MISSISSAUGA, Ont. — R.J. Barrett would love to get his driver's license.
But finding the time for that particular rite of passage has proven impossible for the talented 17-year-old.
Barrett is the next young Canadian star in a growing crop of basketball talent from north of the border. He's considered the world's best player for his age, the consensus top basketball prospect from the Class of 2019 for well over a year.
The six-foot-seven shooting guard from Mississauga, Ont., headlines Canada's team that is chasing a medal at the FIBA U19 World Cup beginning Saturday in Cairo, and at a recent national team practice at the University of Toronto's Mississauga campus, Barrett talked about the challenges of being a kid amid the demands on an elite player.
"Basketball is good, but there's life outside of basketball. I'm still a kid, you have to try to have fun still," Barrett said.
Can he really be a kid?
"Yes and no," said Barrett, who plays for Montverde Academy in Florida. "But (basketball) is really fun. I'm really enjoying the process. My dad says 'Work hard now, have fun later.' (Other kids) are having the time of their life. Sometimes I get mad, I wish I could be them. But really, I have one of the best opportunities in the world, so I'm really grateful."
R.J.'s dad is Rowan Barrett, who played basketball for Canada at the 2000 Olympics.
Still at least two years away from playing his first NBA game, Barrett, who also speaks fluent French and plays piano, is already well-versed on life in the spotlight. He writes a monthly blog for USA Today. The game's top college coaches are in breathless pursuit. And there's plenty of anticipation around his decision on whether or not he'll reclassify and graduate high school in 2018.
Can the pressure on elite players become too heavy?
"Absolutely," said Canada's U19 coach Roy Rana. "Just like they have so many more choices, they also have so many more pressures. I'm not sure if it's fair to them, sometimes it's a little bit overwhelming, and it's part of being an elite prospect now. . . it's kind of like being treated as professionals at a very young age, which is difficult for everyone."
Barrett was the youngest player on Canada's under-16 squad at the 2015 FIBA Americas tournament, but led Canada in scoring en route to a silver medal.
In Cairo, coach Roy Rana has the same expectations of Barrett as the rest of his players.
"We're going to rely on him to be R.J.," said Rana, who also coaches the Ryerson Rams. "He's a talented, gifted scorer, he can get to the rim, he can attack the paint, but he's going to be held accountable just like everyone else. He's going to have defend, he's going to have to rebound, he's going to have to share the ball, just like Lindell (Wigginton) will.
"R.J.'s role will carve itself out as the tournament progresses. But he's uniquely gifted, and we're going to ask him to express that."
Wigginton, a six-foot-two point guard from Dartmouth, N.S., is another standout on the Canadian squad that will open the World Cup on Saturday against Mali. They'll face Spain on Sunday, then wrap up the preliminary round against Japan on Tuesday.
"(The goal) is always the same for me, it's to try to get it to a single-elimination tournament," said Rana. "Anything can happen once we get there . . . obviously once you get into a quarter-final, you want to get into the medal round and win a medal."
Rana coached a Canadian squad starring Andrew Wiggins (he was just 15 at the time) that captured bronze at the under-17 world championships in 2010. It was Canada's first world basketball medal since the women's team won bronze in 1986.
"That team, we had no idea what we had, it was a pleasant surprise," Rana said. "We've had two junior teams that have finished fifth in the world. I think this team is comparable, in some ways is a little deeper."
Barrett believes this squad is a "better overall team" than that U-17 squad.
"They were a good team. . . so we're just trying to be better than they were," he said.
Rana noted Canada's frontcourt — Anthony Longpre of L'Assomption, Que., and Toronto's Prince Oduro and Amadou Bamba — in particular, is stronger than he's seen in "many years."
The tournament's round of 16 is Wednesday, followed by the quarter-finals on Friday, July 7. The semis are July 8, and the final July 9.
The Canadians flew to Egypt after going 2-1 in an exhibition series in France. Canada lost 70-64 to France, but bounced back to beat Lithuania 102-82 and Spain 88-72.
Lori Ewing, The Canadian Press
