Projecting Duke's 2016-17 Rotation After 5-Star SF Commits to Blue Devils

The Duke Blue Devils continued their trend of attracting the nation's best talent on Sunday, when Jayson Tatum became the first player to commit to the program's class of 2016.

The electric small forward, who turned heads playing for Team USA at the FIBA U-19 World Championship recently, announced his commitment on ESPNU after his semifinal game at the Peach Jam. 

Tatum is the No. 2 prospect in the class of 2016 according to ESPN, and it is possible the No. 1 player in that class will attend school in Durham if Tatum can help recruit Harry Giles. 

Even if the Blue Devils don't land Giles along with Tatum, they will have quite the impressive starting five during the 2016-17 season. Because Giles isn't officially committed anywhere, we did not include him in this projection, but he could end up in Durham at the end of his recruitment. 

With that in mind, we decided to project what the Duke rotation will look like with Tatum now in the mix with the current stars on the roster. 

PG: Derryck Thornton

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Back in April, Derryck Thornton reclassified to the class of 2015 and committed to Duke. Leading into his freshman season, the point guard will face a ton of pressure as he tries to replace the impact Tyus Jones had on the program. 

The good news for Thornton is he will get a year under his belt with plenty of dynamic scorers around him. By the time Tatum enters the fold for the 2016-17 season, Thornton should have very few issues with controlling the pace of the game at the point. 

The only way Thornton doesn't remain the starter for his sophomore season is if Duke lands star class of 2016 guard Dennis Smith. Three Duke coaches were in attendance at the Peach Jam earlier this week to watch Smith, who is widely regarded as the top point guard in the class of 2016, per SNY's Adam Zagoria. 

SG: Grayson Allen

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If everything goes as expected for Grayson Allen during his sophomore season, he could be on the verge of superstardom entering his junior year. 

The explosive shooting guard, who also has no fear when it comes to attacking the rim, was the forgotten man of the class of 2014 that featured Jahlil Okafor, Justise Winslow and Tyus Jones. Based off the few things we saw out of Allen during Duke's championship run, he will be far from forgotten throughout the upcoming season. 

With a player in the lineup like Allen willing to do everything necessary to succeed, Tatum and the other young guys on the Duke roster will have a strong role model to look up to. As we have seen throughout the years in college basketball, having an experienced hand on the floor can mean the world to a developing squad. 

SF: Jayson Tatum

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As an explosive wing player, Tatum will supply the Blue Devils with yet another dynamic scoring option. 

On top of his scoring ability, the St. Louis native is also versatile, which will benefit the Blue Devils as head coach Mike Krzyzewski tries to find playing time for all the stars in his rotation. 

“I play multiple positions. I play the 2, 3 and the 4. Sometimes I gotta be aggressive to score and sometimes I gotta crash off the glass and block shots and things like that," Tatum said, per SNY's Adam Zagoria. 

If Krzyzewski opts to utilize a lineup chock-full of big men, Tatum could shift to shooting guard, while he could also line up as a power forward if the Blue Devils want three pure shooters on the floor at once. 

PF: Brandon Ingram

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The one big question mark about the 2016-17 Duke lineup is the status of Brandon Ingram. 

The power forward will play in Durham for at least one year, but his professional stock may be too high to ignore after a single season at the collegiate level. The 6'9" forward is currently rated as the No. 4 player in the 2016 NBA draft, per Draft Express. 

Anything can happen over the next 12 months, which is why we are tentatively penciling Ingram into Duke's starting five for his sophomore season. 

If the North Carolina native does depart for the draft, a class of 2016 stud like Giles could fill his spot, or Krzyzewski could use Luke Kennard as a third guard and move Tatum into the frontcourt. 

C: Chase Jeter

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Chase Jeter should be poised to thrive in his sophomore season in a Duke uniform.

Jeter will face the least amount of pressure of any young star on the roster during the 2015-16 season due to the presence of Amile Jefferson and Marshall Plumlee ahead of him on the depth chart. The 6'10" big man could easily eclipse both of them and make it into the starting lineup during his freshman season, but he does need to put on a bit of weight. 

By the time his second collegiate year rolls around, Jeter should be able to turn himself into one of the top big men in the nation thanks to his skill set and tips gained from Jefferson and Plumlee. 

If that is the case, Duke will not have any weaknesses in its lineup, which is a scary thing to imagine if you are an opposing ACC school. 

Contributors off the Bench

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Matt Jones, SG

One of the few remaining players from the 2015 title-winning squad entering the 2016-17 season is Matt Jones. The skilled shooting guard will be thrust into the sixth-man role that may suit him the best. Although the Blue Devils have plenty of talented guards on their roster, it is always nice to have an experienced guy come off the bench and contribute in whatever fashion Krzyzewski wants him to. 

Luke Kennard, SG

With Tatum now in the fold, Kennard will be relegated to the bench unless Thornton or Allen improve greatly and declare for the NBA after the 2015-16 season. No matter what role he plays off the bench, Kennard will be able to improve every day against his star teammates in practice. 

Antonio Vrankovic, C

Antonio Vrankovic may not be a five-star recruit, but he could end up playing a vital role in his sophomore season. He probably will not see much action in his freshman season due to the depth at center, but he will have a chance to impress Krzyzewski once the older big men leave the program. 

Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.