2020 Duke men's basketball recruiting

[left_hook_lacey]

Only if he plays more than 7 guys in big games...

This is the year, I can feel it.

[devildeac]

This is the year, I can feel it.

[left_hook_lacey]

There seems to be some movement in the Ziaire Williams recruiting battle. My friends and family that follow UNC closely seem to think they have made strides recently to secure a Z. Williams commitment. There are whispers of a "package deal" including D. s
Sharpe and potentially others. They said Sharpe hinted at in on Twitter, but I don't gots the Twitter's.

Who are the perceived leaders right now for Sharpe and Williams?

UNC has been delusional the last few years about this same type of "package deal" only for us to come in at the last minute and snatch almost everyone(or some other blue blood).

But this seems different, the people I spoke with seem extra excited about this class suddenly.

Who knows, we shall see.

[Dr. Rosenrosen]

There seems to be some movement in the Ziaire Williams recruiting battle. My friends and family that follow UNC closely seem to think they have made strides recently to secure a Z. Williams commitment. There are whispers of a "package deal" including D. s
Sharpe and potentially others. They said Sharpe hinted at in on Twitter, but I don't gots the Twitter's.

Who are the perceived leaders right now for Sharpe and Williams?

UNC has been delusional the last few years about this same type of "package deal" only for us to come in at the last minute and snatch almost everyone(or some other blue blood).

But this seems different, the people I spoke with seem extra excited about this class suddenly.

Who knows, we shall see.

Ok. I’ll bite. On what basis do they feel they have made strides? Are the whispers about the allure of “easy” classes, free rental cars and the like?

[907bluedevils]

There seems to be some movement in the Ziaire Williams recruiting battle. My friends and family that follow UNC closely seem to think they have made strides recently to secure a Z. Williams commitment. There are whispers of a "package deal" including D. s
Sharpe and potentially others. They said Sharpe hinted at in on Twitter, but I don't gots the Twitter's.

Who are the perceived leaders right now for Sharpe and Williams?

UNC has been delusional the last few years about this same type of "package deal" only for us to come in at the last minute and snatch almost everyone(or some other blue blood).

But this seems different, the people I spoke with seem extra excited about this class suddenly.

Who knows, we shall see.

Sharpe committed to UNC in 2018.

[left_hook_lacey]

Sharpe committed to UNC in 2018.

I guess they meant Sharp hinted at the possibility of more uncommitted recruits joining his class.

[left_hook_lacey]

Ok. I’ll bite. On what basis do they feel they have made strides? Are the whispers about the allure of “easy” classes, free rental cars and the like?

Easy classes? If they told a recruit they could get an "easy class", they probably couldn't secure the commitment. UNC recruits are used to a "no class" policy.

I don't know, but something supposedly happened today and Sharpe announced it on Twitter, but it wasn't official. Like I said, I'll believe it when I see it. But, I have not seen this crowd this hopeful about a class in a while. It's like Cole Anthony x 5.

[Pghdukie]

Walker Kessler will be on an official visit to Duke this weekend.

[DavidBenAkiva]

There seems to be some movement in the Ziaire Williams recruiting battle. My friends and family that follow UNC closely seem to think they have made strides recently to secure a Z. Williams commitment. There are whispers of a "package deal" including D. s
Sharpe and potentially others. They said Sharpe hinted at in on Twitter, but I don't gots the Twitter's.

Who are the perceived leaders right now for Sharpe and Williams?

UNC has been delusional the last few years about this same type of "package deal" only for us to come in at the last minute and snatch almost everyone(or some other blue blood).

But this seems different, the people I spoke with seem extra excited about this class suddenly.

Who knows, we shall see.

Andrew Slater has suggested that Z. Williams could be making an official visit to UNC in late September for "Late Night with Roy." Williams just completed his first and only scheduled official visit, to USC. He goes to high school in California, so an easy commute. Duke is in the "final 7" but has not scheduled an official visit yet. Hopefully, that comes soon enough.

[DavidBenAkiva]

New 247sports rankings (this is 247sport's staff rankings-- NOT THEIR COMPOSITE RANKINGS when they factor in rivals, espn, etc...)

DUKE TARGETS/COMMITS
#5 Zaire Williams - UP 1 spot
#7 Jalen Johnson - No change
#8 Scottie Barnes - DOWN 2 spots
#12 Walker Kessler - No Change
#18 Jeremy Roach- DOWN 2 spots
#25 DJ Steward - UP 5 spots
#28 Mark Williams - UP 6 spots
#36 Henry Coleman - DOWN 4 spots

Rivals has updated their rankings for the Class of 2020.

#4 Jalen Johnson - No change
#5 Ziaire Williams - UP 3 spots
#8 Scottie Barnes - DOWN 2 spots
#19 Walker Kessler - No change
#23 Jeremy Roach - DOWN 2 spots
#30 DJ Steward - UP 5 spots
#37 Mark Williams - UP 14 spots
#43 Henry Coleman - DOWN 2 spots

Seems to be growing consensus out there that Jalen Johnson and Ziaire Williams are elite top 10 players in the Class of 2020 while Walker Kessler and Jeremy Roach are in that next tier with Steward, Mark Williams, and Henry Coleman right on their heels. It's possible that Duke could add 7 of the players above, including the names I just listed. Lately, I am beginning to wonder if Ziaire Williams is going to wait it out and see what happens with some of his final schools. He has a final list of 7 schools but has only scheduled and completed one official visit. Perhaps he is waiting to hear more about Wendell Moore and Cassius Stanley? I am forming an opinion that the longer he waits, the better news that will be for Duke.

Mark Williams seems to be drawing a lot of attention, taking big leaps in the rankings. He has the height, length, and skills to be an intriguing center prospect on the defensive side of the ball.

[jimsumner]

Rivals has updated their rankings for the Class of 2020.

#4 Jalen Johnson - No change
#5 Ziaire Williams - UP 3 spots
#8 Scottie Barnes - DOWN 2 spots
#19 Walker Kessler - No change
#23 Jeremy Roach - DOWN 2 spots
#30 DJ Steward - UP 5 spots
#37 Mark Williams - UP 14 spots
#43 Henry Coleman - DOWN 2 spots

l.

Do we have any reason to believe that Duke is actually recruiting Scottie Barnes?

[DavidBenAkiva]

Do we have any reason to believe that Duke is actually recruiting Scottie Barnes?

These are the players that have a current offer. I haven't heard anything that suggests that Barnes is a priority. My assumption is that Jalen Johnson is going to be the "4" on the team next season, barring something crazy like Matthew Hurt sticking around for a sophomore season.

Come to think of it, would it be entirely out of the realm of possibility were Hurt, Moore, and Stanley to play their sophomore year at Duke? That would be an interesting situation. I give that like a 1% chance of happening.

[superdave]

These are the players that have a current offer. I haven't heard anything that suggests that Barnes is a priority. My assumption is that Jalen Johnson is going to be the "4" on the team next season, barring something crazy like Matthew Hurt sticking around for a sophomore season.

Come to think of it, would it be entirely out of the realm of possibility were Hurt, Moore, and Stanley to play their sophomore year at Duke? That would be an interesting situation. I give that like a 1% chance of happening.

I would say the odds of two of them coming back are more like 15-20% and one of them back at better than 50%. Mr. Jones is back next year and will see his role increase substantially. Could be a good case study for the three guys above. There's only one basketball to go around...

[UrinalCake]

Hurt and Moore seem like guys who will be better college players than NBA players, which is a good thing for us. Stanley seems more like an NBA player. Who knows what this means in terms of guys leaving or staying, but I’m holding out hope that one or two of them will stay, giving us an incredible mix of experience and talent in 2020 (assuming we land a couple more blue chippers). I’m not expecting Tre to return, I think it’s possible but I just feel so lucky already that we got him back for his sophomore year.

[DukieTiger]

Hurt and Moore seem like guys who will be better college players than NBA players, which is a good thing for us. Stanley seems more like an NBA player. Who knows what this means in terms of guys leaving or staying, but I’m holding out hope that one or two of them will stay, giving us an incredible mix of experience and talent in 2020 (assuming we land a couple more blue chippers). I’m not expecting Tre to return, I think it’s possible but I just feel so lucky already that we got him back for his sophomore year.

While possibly true, there are at least some lower level scouts who rank Hurt and Moore in Tier 2 for next year's draft (for context, that's the tier most scouts rated RJ this year).

For example, this guy: https://www.thestepien.com/2019/06/2...020-big-board/

Two notes:
1) If you're in to prospect scouting and the NBA draft in general, the Stepien is a phenomenal website doing some really great things.
2) Mike Gribanov is the first scout I remember seeing who had Zion as clearly the #1 prospect in last year's class. He was something like a year ahead of everyone else.

[JasonEvans]

While possibly true, there are at least some lower level scouts who rank Hurt and Moore in Tier 2 for next year's draft (for context, that's the tier most scouts rated RJ this year).

For example, this guy: https://www.thestepien.com/2019/06/2...020-big-board/

Two notes:
1) If you're in to prospect scouting and the NBA draft in general, the Stepien is a phenomenal website doing some really great things.
2) Mike Gribanov is the first scout I remember seeing who had Zion as clearly the #1 prospect in last year's class. He was something like a year ahead of everyone else.

Ummm... while I respect his opinion and he certainly has spent more time watching these kids than I have, he is out on a pretty thin limb if he thinks Wisemen and Stewart are barely top 20 prospects. Obviously, we need to see them play some at the college level, but what I saw from those guys at McD practices leads me to believe they will both easily be top 10 draft picks.

[DukieTiger]

Ummm... while I respect his opinion and he certainly has spent more time watching these kids than I have, he is out on a pretty thin limb if he thinks Wisemen and Stewart are barely top 20 prospects. Obviously, we need to see them play some at the college level, but what I saw from those guys at McD practices leads me to believe they will both easily be top 10 draft picks.

For sure, but he’s eating them based on their NBA impact - not predicting where they will be drafted. Feel like there are other non-mainstream scouts who feel similarly about Wiseman and Stewart.

Tier-based approach also gravitates away from a linear ranking and the understanding is that there is a lot of fluidity in that tier usually.

[SkyBrickey]

That’s pretty exciting seeing Wendell Moore ranked that highly by a scout. Is he the second coming of Matt Jones or Justice Winslow? This guy thinks he can have more of a JW type impact.

On the flip side, I hope Vernon Carey’s drop in all the rankings and projections is motivating him this off season. When we signed him he was our #1 recruit and one of the top recruits in the country. Fine by me if the big fella shows up with a chip on his shoulder...

[jimsumner]

That’s pretty exciting seeing Wendell Moore ranked that highly by a scout. Is he the second coming of Matt Jones or Justice Winslow? This guy thinks he can have more of a JW type impact.

On the flip side, I hope Vernon Carey’s drop in all the rankings and projections is motivating him this off season. When we signed him he was our #1 recruit and one of the top recruits in the country. Fine by me if the big fella shows up with a chip on his shoulder...

Duke expects really big things from Moore this season. He's an elite run-jump athlete, much closer to Winslow than to Jones. Moore might be the best NBA prospect on the team. I would be stunned to see him back next season.

Carey? Remember he sprained an ankle late last season and missed the high-profile all-star games. I think that explains much--if not all-of his drop. A reclass or two also bumped him down a bit. Duke needs to surround him with shooters but the options are there.

[DukieTiger]

IMO, Carey’s drop has just as much to do with his NBA projectability than his high school performance. The scouts I follow (so take it with a grain of salt) seem to think his skills don’t fit the modern NBA as well as others. He might very well be one whose college impact is greater than his NBA impact.

That said, he might also prove the doubters wrong and show a solid mid-to-long range shot and an improved ability as a team defender. I think those are the things scouts look for from bigs if they are going to rate them highly these days.