Ideal Duke basketball roster entering 2021-22 season

Ideal shooting guards to be on 2021-22 Duke basketball roster

DJ Steward

Much like his freshman counterpart Jeremy Roach, five-star prospect DJ Steward has shown some flashes of brilliance, yet it’s not on a consistent basis.

Steward entered Duke as a fringe ‘one-and-done’ player, and given the team’s struggles and the Chicago, Illinois native’s inconsistencies, he should return to Durham for one more season.

Averaging 13.1 points, 4.4 rebounds, 2.1 assists, and 2.1 steals per game, Steward has the potential to become a lottery draft pick after next season as he is shooting 43.5-percent from the field and 35.5-percent from three-point range.

More experience will only benefit DJ Steward in his quest to become a volume scorer in college basketball as a sophomore and a high draft pick into the NBA.

Joey Baker

Joey Baker is a beloved player by the Blue Devil fan base, but his struggles to consistently hit outside shots is problematic after he was labeled as a shooter entering Durham.

Mike Krzyzewski did not do the now-junior any favors in his freshman year by burning his redshirt for only a handful of minutes in late February.

There was progress as a sophomore from Baker, but that progress has been slowed as a junior.

However, the North Carolina native is one of the hardest workers on the team and emerged into a leader on the 2020-21 squad, and that should be rewarded.

Joey Baker could be a candidate to take advantage of the one-time transfer rule. But he should return to Duke for his senior year, and if things still do not work well he could leave after the 2021-22 season as a graduate transfer.