Trevon Duval, the top point guard in the Class of 2017, announced his commitment to Duke on Monday.
The 6-foot-3 Duval chose the Blue Devils over Arizona, Baylor, Kansas and Seton Hall.
“Next year I’m going to be playing basketball at Duke University,” Duval said in his Players Tribune announcement below. “I’m excited to evolve as a student, as a basketball player and now, and forever, as a Blue Devil.”
Duval, who averaged about 16.5 points and 8.0 assists this season at IMG Academy (FL), is projected as the No. 11 pick in the 2018 NBA Draft by DraftExpress.com, and is expected to spend only one season at Duke.
“First and foremost, he’s a big-time competitor who’s going to embrace this stage,” Vince Walden, who coached Duval this past season at IMG Academy, told ZAGSBLOG. “He’s just going to compete. I think the pieces that he’s going to have around him are going to allow him to really be at his best.
“I think his best is his ability to find guys. He can score the ball but I think to me his best gift has always been his ability to find guys so they can finish. I think he’s going to excel with the guys around him.”
Said WE-R1 coach Terrell Myers: “Trevon is a dynamic guard that will bring a toughness and ability to create off the dribble! He fits well with the perimeter players Duke has in place with his ability to drive and dish. Duke has received a special player that will definitely elevate them to the next level.”
He joins point guard Jordan Goldwire, shooting guards Alex O’Connell and Gary Trent Jr., wing Jordan Tucker and big man Wendell Carter Jr. in Duke’s 2017 class. Duke now has three of the top seven, and five of the top 100 recruits in 2017 per ESPN.com: No. 4 Carter Jr., No. 5 Duval, No. 7 Trent Jr., No. 40 Tucker and No. 84 O’Connell.
Duke loses freshman guard Frank Jackson to the NBA Draft, so Duval can slide in and take over the point for Coach Mike Krzyzewski’s club.
“Of all the lead guards in the Class of 2017, he has the most natural athletic ability,” New York recruiting expert Tom Konchalski said. “He’s got to learn the nuances of running a halfcourt offense, but he’s always in attack mode, gets to the basket, very good in the open court and he’s a terrific, terrific athlete.
“That’s obviously a major get.”
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