If Rellah Boothe is as good as her ranking, the Texas Longhorns on Friday signed one of the best three high school seniors in the country.
But if Boothe is as good as she thinks she is, then the Longhorns just hooked up with the player who will change the landscape of NCAA women's basketball.
Boothe, a 6-foot-1 forward at IMG Academy (Bradenton, Florida), averaged 22.7 points, 9.9 rebounds and 1.9 steals per game for a 16-12 team last season as a junior.
But she's capable of much more. Just ask her.
"I'm going to show you," Boothe said. "I'm going to average 45 points a game this season."
Boothe, the No. 3 prospect in the espnW HoopGurlz Top 100 for the 2017 class and a 2016 gold medalist with the USA Basketball U18 team, said she's offended to be ranked third. In her mind, she's the best player in the class.
"A lot of people are underestimating me," said Boothe, the top forward in the class. "Me being No. 3 is very false. I feel very disrespected. I'm not bragging or boasting. I just have confidence."
She is confident for a reason.
"She has a pro body," said IMG coach Shell Dailey, who envisions Boothe as a small forward or a stretch 4 at Texas. "Then you look at how she plays. She plays hard. She plays with intensity you can't teach.
"Rellah is a versatile lefty with range. She can shoot the 3 with ease. She can attack the rim and post up. That [package] is what attracted so many coaches."
Indeed, Boothe visited Texas, Ohio State, LSU and Florida. She narrowed her choice to the Longhorns and Buckeyes and then chose Texas.
The Longhorns are getting a player who seems ready for the college game. She has been a star since she arrived in high school, averaging 19.1 points, 10.6 rebounds and 3.2 steals as a freshman at Potter's House Christian Academy (Jacksonville). She averaged 20.7 points and 13.8 rebounds as a sophomore before deciding to transfer to IMG for her junior year.
Despite all of Boothe's awards and recognition, it is one game during her sophomore year that people are still talking about -- and might be talking about for years to come. As a sophomore at Potter's House against Blackman (Murfreesboro, Tennessee), which was ranked No. 1 in the nation at the time, Boothe had a signature game: 37 points and 22 rebounds in a Potter's House win. On that Blackman team was Crystal Dangerfield, now a freshman guard at UConn. Boothe's assessment of her own performance? "I could have done a lot better."
Boothe says Texas "is on the verge" of greatness and shouted out 5-foot-6 point guard and incoming recruit Chasity Patterson as part of the talent surge that is about to hit the Longhorns.
Patterson is the No. 4 player in the 2017 recruiting class -- and the No. 1 point guard -- and she combines with Boothe to give the Longhorns a nucleus of elite prospects. Both could contribute to the Longhorns quickly.
"I'm not expecting 40-0 right away," Boothe said of the Longhorns, who went 31-5 last season, reaching the Elite Eight of the NCAA tournament. "I know it's going to take some time.
"It may take a year or two to win a national championship. But I guarantee you that before I graduate, I will win championships with an 'S' at the end."
With the addition of Boothe, Texas joins Tennessee as the only schools with two top-10 prospects in their 2017 class.
Three top-10 players remain undeclared: No. 5 Sidney Cooks, No. 6 Chennedy Carter and No. 10 Michaela Onyenwere. Cooks is considering Michigan, Michigan State, Purdue, Wisconsin and UCLA. Carter is believed to be down to Kansas and Texas A&M. Onyenwere is considering Tennessee, Duke, UCLA, Louisville and Arizona State.
All are expected to sign during the NCAA early signing period, which runs through Nov. 16.