Trouble ahead for Duke basketball on recruiting front
By Matt Giles
It now looks as if a key Duke basketball target will likely head elsewhere.
As of Tuesday, Tennessee has officially emerged as the Crystal Ball leader for Sunrise Christian (Kan.) rising senior Kennedy Chandler, a 6-foot-1, 165-pound five-star who ranks No. 11 overall on the 247Sports 2021 Composite and No. 1 among point guards. That’s not the only sign, though, pointing to the priority prospect for the Duke basketball coaches picking the Volunteers.
Also on Tuesday, Corey Evans of Rivals ranked the five finalists for Chandler in the following order: Tennessee, Kentucky, Memphis, Duke, and North Carolina. The recruiting insider also offered this take on the Blue Devils’ suddenly slimming chance for the slick floor general:
“The supposed dream school for Chandler, Duke remains involved for the five-star’s commitment. The Blue Devils’ success in the backcourt in the 2020 class, bringing in Jeremy Roach and DJ Steward, could come back to haunt them as they both may remain in Durham past the upcoming season, leaving less room and fewer opportunities for Chandler.”
And here’s what Evans wrote about Tennessee’s shot at landing Chandler, which could spur an extra benefit:
“It’s fair to classify Chandler as a Tennessee lean, and there is a decent chance that he pushes for someone such as Paolo Banchero and/or Jabari Smith to join him…Chandler hasn’t been willing to outline a timeline, but if he does decide soon, the Vols would be the choice.”
O’Dea (Wash.) five-star power forward Paolo Banchero is also on Duke’s wishlist, so the Chandler-to-Tennessee news would have the potential to be two losses in one for the Blue Devils.
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While Evans noted the possibility of Chandler’s announcement arriving in the coming weeks, another top insider, Andrew Slater, tweeted with more certainty on Tuesday that it could be any day now:
“Barring anything unforeseen, Tennessee & fairly soon 🔮.”
What the rest of the 2021 Duke basketball efforts look like
No other point guards from Chandler’s class are yet on the radar of Mike Krzyzewski.
The only 2021 commit for the Blue Devils is Archbishop Stepinac (N.Y.) five-star small forward AJ Griffin. Other rising seniors with Duke offers in hand are also all five-stars: Paul VI Catholic (Va.) shooting guard Trevor Keels, Hamilton (Wis.) small forward Patrick Baldwin Jr., and IMG Academy (Fla.) center Charles Bediako.
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