Beckham Black wants to be No. 1 in '27, likes Kentucky: 'They've been great with point guards.'

When you’re playing on the Nike EYBL circuit as a five-star and leader of your AAU team — especially one founded by a family member sharing your last name — confidence is a non-negotiable. That’s no problem for 2027 five-star guard Beckham Black, who is the brother of Orlando Magic guard Anthony Black, a former standout at Arkansas and creator of AB Elite based out of North Texas.

Black is currently averaging 22.0 points per contest on 50/40/90 splits to go with 5.1 assists, 3.9 rebounds and 2.0 steals while leading his team to a 5-2 record through two sessions. The 6-foot-3 point guard, ranked No. 8 overall and No. 2 at his position by Rivals, has yet to score fewer than 16 points in a game and has five of 20-plus up to this point. The degree of difficulty on his shots is high, but the efficiency is higher, separating himself from his peers with three-level scoring ability and general command of the floor. When he gets humming, very few in the country can keep up with his production.

“It’s just confidence, you know?” Black told KSR at EYBL Session II in Memphis. “I go to the gym every day, so coming out here is no different. It’s a gym. I’m gonna trust the work that I put in every day.”

His brother set the tone as a top-10 pick in 2023, now averaging 15.0 points per game in the NBA and set to enter year four as a regular starter in Orlando. The rising senior views Anthony as the floor for his own success, trying to be even better — like every healthy and competitive sibling rivalry. Who knows, maybe they share the floor at the All-Star Game together one day in the league?

“I think about it every day,” he said. “He’s where I’m trying to go, so being able to have somebody that close to me where I can talk to him about anything like that is good. I’m for sure trying to get better than him and he’s trying to get better than me.”

That starts with being ranked No. 1 in 2027, a personal goal of his before he wraps up his senior year and heads off to college. He’s close already — odds are good he’ll be in the top five of Rivals’ next update — and trending in the right direction.

Then, it’ll be about being one of the best in college basketball and earning lottery status as a one-and-done. From there, it’s about passing up his brother in the pros.

“I feel like there’s still always something to prove,” Black told KSR. “I mean, obviously I’m one of the top guys, for sure, but I just got to continue to prove it to the best of my ability. … (My goal) is to be the best player in the class, for sure. That’s my short-term goal. Long-term, it’s being one of the best pros, being the best in the NBA, you know? Making it up there, obviously, and just competing with those guys at the top level.”

He’ll need a platform to do it at the next level before getting to the NBA. Could that be Kentucky? The competition is strong, with Arkansas — his brother’s alma mater — and USC — led by his brother’s old coach, Eric Musselman — among the top competitors, with Duke, Kansas, North Carolina, Georgetown, Miami (FL), Texas, Texas Tech and Virginia also making serious pushes. The Wildcats are in there, certainly, but it won’t be easy.

Black likes Kentucky and its history with players at his position, though.

“They’ve been great with point guards, great atmosphere,” he told KSR. “Coach Pope has a great coaching staff over there.”

Could a visit to Lexington come together for the five-star guard? He’s interested, but his itinerary is above his pay grade — mom is in charge of all of that.

“Yeah, I would,” Black continued. “All of that stuff goes through my mom, but she’ll give me a plan, and that’s what we’ll do.”

For now, his focus is on finishing up AAU and competing for a Peach Jam title. Then, it’ll be about putting a bow on his high school career.

Somewhere along the way, though, he’ll start getting serious about a college commitment. Don’t expect that anytime soon, but he’ll know exactly what he’s looking for when the time comes.

“Probably no rush, you know? Good things take time,” Black told KSR. “I’m not going to rush into making a decision, and then two months after I make that decision, I regret it.
Definitely my relationship with the head coach (is the deciding factor), I would say.

“If the head coach can trust me, then I can trust the head coach. That’s the most important thing to me.”