Duke basketball staff sneaking in late for 2020 jumbo?

The Duke basketball coaches may be on the verge of extending an offer to a third 2020 center, but they better act quick.

Hunter Dickinson is the Rolls-Royce version of former Duke basketball behemoth Brian Zoubek.

Similar frame. Truckloads more talent.

The Duke coaches have kept an eye on Dickinson’s growing talent for about a year now. But they have not yet extended an offer to the 2020 four-star, a 7-foot-2, 255-pound center out of Dematha Catholic in Hyattsville, Md.

In order to address the expected outflow of bigs from Durham after next season, Mike Krzyzewski and his assistants have instead started by zooming in on big men Walker Kessler and Mark Williams (the duo ranks No. 16 and No. 37, respectively, on the 247Sports Composite).

However, Dickinson, who ranks No. 30, told Stock Risers’ Jake Weingarten on Sunday that the Blue Devil staff has expressed “heavy” interest as of late.

So maybe Coach K has a hunch Kessler and/or Williams will end up elsewhere. Or it’s possible the 72-year-old and his cohorts are just impressed with the 18-year-old’s improvements the past year (earlier this month, Dickinson averaged 13.5 points, 6.6 boards, and 2.2 blocks to help Team Takeover win Peach Jam; one of his teammates on the EYBL circuit is Duke commit Jeremy Roach).

But will the Blue Devils invite Dickinson to join #TheBrotherhood? And if so, when?

If they do intend to, then they may want to do so within the next day or two seeing that Dickinson announced via a Sunday tweet his plan to unveil his seven finalists “later this week.”

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That being said, Dickinson has not provided any timeline for his decision; plus, recruits are renowned for adding latecomers to their lists prior to their final announcements and then ultimately choosing the late addition (see: incoming Duke freshman Cassius Stanley)

The towering specimen already holds 22 offers, which include 60 percent of the ACC: North Carolina, Virginia, Wake Forest, Georgia Tech, Florida State, Louisville, Pitt, Boston College, and Notre Dame (the leader inside the 247Sports Crystal Ball with two of the three entered picks).

Like Zoubek, Dickinson certainly won’t wow with his quickness or hops. Unlike Zoubek, though, Dickinson will turn heads with nifty footwork and touch around the basket; plus, he has a quick-release jumper — no actual jump necessary — extending to the 3-point line. But his greatest strength seems to be his ability to intelligently maneuver his mammoth body in order to establish and hold his position in the post.

In addition to Roach, Duke holds a commitment from five-star small forward Jalen Johnson. In addition to Kessler and Williams, the Blue Devils’ 2020 offer sheet currently includes five-star point forward Cade Cunningham, five-star shooting guard B.J. Boston, four-star power forward Henry Coleman, and four-star combo guard D.J. Steward.

ALSO READ: Duke commit befriends two budding 2020 targets

Stay tuned to Ball Durham for more Duke basketball recruiting updates, analyses, opinions, and predictions.