Duke basketball in the NBA: Harry Giles proves positive vibes pay off

Bum knees kept Harry Giles from dominating college competition three seasons ago, but his jovial and persevering personality now wows Sacramento Kings fans while making Duke basketball fans proud.

Imagine taking a stroll along the path of Harry Giles from six summers ago to the present day. And try to keep smiling the entire way without ever complaining — just as the former Duke basketball one-and-done has proven able to do.

Just make sure to bring crutches with you.

As a 15-year-old who had just completed his freshman year of high school in June of 2013, the top 2016 prospect at the time must have heard the title coming his way from all directions:

The Next Big Thing.

By June’s end, though, things began taking a turn in the wrong direction. The 6-foot-10, 240-pound power forward — who had put on shows with his 7-foot-3 wingspan, pogo-stick hops, dynamite anticipation, and quick putbacks — blew out his left knee, simultaneously tearing both the ACL and MCL during summer competition.

After sitting out his sophomore year, he returned to form as a high school junior and once again soaked stat sheets with points and rebounds. Then on November 3, 2015, during a preseason scrimmage as a new enrollee at Oak Hill Academy for his senior season, Giles tore the ACL in his other knee.

Three tears between both knees in less than three years.

Ouch.

Three days after the tear as a high school senior, the Winston Salem, N.C., native announced his decision to become a Blue Devil, sparking anxious Duke fans to start asking questions about his past injuries.

More than one year later, by the time he debuted for his lone season in Durham, his lack of confidence in both his knees was obvious.

Bounce? Not so much. Speed? Not as much.

So why did the Sacramento Kings have the confidence to trade for and use the 20th overall pick at the 2017 NBA Draft on a guy who had averaged a Joe Schmoe 3.9 points and 3.8 rebounds as a college freshman — a guy who would end up sitting out the entire 2017-18 season in order to undergo preventive measures on his knees?

The decision must have had plenty to do with his personality — the childlike type of personality that naturally lightens the mood of any setting and brightens the day of everyone around him, from kids to adults, poor to rich, average fans to coaches and teammates.

In his professional debut last season, Giles solidified his spot on Sacramento’s roster by delighting spectators with his unwavering enthusiasm and averaging a promising 7.0 points and 3.8 boards while hitting more than half of his attempts from the field

And so far this offseason, other than fine-tuning his game, he has spent much of his time entertaining followers on social media and attracting new fans with his playful spirit.

At the beginning of June, instead of ignoring a plea for help on Twitter, Giles actively campaigned for Kings fan Richard Ivanowski to actualize his dream of wearing a Giles jersey at his upcoming wedding; in order to do so, Ivanowski had to reach the 10,000 retweets his fiancée said he had to obtain in order for her to allow his loud display of love for Giles on her wedding day.

Mission accomplished — because of Giles, whose Twitter profile includes his mantra, “Humble but STARVING.”

Here’s one of the newlywed’s many thank-you tweets, which led to responses from other fans with their own glowing anecdotes about Giles:

https://twitter.com/apevny/status/1146699654219702274?s=20

The game Ivanowski referred to in his tweet above was a Summer League game. But Giles did not play in the game. No, in large part due to his ever-jolly demeanor and flooding fan support, he no longer has the task of proving to the franchise that he belongs on the squad.

As a candidate to be in the starting lineup next season alongside fellow former Duke big man Marvin Bagley III now that free agency sent Willie Cauley-Stein to Golden State — he’ll more likely serve as one of the first few guys off the bench — Giles was at the game to show support for those who are in his shoes from last summer (i.e., those trying to impress enough of the Kings staff to avoid starting the season in the G League).

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But Giles didn’t stop at just acting as a supporter; as with all of his recurring acts of kindness, instead of acting above it all, he went the extra mile:

https://twitter.com/HGiiizzle/status/1146660642339733504?s=20

Last week, Giles came across a former Sacramento star whom he partially patterned his game after growing up. The similar-syle-to-Giles player was Chris Webber, who reflected the smiles from Giles during the encounter:

https://twitter.com/HGiiizzle/status/1145958113255628800?s=20

Well before ever meeting Giles, according to NBC Sports’ Dalton Johnson, Webber concluded Giles “can be a lot better” than he was before his basketball path comes to an end. And, as Johnson discovered, in terms of production per 36 minutes, the rookie stats of Giles last season nearly stack up to those from Webber during his 1994-95 rookie campaign:

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"“Webber averaged 19.7 points, 10.2 rebounds and 4.0 assists per 36 minutes as a rookie for the Warriors,” Johnson wrote. “Giles averaged 17.9 points, 9.7 rebounds and 3.7 assists per 36 minutes this past season for the Kings.”"

Granted, Webber played twice the number of minutes. And it’s certainly true Giles still has plenty of work ahead: most of all, he needs to stay healthy while staying out of foul trouble in order to help him stay on the floor (he averaged a paltry 14.1 minutes last season).

Well, we’ve reached the end of this look back at the rocky path the 21-year-old has traversed without ever publicly sulking the past six years.

So here’s a final thought to summarize what his past says about his future:

While some Duke basketball fans rightly remain skeptical of his potential to excel again at the game of basketball, no fan can deny Giles has exactly what it takes to excel as a teammate, as a pupil, as a friend, and as a human.

#TheBrotherhood stands even taller because of him.

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Stay tuned to Ball Durham for more updates, analyses, and opinions concerning Harry Giles and the rest of the Blue Devils in the NBA.