Major Duke basketball recruiting target sets decision date

A Duke basketball recruiting battle is set to end in less than three weeks.

Late Sunday evening, Paul VI (Va.) senior Trevor Keels unveiled via tweet a decision date of April 4, when the 6-foot-5, 210-pound two-guard will be announcing the winner between the Duke basketball program and his three other finalists in Kentucky, Villanova, and Virginia.

Keels had been down to a final three before adding Kentucky to the mix in February.

That move came immediately after head coach John Calipari extended a late offer to the five-star McDonald’s All-American, a trusted creator and heralded sharpshooter who ranks No. 20 overall on the 247Sports 2021 Composite.

Even though it wasn’t long ago when Duke was seen as the clear frontrunner in the eyes of both the Rivals FutureCast and 247Sports Crystal Ball, that is no longer as Villanova has regained the early momentum it forged back before Keels’ prep career had really begun to blossom.

That said, the Keels camp has always been relatively mum when discussing his recruitment, so it could be that the Blue Devils, along with every finalist, still have some shot.

All remaining Duke basketball recruiting pursuits coming to a close

With April’s late signing period now in sight and 2021-22 roster outlooks getting clearer, the small number of high school seniors who have yet to decide on a destination next season should dwindle down near zero in the next few weeks.

Meanwhile, Mike Krzyzewski and his assistants already boast a class consisting of two top 10 five-star signees in O’Dea (Wash.) power forward Paolo Banchero and Archbishop Stepinac (N.Y.) small forward AJ Griffin.

The staff in Durham also remains in play for Trevor Keels, of course, and two more five-stars in Hamilton (Wis.) small forward Patrick Baldwin Jr. and IMG (Fla.) center Charles Bediako.

Baldwin could announce his decision at any moment. And Bediako has said he’s sure to do so at some point in March.

As with the Keels race, though, Duke doesn’t presently lead the Crystal Ball for either Baldwin or Bediako — or anyone else for that matter.