Duke basketball: Potential blueblood recruit explains Blue Devil interest

The Duke basketball staff should advance to the offer stage for one junior.

Unlike seemingly every other program on the planet, Duke basketball has still yet to extend a single 2022 offer. In fact, despite a perceived need for a handful of new additions following the season after next, Mike Krzyzewski and his assistants have shown little appetite for even following up with current high school juniors.

Yet should the Blue Devils soon decide to ramp up their efforts in this regard, one name now stands out as a probable target due to multiple reports within the last month of Duke reaching out to the prospect. That prospect is Grand Island (Neb.) power forward Isaac Traudt, a 6-foot-9, 200-pound four-star who ranks No. 55 overall — but climbing — on the 247Sports 2022 Composite.

Traudt appears to fit the mold of a typical stretch-four under Coach K. Think Matthew Hurt, Ryan Kelly, and Kyle Singler.

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This weekend, several weeks after noting the initial interest coming from Duke, Traudt described to Jack Weingarten of Stock Risers the talks with Jon Scheyer, aka the nation’s No. 1 assistant on the recruiting trail:

“It’s good. Coach Scheyer has spoken to both me and my dad and said that he would like to build a relationship and see me play some more.”

Time might be running out on the Duke basketball recruiters

Surely, Scheyer and the rest of the coaches in Durham aren’t determined to wait until the NCAA lifts the ban on in-person scouting and visits before officially entering a 2022 race. After all, the restrictions aren’t likely going anywhere until at least the new calendar year and could even be in place until next summer or later.

Combining that knowledge with the impressive tapes of Traudt both in action and speaking to the media (example below), it’s unclear what exactly the harm would be in Duke delivering an offer to the crisp sharpshooter and solid athlete. Besides, many in the class have already trimmed their lists of suitors; some, including three of the top 15, have already announced their decisions.

Plus, Traudt told recruiting insider Eric Bossi in September that he too is thinking about naming favorites in the near future. This suggests the Blue Devils are probably just wasting their time even talking to him if they don’t intend to actually join the battle anytime soon.

In his most recent chat with Weingarten, Traudt reeled off the names of the 26 schools that have offered him a scholarship, including Louisville, Notre Dame, and Virginia Tech from the ACC. Also, in addition to Duke, he mentioned six others, including a few bluebloods, who have been hitting him up as of late: Auburn, Gonzaga, Illinois, Kansas, Michigan State, and Virginia.

As for what Traudt has to offer, here’s what he said to Weingarten about his game:

“A forward that can do a little bit of everything. I’m very skilled offensively, and I’m a good rim protector and can guard multiple positions. I’m a team-first player, so whatever the team needs me to contribute to, I will do that.”

Yup, Isaac Traudt sure comes across as worthy of a Duke offer.

Stay tuned to Ball Durham for more on Isaac Traudt plus other Duke basketball recruiting news and views.