There is little change at the top of the rankings for the class of 2022 where the top player in high school basketball, Michigan wing Emoni Bates, retains the top spot.

The rest of the top five remains the same as well with big man Jalen Duren at No. 2, high scoring Akron wing Chris Livingston at No. 3, savvy point guard Dior Johnson at No. 4 and sweet shooting combo forward Caleb Houstan at No. 5.

Joining the ranks of five-star prospects are a pair of impressive point guards. No. 17 Skyy Clark who recently moved from Southern California to Nashville and Dallas product Arterio Morris who climbed to No. 18 from No. 25 have each been elevated from four to five stars.

Because we are expanding the class of 2022 rankings from a top 75 to a top 150, there are several new additions to the rankings. Making the highest debut is 7-footer Donovan Clingan from Connecticut at No. 47. Making the biggest move inside of the rankings is Virginia guard Jayden Epps who rose 25 spots from No. 73 to No. 48.

More: Roundtable on updated 2021 position rankings

2020 Rankings: Rivals150 | Team | Position

2021 Rankings: Rivals150 | Position

2022 Rankings: Rivals150

Bossi: For me it was deciding what to do with Jarace Walker, Dariq Whitehead, Mark Mitchell and Brandon Miller in the 11-14 range. We are talking about four very similar players on the college level who are all advanced athletes. Mitchell and Miller are currently a bit more productive but they are also in situations in Kansas City and Nashville where they are the unquestioned man on their team and don’t quite play against the national talent and for loaded teams like Walker and Whitehead do respectively for IMG and Montverde.

However, let’s be clear, these guys are all getting to the point where we should expect them to be the man regardless of who else is on their teams so Walker and Whitehead need to up their game or else they could be passed by Mitchell, Miller and perhaps a few others.

Evans: The difficulty came in establishing the pecking order when expanding the list to 150 players. Luckily, the 2022 class is one of the best that I have seen within the past five or six years, so building a list of players that are worthy of a ranking was not hard, but ranking within the list was a challenge.

McDonald: It is a lot like the 2021 class for me in that it's an easy call for No. 1 with Bates, but then the next few guys are difficult to put in a particular order. I think we'll see Bates stay at No. 1 in this class the next couple years, but I predict we'll see quite a bit of movement in the rest of the top 10 of this class as it's really close.

Bossi: We were aggressive with our ranking of Dallas (Texas) Kimball point guard Arterio Morris in January and we’ve now gotten more aggressive moving him to No. 18 overall and elevating him to five-star status. I know there are things he can still work on with his decision making and not letting a few mistakes shake him, but physically he has the goods as a big, strong and very athletic 6-foot-4 point guard who plays fast.

Evans: The highest debut for a guard in the rankings is that of B.J. Edwards who enters 61st overall. This is just the start for the playmaking guard. He should have been ranked last time, but better late than never, because he likely will never find himself without at least four stars alongside his name. Edwards has tremendous quickness and a burst to him that he uses in unleashing profound pressure on the opposing defense. He is more than a capable facilitator, playmaker, jump shooter and defender. There are no glaring holes in the B-Maze Elite product’s skill set, which is why I strongly believe in Edwards’ top-65 billing.

McDonald: I continue to push for Bruce Thornton to move up in the rankings, and he went up a little more at this update. He had a spectacular junior season in Georgia in the highest classification. I love how consistently good he is and how complete his game is. He can be the go-to scorer when needed like he was when he went for 42 against a loaded a Grayson team, or he can take a step back and let teammates like 2023 star Kanaan Carlyle take over. I think he's a super safe bet to be a great college player.

Bossi: The game of Virginia guard Jayden Epps is really growing on me. He made the biggest move in this update to the rankings going from 73 to 48 and he still has plenty of upward mobility. I love the idea of the most dangerous scorer on the floor being the one with the ball in his hands and I see him developing into that guy. He can shoot from deep, plays strong and is very skilled off the dribble. I’m very much looking forward to seeing him in person again.

Evans: Should Dereck Lively be ranked higher than 50? Lower? Do we have him just about right? Time will tell but I was really looking forward to seeing Lively on the Nike EYBL circuit this summer. He has been groomed slowly but appropriately playing with a loaded Team Final bunch over the years and for the Westtown School unit.

However, it was time for Lively to completely emerge as the next man up out of both illustrious programs. He has to get stronger and refine various portions of his game, but there are not many near 7-footers that can run the floor as easily, make shots inside and out, and boast the rim-protecting qualities that he endorses within his game. His current ranking is a good place to start, but I am thinking it is the floor of how high he could actually be ranked once his class’ rankings are completed two years from now.

McDonald: I liked Austin Nunez out of Texas a lot watching him last summer. The lefty guard has a quick release on his shot and looks like a marksman from deep. He was a pest on defense and had good feel. I could see him being a guy that slowly makes his way up the rankings the next couple years.

Bossi: Big man Donovan Clingan from Connecticut looks like a potential monster in the paint. Having just turned 16, he’s a seven-footer with toughness and skill who put up huge numbers as a high school sophomore. Boston College, Georgetown, Iowa, Providence, Syracuse, UConn and UMass have all offered already and I predict there will be a true feeding frenzy once coaches get to know about him nationally.

Evans: This is a really, really good class, let me say that first, and this is no slight on Dug McDaniel, but here is to hoping that he continues to prove us right as a top-40 prospect. He doesn’t have ideal size, but his intangibles and playmaking abilities are second to none. He sees things that only he and a select few can.

However, can he remain among the best in his class moving forward? He will undoubtedly be a heavily coveted lead guard nationally thanks to his rare talent and pedigree played for an illustrious Paul VI Catholic and Team Takeover programs on the high school and travel circuits, respectively, but we also hope that he continues to raise the ceiling of what he can achieve and show everyone that he is a top-flight prospect.

McDonald: Dariq Whitehead is incredibly talented and no doubt has five-star talent. Because of the teams he's played on, it's been rare for him to be in a situation where he has to be the star to carry his team. That's a knock on him because I like guys who play on winning teams and play their role. I just want to see what it looks like for him to be in that situation because that's a tough role to take on. I certainly think he has the talent to be the guy on a good team.