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St. Joe’s Rasheer Fleming was a zero-star prospect at Camden. Tonight, he could be a first-round NBA draft pick.

"He's really a pro, to be honest," teammate Erik Reynolds II said in December.

An unheralded recruit out of Camden High School, Rasheer Fleming blossomed into a highly touted NBA draft prospect at St. Joseph’s.
An unheralded recruit out of Camden High School, Rasheer Fleming blossomed into a highly touted NBA draft prospect at St. Joseph’s.Read moreAnton Klusener/ Staff Illustration. Photos: Monica Herndon, Charles Fox/ Staff Photographers

A lot can change in a year. Rasheer Fleming would know.

After not getting much playing time in high school at Camden, the 6-foot-9 forward moved on to St. Joseph’s in 2022. He went on to start 18 of the 31 games he played for the Hawks in his freshman season.

By his sophomore year, he started all 35 and averaged 10.7 points per game.

Last season, Fleming started all 35 games, was third on the team in scoring (14.7 points per game), and was second in blocks (1.5) and steals (1.4) while leading the Hawks in rebounding (8.5).

Now, he’s a first-round NBA draft prospect. The draft begins Wednesday (8 p.m., 6abc, ESPN).

» READ MORE: Picks, prospects, rumors, how to watch and stream 2025 NBA draft

Despite not playing a lot at Camden (he averaged a career 8.7 points), Fleming said he made the most of the time he did get on the court. But it was in the warmup line that Fleming caught the attention of St. Joe’s.

“It was a big thing for me for them to be able to see me and just to see that I’m a workaholic at the end of the day, just from being in [warmups] in high school games,” Fleming said. “That was a dope moment for me.”

That work ethic that landed Fleming a spot at St. Joe’s was the catalyst to his improvement across his three seasons with the Hawks.

St. Joe’s coach Billy Lange summed up Fleming’s unwavering dedication and attitude in two words: “Rasheer works.”

And just as his potential at St. Joe’s was clear from warmups, Fleming’s pro potential was apparent from the third game of his junior season, when he dropped 19 points on Villanova.

“To me, ’Sheer, he’s got great potential. Everybody can see that,” Lange said after the win over the Wildcats on Nov. 12. “To me, when I think about Rasheer Fleming, I see the spirit. To be in that type of disruption with foul trouble, and then to be 7-for-9, running after-timeout play for me, and executed it perfectly. Those are the growth things that I see.”

Fleming kept going. A month after the game against Villanova, he had a career-high 26 points on Dec. 10 against College of Charleston. Eight days later, he put up another 26 points against American.

From there, it was clear Fleming likely would be declaring for the draft at the end of the season. Teammate Erik Reynolds II could see it.

“He’s a big-time player. He’s really a pro, to be honest,” Reynolds said after the game against American. “I’m just glad to really have him on a team three years together now. … He’s going to keep going. He’s going to keep getting after it.”

» READ MORE: Erik Reynolds II is the all-time scoring leader at St. Joe’s, and a whole lot more to coach Billy Lange

While Fleming’s growth on the court seemed seamless, becoming the big man on campus was harder for Fleming, who’s more reserved and humble by nature.

“It’s kind of weird, I’m not going to lie, but I’ve been getting used to it. I’m not thinking too much of it,” Fleming said. “I just keep doing what I’ve been doing.”

While reserved in other areas, Fleming’s confidence on the court was a big factor for the Hawks, who went 22-13 this season and lost by four points to Alabama-Birmingham in the first round of the NIT.

It’s a confidence he said came from his teammates like Reynolds, who referred to Fleming as “a beast.”

“He’s always encouraging me to keep shooting, and I would rather he tell me than anybody else, because he’s an amazing shooter,” Fleming said. “[My teammates] all just instill confidence in me to keep doing what I do.”

That confidence was a two-way street. During what Lange described as an “inconsistently consistent” season, Fleming remained a constant. He scored in double figures in 27 games and had 20-plus points in six games this season.

“He’s been, I think, since the first game, first two games, the same guy every night, [regardless] of whether the shots have gone in,” Lange said on Dec. 18. “He’s been terrific.”

From a zero-star recruit coming out of high school, to an everyday starter for St. Joe’s, to a projected first-round draft pick, Fleming has had many roles during his basketball career so far. But he credits every experience with leading him to where he is now.

“I don’t want to take away from anything that happened before because it all builds character at the end of the day,” Fleming said. “Not playing, still cheering on my teammates, stuff is going to go bad sometimes, but you’ve still got to go. You’ve got to get through it regardless, so whether I’m playing or I’m not, I’m still doing the right things. So it was good, looking back.”