Deron Rippey Jr. was named the 2025-26 New Jersey Boys Basketball Gatorade Player of the Year this week, becoming a repeat winner. At Blair Academy , Rippey helped steer the Buccaneers to a 30-2 record, their third straight Prep Open State Tournament title, and a runner-up finish at the National Prep Championships. Rippey averaged 15.7 points, 6.3 assists, 5.3 rebounds and 2.0 steals per game while impacting both ends of the floor. On top of that, he earned McDonald’s All-American honors, made the Naismith Award finalist list, and sits at No. 10 nationally in the 2026 class per 247Sports , where he is rated the nation's top point guard and New Jersey’s best player. Growth Into a Complete Guard Over the course of his high school career, Rippey developed into a more consistent shooter and dependable playmaker who keeps his team organized and moving in the right direction. Those improvements showed up clearly at Blair, where he regularly faced national-level competition.…