The last few weeks have been good for Duke basketball. The Blue Devils landed Amile Jefferson, a 6’7″ 190 lbs forward who led Friends’ Central to it’s fourth straight state title this season, averaged 19.9 points, 10.2 rebounds, and 2.7 blocks per game. He’s rated as the No. 25 overall prospect in the class of 2012 by ESPN.
Last night Duke secured the services of Rodney Hood, a much needed player that brings the length that Duke badly needed on the wing. Hood, a 
6’8″ 204 lb wing, played one season at Mississippi State, he averaged 10.3 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 2.0 assists as a freshman. He was a member of the SEC all freshman team, he shot 44 % from the field and 36% from 3-point range
Austin Rivers and Miles Plumlee were selected in the NBA’s first round, giving Coach K yet another another record with more players taken in the first round than any other coach in NCAA history. Rivers, (son of the Boston Celtics Doc Rivers) was taken 10th by the New Orleans Hornets. Miles Plumlee, (a native of Indiana) was selected by the Indiana Pacers with the 26th pick.
So after Duke had a rocky start to the recruiting season, it turns out all was not lost. Duke looks good going forward at least for the next two seasons. As long as the Blue Devils can remain healthy, and Mike Krzyzewski is at the helm of Blue Devil Basketball, you should never count Duke out.
Tags: Duke, Amile Jefferson, Rodney Hood, Austin Rivers, Miles Plumlee, NBA, New Orleans Hornets, Indiana Pacers, Mike Krzyzewski, Boston Celtics, Doc Rivers, NCAA
Chris Summerville (@SummervillePix)
July 1, 2012
I think Duke is better off having not landed Shabazz and definitely not Parker. ‘ Bazz is probably one and done and I’d like to see Duke stick to at least 2-3 year guys unless you get that rare player like Kyrie. I like Austin but I don’t think he was on Kyrie’s level, nor do I think ‘Bazz is either. Parker well…I’ll have to wait until his announcement is finally over to comment on him.
Duke is poised to land several athletic and top recruits over the next few years to add to what we already have. I’m excited about the next few years of Duke Basketball. I think this coming season and the next could be really special years for the program.