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Duke Basketball

Four Blue Devils Tabbed in NBA Draft

 

Marvin Bagley headlines four new Duke players headed to the NBA.

BROOKLYN, N.Y. – Duke men's basketball matched a program record with four selections during the 2018 NBA Draft Thursday night at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, including two of the top seven picks and three first-round selections.

 Freshman Marvin Bagley III went second overall to the Sacramento Kings, while classmate Wendell Carter, Jr. went seventh to the Chicago Bulls. Senior Grayson Allen joined Bagley and Carter in the first round as the 21st pick by the Utah Jazz, running the Blue Devils’ total to 44 all-time first-round picks – the third-best total in history.

 Bagley and Carter coming off the board in the lottery now gives head coach Mike Krzyzewski 25 lottery selections – extending the record for most lottery picks for a school and coach. Duke has boasted a top-3 pick in each of the last five NBA Drafts, surpassing the record of four straight by UCLA between 1974 and 1977.

 Rounding out the four Blue Devils in the Draft was freshmen Gary Trent, Jr., who was drafted by Sacramento in the second round with the 37th overall pick and traded to the Portland Trailblazers. Duke previously had four draft picks in 1986, 1999 and 2017.

 The Blue Devils have had at least one player selected in 31 of 38 drafts under Krzyzewski. Coach K has tutored a total of 61 draft picks since taking over the Duke program in 1980, including a Draft-record 38 first-round selections.

 The Blue Devils have produced 18 first-round picks in the last 10 seasons, including at least one in each of the last eight years. Thirteen of Duke’s last 15 picks, and 20 of the last 25, have come in the first round, including 13 lottery picks.

 Coach K on Bagley:

“Marvin was as good as anyone in college basketball last season. A high double-double guy, and no one runs – as a big guy – any better. He’s shown he can put the ball on the floor, and he can shoot. He’s just going to get better. He’s a position-less big guy, which in today’s NBA is important.”

 Coach K on Carter

“With Wendell, you have that double-double guy, who faced the basket for the first time once he got here to Duke. He can really shoot, and I liken him a lot to Al Horford – he’s taller, but he has a huge upside. He’s an incredible passer for any position, but especially for a big guy. He’s an easy kid to coach and fun to be around every day.”

 Coach K on Grayson Allen:

“In Grayson, you have a 22-year-old mature player. His body of work is there. No player that I can think of has been scrutinized more than him, and has come through it on a huge upside. An almost 2,000-point scorer, an All-American, an Academic All-American, but he has shown he can score the ball. He’s one of the best shooters in the draft, but he can also be a combo – he’s an off-the-charts athlete. He fits in really well in today’s NBA.”

 Coach K on Trent

“Gary is physically ready to play in the league, and he has a huge upside. He is a tremendous shooter. He can really compliment really good players, and he can be an asset to a team right away with his ability to score.”
Duke in the Draft
• Duke has produced a total of 94 NBA Draft picks since 1952.
• Duke has had 61 draft picks under head coach Mike Krzyzewski (since 1981), fourth-most nationally over that time.
• The Blue Devils have had at least one player selected in 19 of the last 21 NBA Drafts, including 30 first-round picks.
• Duke has had at least one player taken in 31 of the 38 NBA Drafts in the Krzyzewski Era.
• Duke players have been selected by 29 of the 30 NBA teams all-time.
• The team to have drafted the most Blue Devils is Detroit (nine), followed by seven for Chicago, and six each for Golden State and Boston. Toronto remains the only team yet to draft a Duke player.

Duke in the First Round
• Duke’s 45 first-round selections are third most all-time, including 38 under Coach K.
• Coach K's 38 first-round picks are the most by a college coach in the history of the NBA Draft.

• Duke has produced a top-3 pick in five consecutive NBA Drafts to set a draft record. The previous record was held by UCLA (1974-77).
• Duke’s 25 NBA lottery picks – all coached by Coach K – are the most by both a college program and college coach.
• An NCAA-leading 20 lottery selections have come from Duke since 1999.
• In the Lottery Era (since 1985), Duke has produced 12 top-three picks; the next-closest total nationally is four (each by Georgetown, LSU, Ohio State, Kansas and Kentucky).
• Duke's 14 top-10 picks since 2000 are the most in the nation in that timeframe, leading Kentucky (12), Connecticut (8), Arizona (8) and Kansas (7).
• Duke has produced at least one first-round pick in each of the last eight years.

Duke Basketball

Duke Players Sign with Agents Before NBA Draft

There is plenty of reason for Duke Basketball fans to tune into the NBA Draft which will be held at Barclays Center in New York tomorrow evening.

The draft will start at 7:00 with the Phoenix Suns on the board and it will not take long before we hear a Blue Devils name called.

In fact, five Duke Blue Devils are expected to go in the NBA Draft where the team is losing their entire starting lineup.

You may have seen in the news recently where Marvin Bagley III signed a deal with Puma.  To do so, players have to have agents in place and in the case of Bagley, he has secured the services of Jeff Schwartz of Excel Sports Management. Bagley is expected to be a big part of a Puma campaign to promote its brand.  They recently signed his former high school teammate DeAndre Ayton while naming Jay-Z as president of Puma Basketball.

A player who is destined to go in the lottery with Bagley is Wendell Carter Jr.  Carter has signed with Mike Seigal of Impact Sports Management.

Four year Duke standout Grayson Allen has signed with  Mitch Nathan of CAA Sports.  He is in good hands in that he represents NBA standouts, Karl Anthony-Towns and Victor Oladipo.

Gary Trent Jr. has signed with Daniell Cantor of FAME.  She is one of the most accomplished female agents who has worked closely with David Falk.  She most recently represented Malcolm Brogdon who played at Virginia and won the NBA Rookie of the Year Award.

Trevon Duval has inked with Raymond Brothers of IAM Sports. Among his clients are Markelle Fultz who was last season's top overall pick.

Duke currently has 20 players in the NBA and if all of last seasons roster players return, the program will have a record 25 guys in the league.  Here is a link of the current players on that list.