Three Duke basketball players most likely to leave early next year

Which Duke basketball underclassmen won’t be in Durham this time next year?

Goodbyes to Duke basketball stars with eligibility remaining, well, those are never easy. But such farewells have become the norm for the numb-to-it fanbase.

And though the number of early departures next spring certainly could fall below the program’s average of 3.75 per year since 2017, it’s also conceivable that the number could break the current program record of four in a year (three times: 2017, 2018, 2019). Most probable, though, seems to be that the number will match that of the skedaddled NBA-bound Dukies this year: Tre Jones, Vernon Carey Jr., and Cassius Stanley.

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However, if the number is indeed to be three, then the exact makeup of that trio is a little less clear at this time than in most recent years. Nevertheless, Mike Krzyzewski and his staff have made it so that a significant aspect of the Duke fan experience these days is to tirelessly forecast future needs by projecting one-and-dones, two-and-dones, and transfers before seasons ever begin.

So with that in mind, let’s again fulfill our modern-day Blue Devil duties by prognosticating the few Duke underclassmen who will turn pro after the upcoming season (with the assumption that at least a partial season takes place). We’ll rank the three here in order of the probabilities they bounce, finishing with the one who looks surest to do so…