber showed me that even though I’m doing good, I have to do better,” said Barnes, a 6-foot-9 forward. “That’s one of the things that motivated me to work hard over the summer and get better, so next year things will go better for me.”

Barnes blossomed this offseason both with Philly Pride on the Under Armour circuit and with Father Judge during high school events. A spattering of interest turned into offers as Barnes displayed an improved game.

He earned himself a few choices to pick from before announcing his commitment Friday to Loyola (Md.), where he will continue to go up against Jackson, a Lafayette commit, in the Patriot League.

“It’s always been a dream of mine,” Barnes said. “I knew that I had the tools for it, so I just had to work hard. I knew I could make it happen.”

Barnes was always the biggest kid growing up and, despite a quick test of his skills on the gridiron, basketball was always his sport. He credits his older sister Dominique for that. 

He played his freshman and sophomore seasons at Burlington City (N.J.), averaging 9.3 ppg, 7.5 rpg and 3.0 bpg during his sophomore campaign. After spending the summer playing for Philly Pride for the first time, he ended up at Judge for his junior campaign.

Barnes came off the bench in all 24 games for the Crusaders, averaging 3.5 ppg, 3.7 rpg and 1.5 bpg in 13 minutes per contest.

“After we lost at the Palestra in the semifinals, I started to work on my body more,” Barnes said. “I lost some body fat and I've been working to try to put on some muscle now. I’ve really just been working all summer.”

Barnes said college coaches started reaching out to the Judge staff during the later parts of his team’s season. He went to work after Judge’s season ended in the PCL semifinals in late February.

He fixed his diet, improved his conditioning and enhanced his training to become more mobile on the floor. The results paid off during a breakout spring and summer with Philly Pride and Judge.

Barnes received his first Division I offer from Stonehill after the first session of Philly Live and added an offer from Rider. St. Bonaventure and Loyola both extended offers in late July.

“It was amazing just because I know how much work I put in,” he said. “Just seeing some results, it just makes you feel good about yourself and know that you gotta keep working.”

Barnes has always shown glimpses of feel, touch and footwork in the paint. He’s a good low post defender as well, mentioning his favorite part of the game is blocking and altering shots.

He really started to tap into his athleticism this offseason and added a little more mobility and versatility to his game — even showcasing some outside range.

“(Loyola) said my presence inside as well as I’ve been working on my outside game, which is definitely going to continue to grow,” Barnes said. “It will be useful for them the way that they play and they use their bigs and they use them all over the floor. It’s something that I can definitely help them out with.”

Barnes first heard from Loyola assistant Ricky Hernandez in May. Head coach Josh Loeffler reached out in July and offered Barnes a scholarship on July 23. 

He visited campus a week before his commitment — a decision that came down to Loyola (Md.) and Rider. He’ll join Central York’s Greg Guidinger, another Philly Pride alum, who is part of the program’s 2024 class.

“I loved the campus. I want to do marketing as my major and they have a good business school,” Barnes said of his reason for choosing the Greyhounds. “I like the coaches. I watched a little bit of their workout and I like how Coach Josh runs things.”

Loyola has just three forwards listed on its 2024 roster — two seniors and one freshman — so Barnes could be an important piece earlier rather than later. 

He’s got unfinished business at Judge before that, looking to become one of the league’s premier big men and help the Crusaders to a PCL crown.

“People tell me all the time that I have a lot of potential and I just have to tap into it,” Barnes said.