Duke commits highlight McDonald’s All-American Game
By Amie Just
Image – USA TODAY Sports
The future of Duke Basketball looks as if it’s going to be in good hands. In this year’s McDonald’s All-American Game, the four Duke commits shined on the court.
One of those commits is Grayson Allen. He’s a 6’4” shooting guard hailing from Jacksonville, FL. Allen signed his letter of intent almost a year ago, formally committing to Duke on April 24th 2013.
“When I was in 9th grade, I said that my dream school was Duke,” Allen said at the McDonald’s All-American media session on Tuesday. “I always wanted to go to Duke. When I was going through the recruiting process and it was becoming realistic, I kind of looked into it and thought it was a great fit.”
It’s going to be a great fit, alright, considering on Tuesday he, a 6’4” shooting guard I remind you, won the dunk contest at the 2014 McDonald’s All-American Game.
First, Allen jumped over two other All-Americans and slammed it down. Then he jumped over Jahlil Okafor, a future teammate, to put down the dunk. Jumping over Okafor, not exactly an easy feat, considering Okafor stands at 6’10”.
Along with winning the dunk contest, Allen suited up for the West in the McDonald’s All American Game. He accounted for four points, one rebound, one assist, one block, and two steals on the night, helping the West to victory.
Despite from his talent, Allen is just a regular high school kid. He has a girlfriend, tweets inspirational quotes, Bible verses, and his takes on basketball.
Also representing for Duke was Okafor (the teammate Allen dunked over). While donning the number 22 jersey for the West in the McDonald’s All American Game, Okafor, a Chicago native, put up solid numbers. The current unanimous number one recruit scored 17 points in the game, along with seven rebounds. Due to his efforts on the court, Okafor was awarded as the game’s MVP, sharing the award with future rival North Carolina commit Justin Jackson.
The Tobacco Road rivalry won’t be any less exciting in the years to come. Not if Okafor can help it.
“I’m definitely excited to get down to Durham and be part of the greatest college basketball rivalry,” Okafor said after the win on Wednesday. “There has been a lot of trash talk between us and the recruits going to North Carolina. We’re all competitors so we’re all looking forward to it. “
Suiting up for the East were the other two Duke commits, Tyus Jones and Justise Winslow. Jones is a 6’1” point guard from Minnesota who is ranked 4/5 for recruits, depending on where you look. The five star showed his well sought after talent for the East, putting up seven points, 10 assists, and two rebounds. Jones didn’t just lead his team in a close game, he also clinched the skills competition title.
Winslow, a 6’6″ small forward from Houston, TX added nine points and three rebounds for the East.
Seeing these four shine makes the first round loss just a little bit easier. Maybe, just maybe, with these four on the roster, a championship run next season is possible.
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