Duke basketball: Patrick Tape officially joining Blue Devils by signing NLI

Patrick Tape is now officially a member of the Duke basketball program after signing his National Letter of Intent.

As Sonny LoSpecchio so eloquently said in The Bronx Tale, “Now yous can’t leave.”

So without any further ado, Patrick Tape is officially a Duke Blue Devil.

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On Saturday evening, the program announced the news that the Columbia graduate transfer had signed his National Letter of Intent, and Mike Krzyzewski might want to lock the door behind Tape in case he changes his mind again.

It’s been a wild month between Tape the Blue Devils as the 6-foot-10 forward committed, decommitted, and then recommitted from Duke in about a 10-day span.

The Duke Men’s Basketball social media pages also welcomed Tape to Durham multiple times before deleting each post minutes after being published.

Patrick Tape will be a welcomed sight in Durham as the big man will bring a veteran presence to the paint that saw four key players depart from the program.

Vernon Carey Jr. declared for the NBA Draft after one season at Duke while Javin DeLaurier, Jack White, and Justin Robinson are all graduating in May.

https://twitter.com/DukeMBB/status/1251629300308197377

However, Matthew Hurt made the official announcement that he will return for his sophomore season, but despite being listed at 6-foot-9, Hurt might spend most of his time on the perimeter rather than in the paint.

ALSO READ: Matthew Hurt confirms return for sophomore season

Tape sat out all of last season with a toe injury, but in his final season at Columbia (2018-19), he averaged 11.3 points, 5.9 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 1.3 blocks, and 1.0 steals per game on 66.7 percent shooting from the field.

ALSO READ: Patrick Tape reverses course in stunning recommitment to Duke

Patrick Tape will be the eighth new face to walk through the doors of Cameron Indoor Stadium next fall, joining the seven-man recruiting class of scholarship players Jalen Johnson, Jeremy Roach, DJ Steward, Jaemyn Brakefield, Mark Williams, and Henry Coleman, as well as preferred walk-on Cason Pierce.

Tape and Williams are the more traditional big men while Johnson, Brakefield, and Coleman can all split some minutes at the center position if needed.

ALSO READ: Best Duke lineup should have unique piece at center

In the most recent, and not deleted, social media post by the team, the Charlotte native is wearing the No. 12, different from the No. 3 he had been wearing in the previous posts, hinting at his new number in Durham. Tape wore No. 3 in his three years at Columbia.

It’s possible that Tape could start for Duke on opening night, but it’s more conceivable to see him getting around 15 minutes per game coming off the bench for Mike Krzyzewski.

Tape will be the first-ever graduate transfer to play at Duke under Coach K.

Regardless of how much or how little time he gets, the veteran presence and leadership skills Patrick Tape possesses should be a welcome sight for a very young Duke roster.

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