The mass exodus from Duke continued Tuesday when freshman forward Harry Giles declared for the NBA draft.
The 6-foot-10 Giles was the No.1 ranked recruit coming out of high school, and was once considered to be a guaranteed top five pick despite missing two seasons due to a pair of torn ACLs. The freshman sat out the first 11 games of this season because of a third knee surgery.
Giles never looked comfortable at Duke, as he averaged 3.9 points and 3.8 rebounds per game while oscillating between the starting lineup and the bench. He showed flashes of greatness toward the end of the season, but that was fleeting as he only saw nine minutes of action in Duke’s second-round loss to South Carolina in the NCAA Tournament.
The 18-year-old becomes the 11th Duke player to leave after one season — his teammate Jayson Tatum became the 10th last week.
Duke is expected to lose more talent in the coming weeks as both Luke Kennard and Grayson Allen could declare for the draft.
As for Giles, he is projected to be a mid to late first-round selection as teams will bank on him reaching his potential once he gets his explosiveness and feel for the game back.
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Thumbnail photo via Brad Penner/USA TODAY Sports Images
