Five-star Duke basketball target extinguishes rumors from Kentucky fans

A recruit at the center of the Duke basketball staff’s radar set the record straight concerning some recent chatter.

During an interview a few weeks ago with Hey Kentucky’s Mary Jo Perino, former Duke basketball target and current Kentucky commit B.J. Boston hinted the Wildcats hold a silent 2020 commit.

A Sea of Blue’s Jason Marcum then speculated that the mystery player could be O’Dea High School (Wash.) junior power forward Paolo Banchero — despite the 16-year-old firmly shutting down talk of a possible reclass to 2020 back in August.

As one might expect after Marcum’s article, Big Blue Nation used social media to swiftly weave the speculation into a sure-thing. Banchero — a 6-foot-9, 235-pound five-star who ranks No. 3 on the 247Sports 2021 Composite and remains high on Duke’s wishlist after attending Friday’s Countdown to Craziness — waited until Wednesday evening to crush the rumors via the following tweet:

What is 100 percent verifiably true — obvious to anyone who has ever been inside Cameron Indoor Stadium — is what Banchero tweeted during his official visit to Duke:

https://twitter.com/Pp_doesit/status/1185694119173246978?s=20

The word “different” also best describes Banchero’s game. His sturdy frame added to his vast selection of moves from both inside and outside the arc, though, bring to mind former Duke basketball one-and-done Jabari Parker. However, Banchero is lighter on his feet than Parker — not to mention a more willing and able defender.

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But back to more speculation. The Crystal Ball for Banchero — who will be at Tennessee this weekend after using his first three official visits on UNC, Kentucky, and Duke — shows the smooth brute staying close to home by picking his parents’ alma mater, Washington.

In September, as a guest on Kentucky Sports Radio’s The Sources Say Podcast, Banchero said the following in regard to his decision timeline:

"“If it was ideal, I would want it to be before my senior year of high school.”"

A week later, Banchero tweeted his list of nine finalists: Duke, Kentucky, UNC, Washington, Tennessee, Georgetown, Baylor, Memphis, and Gonzaga (he plans to be in Spokane for an official visit in January).

The other 2021 prospects holding Duke offers are all top-15 five-stars: small forwards Jonathan Kuminga, Patrick Baldwin Jr., and A.J. Griffin in addition to shooting guard Max Christie.

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