Jon Scheyer’s Duke basketball roster is ‘not quite done.’ Could Trevor Keels return?
As Duke’s perennial outflow of talent heads into the NBA draft, the natural inflow of talent in the form of the nation’s No. 1 recruiting class is ready to replace them.
That doesn’t mean, though, that the Blue Devils roster for Jon Scheyer’s first season as their head coach is complete even now that May is here.
“We’re not quite done,” Scheyer said Tuesday.
Duke lost one scholarship player to the NCAA transfer portal in former walk-on Michael Savarino but gained two players in 6-10 forward Ryan Young from Northwestern and 6-4 forward Kale Catchings from Harvard.
Five players have entered their names in the NBA draft. Six freshmen have signed to join the team.
Four scholarship players, including former walk-on Keenan Worthington, are set to return.
So, as of now, 12 scholarships are pledged for the new season.
But one of the players in the NBA draft pool, 6-5 guard Trevor Keels, has the option of returning.
Duke isn’t planning on it or lobbying for it, Scheyer said, as Keels goes through the NBA draft evaluation process.
“There’s no substitution for Trevor Keels,” Scheyer said. “He’s an incredibly special player. But we haven’t talked to Trevor about that. Our thing with him has been, act like you are going. Attack it. You can’t be half in.”
Getting Keels, who averaged 11.5 points while playing in 36 games with 26 starts last season, back would be a huge boost for a talented Duke roster. He has until 11:59 p.m. on June 1 to withdraw from the draft if he wants to play college basketball again.
Duke could use another backcourt veteran to pair with Jeremy Roach, the 6-2 guard who has already announced he’ll be returning for his junior season. Having Roach back is a big win for the Blue Devils, Scheyer said.
“Getting a guy like Jeremy Roach back is really important,” Scheyer said, “and he’s gonna be a leader for us with what he did in the NCAA tournament.”
A starter when the season began, and moving into a reserve role in January, Roach started all eight of Duke’s postseason games in the ACC and NCAA tournaments.
For now, Duke has Roach, 6-2 sophomore Jaylen Blakes and 6-6 senior forward Joey Baker as returning ball-handlers. Blakes and Baker were not part of the rotation during Duke’s NCAA tournament run to the Final Four.
Incoming freshman Jaden Schutt, a 6-5 shooting guard, will certainly push for minutes in his first college season.
Of course, 6-5 small forward Dariq Whitehead, the five-star recruit named the Naismith national prep player of the year and the McDonald’s All-Star Game most valuable player, looks like a starter at a wing position.
The 6-6 Catchings provides veteran depth.
Duke could add another veteran guard through the transfer portal. The Blue Devils coaches had discussions with South Dakota State transfer Baylor Scheierman, the sharp-shooting guard who committed to Creighton on Tuesday.
So, as Scheyer said, the situation remains in flux.
“Our staff is constantly evaluating what’s out there in the portal,” Scheyer said. “You don’t want to just bring anybody in. You want to bring somebody in that fits already with the core pieces we have in place that can play a really good role.”
Duke’s frontcourt is loaded with talent and size.
The 7-1 Dereck Lively and 6-11 Kyle Filipowski are both five-star recruits rated among the top 10 players in the class of 2022. Young has three years of playing experience in the Big Ten, similar to what Theo John brought to Duke as a reserve behind Mark Williams last season.
Another freshman, the 6-8, 205-pound Mark Mitchell, will help on the wing with scoring and rebounding.
Freshman Chrisitan Reeves, at 7-1 and 238 pounds, projects as a reserve who could redshirt this season.
When Mike Krzyzewski announced his retirement plans last June and Duke selected Scheyer as his eventual replacement, Scheyer said he started planning for what’s happening now with the program. The goals, he said, remain the same as they were during Krzyzewski’s historic 42-year run that included 13 Final Fours and five national championships.
“I think my goal was, from the beginning, to think about October `22,” Scheyer said. “To feel like we’re in a position to pursue a national championship. And I think we’re on our way there. We’ve still got some work to do.”
Duke 2022-23 roster (scholarship players only)
Freshmen
Dereck Lively, 7-1, 220, C
Kyle Filipowski, 6-11,230, C
Dariq Whitehead, 6-6, 190, F
Mark Mitchell, 6-8, 205, F
Jaden Schutt, 6-5, 180, G
Christian Reeves, 7-1, 238, C
Sophomore
Jaylen Blakes, 6-2, 208 G
Junior
Jeremy Roach, 6-2, 172, G
Seniors
Joey Baker, 6-6, 206, F
Ryan Young, 6-10, 210, F
Kale Catchings, 6-4, 190, F
Keenan Worthington, 6-8, 224, F
This story was originally published May 4, 2022 at 3:24 PM with the headline "Jon Scheyer’s Duke basketball roster is ‘not quite done.’ Could Trevor Keels return?."