MBB/WBB: Former Duke Players Now at Other Schools

brevity

brevity

Member
This is a thread to track the 2024-2025 progress of former Duke basketball players who transferred to other schools. Click on each name to visit his or her current team's bio.

Jaylen Blakes, 6-2 grad guard, Stanford
Jaemyn Brakefield, 6-8 grad forward, Ole Miss
Henry Coleman III, 6-8 grad forward, Texas A&M
Mark Mitchell, 6-9 junior wing, Missouri
TJ Power, 6-9 sophomore forward, Virginia
Christian Reeves, 7-2 redshirt sophomore center, Clemson
Jeremy Roach, 6-2 grad guard, Baylor
Jaden Schutt, 6-5 redshirt sophomore guard, Virginia Tech
Sean Stewart, 6-9 sophomore forward, Ohio State

Shay Bollin, 6-3 junior forward, Illinois
Shayeann Day-Wilson, 5-6 senior guard, LSU
Jennifer Ezeh, 6-2 grad forward, VCU
Jordyn Oliver, 5-10 grad guard, Vanderbilt
Lee Volker, 6-1 senior guard, Marquette

I think that's all of them who are still playing college basketball.

jeremyroachbaylor.jpg

Let's start with Jeremy Roach. The above picture was taken yesterday, as part of a closed scrimmage between Baylor and Grand Canyon, on a neutral court in Fort Worth. (GCU posted an article -- not really a recap -- and a photo gallery.) This was also a family reunion of head coaches Scott Drew and Bryce Drew, and their father Homer Drew was in attendance.

By their very nature, closed scrimmages do not release outcomes or box scores, so we don't know who won, except we do. Trilly Donovan posted an open request yesterday for people to send him results of closed scrimmages, and they complied. Earlier today he posted some final scores, and Baylor won 83-80.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1845503389934801274

No idea how Roach did individually; I'm guessing Donovan received these box scores by promising he wouldn't share them.

In other news, the Big 12 announced its preseason poll and superlatives, and Roach was voted Co-Newcomer of the Year, along with Coleman Hawkins of Kansas State. Roach was also named to the All-Big 12 second team, joining his new teammate, Miami transfer Norchad Omier. The league chose Baylor freshman VJ Edgecombe Rookie of the Year, and Kansas center Hunter Dickinson Player of the Year. Baylor was picked to finish 4th in the conference, behind Kansas, Houston, and Iowa State, and just ahead of Arizona.
 
Based on the preseason polls, I am down on UConn and Baylor. I'll talk about Baylor here because of the connection to Roach.

I loved what Jeremy Roach did for Duke. This isn't a dig against him. It's more about the roster that Baylor has and what seems to be the plan for the team. Roach has not shown in his 4 years at Duke that he can effectively run an offense as a point guard. He's never been higher than 3rd Team All-ACC. Now he is supposed to run the offense for Baylor and be a 2nd Team All-Big 12? I don't buy it. Also, the tallest rotation player they have in Waco is 6'7" Norchad Omier. He is a burly guy and a great player, but he's not a good defender. It would be one thing if they had a versatile forward to pair him with in the frontcourt. They don't. The rest of the projected top 8 on that roster are all guards or wings. It's a more extreme version of the 2023-24 Duke roster. They may score with ease, but that defense looks suspect. I am also a little curious to see if Roach's gaudy shooting numbers take a hit when he is taking more shots off the dribble than off the catch as he did last season. Seeing a secret scrimmage where Grand Canyon is more or less even with Baylor doesn't shock me.
 
DavidBenAkiva said:
It's more about the roster that Baylor has and what seems to be the plan for the team.
Click to expand...

Your post prompted me to take a closer look at Baylor's roster, indicating each player's level of experience playing for Baylor (not including redshirt years spent in Waco) and their average minutes in their most recent season.

Last year of eligibility

Jayden Nunn, 6-4 guard (2nd season at Baylor; 28.7 mpg in 2023-2024)
Norchad Omier, 6-7 forward (1st season at Baylor; 30.6 mpg at Miami)
Jeremy Roach, 6-2 guard (1st season at Baylor; 32.7 mpg at Duke)
Davidson Hubbard, 6-5 guard (1st season at Baylor; 29.0 mpg at Div III Hampden-Sydney)

2 years of eligibility

Langston Love, 6-5 guard (3rd season at Baylor; 25.0 mpg)
Josh Ojianwuna, 6-10 forward (3rd season at Baylor; 15.5 mpg)
Jalen Celestine, 6-7 guard (1st season at Baylor; 26.9 mpg at California)
Yanis Ndjonga, 6-7 forward (1st season at Baylor; injured last season; 10.7 mpg at JUCO New Mexico Military Institute 2022-2023)

3 years of eligibility

(None)

4 years of eligibility

Omar Adegbola, 6-4 guard (redshirted last season)
Jason Asemota, 6-8 forward (RSCI #49 recruit)
Marino Dubravcic, 6-10 forward
VJ Edgecombe, 6-5 guard (RSCI #4 recruit)
Kaleb Jackson, 6-2 guard
Robert Wright III, 6-1 guard (RSCI #25 recruit)

First of all, there was a 6-5 grad transfer named Davidson Hubbard, and Duke didn't try to get him? (And he's from Charlotte!) A rare misstep from Coach Scheyer.

Second, I agree that this team looks thin in the frontcourt with only 5 forwards on the roster, none of them a returning Bears starter. A 4-guard lineup of Roach-Nunn-Edgecombe-Celestine-Omier would rival UNC as one of the smallest for a ranked team. Baylor seemed to be a major player in the transfer portal, so I'm surprised Coach Drew constructed a roster that lacks balance. Maybe he's very confident in Ojianwuna becoming a starter and Asemota contributing quickly. It's somewhat telling that Dubravcic, a Croatian high schooler, was added in June.

DavidBenAkiva said:
Seeing a secret scrimmage where Grand Canyon is more or less even with Baylor doesn't shock me.
Click to expand...

Grand Canyon is a pretty good mid-major team, and I wouldn't have been too surprised if they'd won. They've made 3 of the last 4 NCAA Tournaments, all under Bryce Drew, and were 23-8 the year they didn't make the field. They're upgrading from the WAC to the West Coast Conference next season, and they'll probably start challenging Saint Mary's immediately (not a crazy prediction, considering that they beat the Gaels in a 12 vs 5 first round upset in March).

Retaining 4 starters, including leading scorer Tyon Grant-Foster, was a big deal; I guess NIL budgets at power conference schools aren't that appealing when you can make designer eyeglass money.
 
Grand Canyon has been noted as a school punching above their weight with NIL. I’m not sure where they’re getting their money from, but they do have it.
 
dlmzzz said:
Grand Canyon has been noted as a school punching above their weight with NIL. I’m not sure where they’re getting their money from, but they do have it.
Click to expand...
Chicago Bears CEO and former Big Ten commish Kevin Warren was a really good hoops player at Grand Canyon (23+ppg as a senior, a member of the school's Hall of Fame). He's obviously been quite successful in sports business and has likely made a tidy chunk of change. That said, it is not like he started a company and has billions of dollars. Still, he is super connected in the sports and business world and maybe he has cobbled together a group that can help Grand Canyon to stand above other mid-majors in a significant way.
 
brevity said:
Jaemyn Brakefield, 6-8 grad forward, Ole Miss
Henry Coleman III, 6-8 grad forward, Texas A&M
Mark Mitchell, 6-9 junior wing, Missouri

Shayeann Day-Wilson, 5-6 senior guard, LSU
Jordyn Oliver, 5-10 grad guard, Vanderbilt
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There are 5 former Blue Devils now playing in the SEC, and 2 of them (Mark Mitchell and Jordyn Oliver) will be attending the SEC Tip-Off media event in Birmingham tomorrow and Wednesday.

It seems to be structured like last week's ACC event in Charlotte. You can watch the hosts interview coaches and players all day on the SEC Network, while the team press conferences will stream on SECN+.

Missouri MBB -- Tuesday 5:15pm ET (streaming link)
Head coach Dennis Gates; players Mark Mitchell and Tony Perkins

Vanderbilt WBB -- Wednesday 4:30pm ET (streaming link)
Head coach Shea Ralph; players Iyana Moore and Jordyn Oliver

In the meantime, Missouri had their own media day on October 9, and I came across this PowerMizzou video with Mitchell:

 
brevity said:
Missouri MBB -- Tuesday 5:15pm ET (streaming link)
Head coach Dennis Gates; players Mark Mitchell and Tony Perkins

Vanderbilt WBB -- Wednesday 4:30pm ET (streaming link)
Head coach Shea Ralph; players Iyana Moore and Jordyn Oliver
Click to expand...

I think the SEC did their press conferences with the coaches only -- couldn't find an ESPN replay of the men's coaches on Tuesday, but here's their replay for the Vanderbilt women (also on YouTube), and it's Shea Ralph by herself.

The players were on hand to speak with the media individually (as Mark Mitchell does here) and as part of segments that were broadcast on the SEC Network.


Team Vanderbilt spoke with Paul Finebaum, and they posted photos and brief clips to Instagram and Threads. If you're interested in watching them, you'll have to click over.

jordynoliversectipoff.jpg

Jordyn Oliver is in the #11 jersey. Vandy's Rivals site has a recent article about her role this season.
 
I forgot to say that Jordyn Oliver will be playing at Vanderbilt this season with top 10 freshman recruit Mikayla Blakes, whose bio mentions her very recognizable older brother...

brevity said:
Jaylen Blakes, 6-2 grad guard, Stanford
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As I posted in the ACC Tip-Off thread, Jaylen Blakes was one of two players who represented Stanford in last week's media event in Charlotte. He joined head coach Kyle Smith and teammate Maxime Raynaud in a press conference (full replay, transcript) where he disclosed a recent team bonding experience -- skydiving -- previously unknown to his coach. Here's a clip:


He also did an interview with 99.9 The Fan:


That was October 9. The next day they were back in Palo Alto, and Jon Rothstein was on hand to watch them practice. He had a couple of positive things to say about Blakes, seeing him as a glue guy and a starter:

https://twitter.com/x/status/1844435689804529782

https://twitter.com/x/status/1844436544846954741

More praise from SI in this article, seeing Blakes as a headliner:

www.si.com

Duke transfer ready to bring championship mindset to the Stanford Cardinal program

After Stanford fired head coach Jerod Haase after last season, it became apparent that big changes were coming, with the program once again missing the NCAA Tou
www.si.com www.si.com

Since [Coach Kyle] Smith has come in, the belief in what he is able to bring and the vision that he has for the program is extremely high, as the Cardinals were able to lure in a handful of strong talent, particularly in landing Jaylen Blakes from Duke, a player who will be expected to be a headliner for Stanford all season long.
Click to expand...

Finally, he was a recent guest on Treecast, a podcast hosted by Stanford's announcer. Click on the episode "Mustangs at the Midpoint" (or go here to find the episode on its own playback page). His interview starts at about the 18:30 mark.
 
brevity said:
Sean Stewart, 6-9 sophomore forward, Ohio State
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Ohio State lost a charity exhibition game to Cincinnati on Friday, and they provided a photo gallery. Seeing Sean Stewart in a Buckeyes jersey is the weirdest thing since... seeing Celeste Taylor in a Buckeyes jersey last year.

seanstewartosu.jpg

I haven't come across a highlight video or a box score yet, but OSU fan site Land Grant Holy Land says that Stewart started as the lone forward in a 4-guard lineup. (Kentucky transfer center Aaron Bradshaw took an elbow to his head in practice, missing the game.)

www.landgrantholyland.com

Thoughts, observations, and musings from Ohio State’s ugly preseason loss to No. 20 Cincinnati

It’s going to be a long two weeks of practice for the Buckeyes after Friday night’s showing in Cincinnati.
www.landgrantholyland.com www.landgrantholyland.com

Stewart played just over eight minutes per game last year and was mostly a rim-runner, making sure to be available under the basket for offensive rebounds, easy dunks, and whatnot. Part of his reason for transferring was to show that he could do more than that, and he showed a little bit of that expanded bag Friday night.

1:15 into the game, Stewart caught a pass on the right wing from Thornton, shot faked to get his defender in the air, and then drove to the basket, where he was met by another defender at the rack. Stewart went right into his chest, took the contact, and then scored over him to give Ohio State its first basket of the game.

Stewart won’t start at center this year, but there will be times with Bradshaw on the bench when Stewart will slide over and play that position. The mobility and athleticism isn’t something Ohio State had at the center position last year with Felix Okpara.
Click to expand...

Stewart finished with 9 points (3-of-6 from the field), adding 2 rebounds and 2 blocks.
 
brevity said:
Ohio State lost a charity exhibition game to Cincinnati on Friday, and they provided a photo gallery. Seeing Sean Stewart in a Buckeyes jersey is the weirdest thing since... seeing Celeste Taylor in a Buckeyes jersey last year.

View attachment 18414

I haven't come across a highlight video or a box score yet, but OSU fan site Land Grant Holy Land says that Stewart started as the lone forward in a 4-guard lineup. (Kentucky transfer center Aaron Bradshaw took an elbow to his head in practice, missing the game.)

www.landgrantholyland.com

Thoughts, observations, and musings from Ohio State’s ugly preseason loss to No. 20 Cincinnati

It’s going to be a long two weeks of practice for the Buckeyes after Friday night’s showing in Cincinnati.
www.landgrantholyland.com www.landgrantholyland.com



Stewart finished with 9 points (3-of-6 from the field), adding 2 rebounds and 2 blocks.
Click to expand...
He also attempted a 3-pointer (missed) and went an unsurprising 3-6 on FTs.
 
Quite a few former Duke players were in action on the opening day of the 2024-25 season. Some of this was covered on the DBR front page and in the General Discussion thread.

brevity said:
Jaylen Blakes, 6-2 grad guard, Stanford
Jaemyn Brakefield, 6-8 grad forward, Ole Miss
Henry Coleman III, 6-8 grad forward, Texas A&M
Mark Mitchell, 6-9 junior wing, Missouri
Christian Reeves, 7-2 redshirt sophomore center, Clemson
Jeremy Roach, 6-2 grad guard, Baylor
Jaden Schutt, 6-5 redshirt sophomore guard, Virginia Tech
Sean Stewart, 6-9 sophomore forward, Ohio State

Shayeann Day-Wilson, 5-6 senior guard, LSU
Jordyn Oliver, 5-10 grad guard, Vanderbilt
Click to expand...

Click on the name below to see the box score.

Jaylen Blakes had a strong Stanford debut, starting and getting 12 points (3-4 FG, 6-7 FT), 2 rebounds, 6 assists, 3 steals, and 2 blocks in 29 minutes. You can see one of those steals around the 1:35 mark of these highlights:


Jaemyn Brakefield came off the bench for Ole Miss, but was second on his team in scoring and fifth in minutes (22). He had 12 points (3-7 FG, 1-2 3PT, 5-7 FT) and 7 boards, plus an assist and a steal.

There were two upsets of ranked teams Monday, and former Duke guys were involved in each. Henry Coleman III and #13 Texas A&M lost 64-61 at UCF -- as I mentioned in chat, Johnny Dawkins' teams are dangerous in Orlando. Coleman scored 6 points (2-6 FG, 2-2 FT) in 12 minutes of the bench, and added 6 rebounds and 1 steal.

Mark Mitchell and Missouri went on the road and lost 83-75 to Memphis (and assistant coach Nolan Smith). He had 8 points (2-6 FG, 0-1 3PT, 4-8 FT), 7 rebounds, 2 assists, and 2 steals.

Christian Reeves played 7 minutes off the bench for Clemson, and contributed 3 points (1-3 FG, 1-2 FT), 3 boards, and 1 steal.

It's not an upset, but the stomachs of Jeremy Roach and the #8 Baylor Bears might feel that way after losing to #6 Gonzaga by a score of 101-63. The game was in Spokane, but not on the Zags' home court. Roach started and played 27 minutes, scoring 9 points (2-9 FG, 1-4 3PT, 4-4 FT) and adding 2 rebounds, 3 assists, and steal and a block.

Jaden Schutt got his first collegiate start in his Virginia Tech debut, setting a career high in minutes (24) and tying a career high in points (9, off 3-6 threes). He also had 4 rebounds, 2 assists, and 1 steal.

Finally, Sean Stewart was on the winning side of an upset, as Ohio State beat #19 Texas 80-72 in Las Vegas. He got the start and played 13 minutes, hitting two free throws early but missing from the field (0-3 FG, 0-1 3PT). He added 4 rebounds and an assist, and while he did commit 4 fouls, he wasn't in proper foul trouble, getting called twice in each half.


shayeanndaywilson2.jpg
(Source)

On the women's side, Shayeann Day-Wilson started for LSU and played 33 minutes. She scored 6 points (2-3 threes) and added 5 rebounds, 3 assists, and a steal.

Jordyn Oliver also got a start at Vandy, playing 19 minutes and having 2 points (1-2 FG), 4 boards, and 2 assists.
 
Mr. Roach on a b-ball team that lost by 38. Had to be a shock and I doubt he’s ever experienced that type of loss before.
 
arnie said:
Mr. Roach on a b-ball team that lost by 38. Had to be a shock and I doubt he’s ever experienced that type of loss before.
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Just out of morbid curiosity, I looked it up. The biggest loss that Roach suffered, while at Duke, was to NC State in January of '23. 84-60 There were a couple of 19, 20, 21 point loss types over the years.
 
While we lament these guys leaving the program -- and there is no way to know how each might have progressed had they been at Duke, competing in practice against the best with absolutely elite facilities and coaching -- but do any of their performances tell you they would have been significant rotation players right now if they had stayed at Duke?

  • Roach and Blakes would have been battling Sion James for backup minutes in the backcourt... and I think James' size, D, and physicality suits this team better.
  • Stewart would have been battling Maliq for backup minutes in the post... and I think Maliq's defensive instincts and overall smarts would have won the day.
  • Schutt and Darren Harris seem kinda similar and Harris is apparently our 10th man right now.
  • Reeves would have been battling Ngongba for third C responsibilities... not exactly a big role there.

The list of transfers who left Duke and became players where you said, "darnit! I wish we still had that guy! We'd be much better if we had him," is pretty darn slim.
 
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