Duke announced Wednesday that freshman Jayson Tatum suffered a left foot sprain during its Pro Day on Tuesday.
The anticipated recovery time for this injury is two weeks. Tatum will not play in Duke’s exhibition games against Virginia State on Oct. 28 and Augustana on Nov. 4.
“This is the best possible news,” Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski said. “It is a manageable injury that will not impact Jayson long-term. We look forward to having him back very soon.”
Duke opens the regular season when it hosts Marist on Nov. 11 as part of the Hall of Fame Tip-Off.
Duke is already without star forward Harry Giles after he recently underwent a third knee surgery. Giles is expected to miss the Blue Devils’ season-opener Nov 11 against Marist and their game against Kansas Nov. 15 in the Champions Classic at Madison Square Garden.
“In Harry’s case, he had his knee scoped about three weeks ago, I think on Oct. 4,” Coach K said on ESPN. “There was nothing structurally wrong with his knee. It wasn’t the knee that had the ACL, it was the one that he had a couple years ago. He’s actually doing great. We feel very, very encouraged about him coming and playing.
“He’s really upbeat and he’s doing a lot more but he still hasn’t done five-on-five with us.”
Tatum is projected as the No. 3 pick in the 2017 NBA Draft by DraftExpress.com, and Giles is at No. 5.
Duke is the preseason No. 1 team in the USA Today/Coaches’ Poll.
Follow Adam Zagoria on Twitter
