Ball Durham
Fansided

Harry Giles III Ready to Get Back to Playing and Join Duke This Fall

By Chris Brown

March 23, 2016; Anaheim, CA, USA; Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski speaks to media during practice the day before the semifinals of the West regional of the NCAA Tournament at Honda Center. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports
March 23, 2016; Anaheim, CA, USA; Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski speaks to media during practice the day before the semifinals of the West regional of the NCAA Tournament at Honda Center. Mandatory Credit: Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports /
facebooktwitterreddit

Incoming 5-star recruit Harry Giles is ready to start playing for Duke and prove his doubters wrong on his way back from a season-ending ACL injury.

Power forward Harry Giles was at one point ranked as the #1 recruit in the 2016 class before he suffered an ACL tear in the first game of the year which caused him to miss his entire senior season at Oak Hill.

Giles is still recovering from knee surgery and gave an update in a recent article for the Winston-Salem Journal. He says he is ready to get back to playing to prove his naysayers wrong and help Duke win the NCAA men’s basketball national championship next season.

Harry Giles is an extremely talented 6-10 forward who is expected to have a big impact for Duke next season with one of the top incoming recruiting classes. He is a very versatile power forward who can play in the post and extend his game to the perimeter. Head coach Mike Krzyzewski had this to say about Giles’ versatility:

"“He’s 6-10 or 6-11, and he’s not a position. There are players who are 6-4 or 6-5 or can play a lot of positions, and Harry can play every position. He can pretty much guard every position. He has an amazing attitude about the game and loves it.”"

The incoming Duke freshman has gained a lot of doubters who don’t think he will be able to succeed after tearing his ACL twice which caused him to miss two of his high school basketball seasons. Despite the injuries, Giles still made his way back to be considered the #1 recruit in the 2016 class before his latest ACL tear, and he has high hopes that he can make his way back to the top again for his freshman year at Duke. Coach K is also confident “he’ll come back and come back even better”.

“We want to win a national championship. That’s what we are talking about already, and we don’t shy away from it.” – Harry Giles

He’s also excited to join the Blue Devils  for the upcoming season because he believes they can win the national title next season. The goal for the team next year is to win it all next year, and Giles notes the team is already talking about it. Early basketball rankings project Duke to be one of the top teams in the country next season and one of the favorites to win the 2017 NCAA National Championship.

The incoming Duke recruits recently picked their jersey numbers, and the former top-ranked recruit decided to wear #1 next season. The only former Blue Devils to ever wear the number 1 were Kyrie Irving and Jabari Parker, both of whom were also top 5-star recruits when they arrived at Duke, had successful freshman seasons under Coach K, and were top two NBA Draft lottery picks after their freshman years.

More from Duke Basketball

He has yet to make a decision on if he will also be one-and-done at Duke, saying “I just want to play basketball…I’m really just trying to concentrate on playing, and all the other stuff will take care of itself.” After his college career is over though, he does want to become the next great professional basketball player from Winston-Salem following in the footsteps of NBA All-Stars Josh Howard and Chris Paul.

Giles will join Duke in the fall with an extremely talented freshman class featuring Jayson Tatum, Frank Jackson, Javin DeLaurier, and Jack White. He also spoke on his friendship with incoming Duke teammate Jayson Tatum and the relationship they’ve built through AAU and USA basketball events. Giles has also played a key role in recruiting the top-ranked 2016 center Marques Bolden, who is uncommitted and still trying to decide between Duke and Kentucky.

Next: 5-Star Duke Recruiting Target Still Undecided

Harry Giles will arrive at Duke early on May 17th to start taking summer classes and continue his rehab. He hopes to be able to get back to running and jumping in June and then be ready for the start of the season in the fall. Best of luck to Giles with his recovery from a torn ACL and we can’t wait to see him on the court next season with the Blue Devils!

Home/Duke Basketball