Projecting Who's Staying and Who's Leaving from Duke After NCAA Tournament Loss
Jon Scheyer's first season as head coach of the Duke Blue Devils ended with a loss to Tennessee in the second round of the 2023 men's NCAA tournament.
And now, the team will retool its roster.
No fewer than six players—including three potential first-round NBA draft picks—are expected to leave Duke. Several more players will at least consider making the professional jump, too.
However, the ACC powerhouse has the nation's second-best recruiting class on the way. The future, as usual, is bright.
Watch March Madness Live to stream every tournament game through the Final Four.
Who's Staying?
1 of 3
There is a scenario in which Duke needs to replace four key freshmen. Mark Mitchell has good reason to return, though.
The 19-year-old has provided some nice value as a complementary piece, but his offensive contributions are limited so far. While an NBA team may be willing to draft and develop him, it's unlikely a franchise would select him before the second round of the 2023 draft.
Tyrese Proctor, who reclassified from the 2023 cycle to join the Blue Devils early, would also benefit from another season. Plus, given the perception that 2024 is a weaker cycle, he could rise to a first-round billing, which isn't really a possibility this year.
Northwestern transfer Ryan Young is a fifth-year senior. However, he committed to Duke with the intention of playing out the remainder of his eligibility, which runs through next season.
Top reserve Jaylen Blakes and 2022 signees Jaden Schutt and Christian Reeves should be back, too.
Who's Leaving?
2 of 3
The most likely outcome is Duke loses top freshmen Dariq Whitehead, Kyle Filipowski and Dereck Lively II.
Really, the bigger topic is which order they'll be selected in the 2023 NBA draft. In his most recent mock, B/R's Jonathan Wasserman put Filipowski (17th pick) slightly ahead of Whitehead (22nd) and Lively (24th).
Similar to Mitchell, Jeremy Roach faces an interesting decision. While he could return, the third-year guard has averaged 30.3 minutes per game over three seasons and may simply want to start his professional career. He hasn't confirmed his plans, but the suspicion is he leaves Duke.
Grad transfers Jacob Grandison, Kale Catchings and Max Johns will depart from the roster, as well.
Who's on the Way?
3 of 3Who likes 5-stars? Duke does!
Once again, the Blue Devils have assembled a wildly impressive recruiting class and only trail Kentucky in the class rankings. Mackenzie Mgbako, who's rated the seventh-best player in the country, is the highest-ranked player in a group of five top-tier prospects.
The four remaining 5-stars headed to Durham are guards Jared McCain (No. 15) and Caleb Foster (No. 17) and forwards Sean Stewart (No. 13) and TJ Power (No. 20).
Assuming that Whitehead, Filipowski, Lively, Roach and three seniors all leave, Duke would have two scholarships available.
It's a safe bet to assume Scheyer and his staff would turn to the transfer portal to fill those vacancies.
.png?w=256 "NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament Championship")
.png?w=480 "NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament Championship")
.jpg?w=600 "Colts Release Kenny Moore")
