Duke basketball seemingly on the verge of veteran front-court help

The Duke basketball team seems on the verge of adding a veteran. 

Although it is only mid-April, there seem to be some holes in the potential Duke basketball roster heading into the 2021-22 season.

One of those holes would be depth and a veteran presence in the frontcourt, and the addition of Bates Jones, a seldom-used player from Davidson, certainly does not fill the void.

However, the Blue Devil coaching staff has its eyes set on another low-post player who would not only bring a veteran presence to Durham but would also bring unmatched physicality and grit.

Marquette transfer Theo John is gathering heavy interest from Duke after announcing his intentions to enter the transfer portal following four seasons with the Golden Eagles.

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A player who seems destined to eventually begin a professional career overseas, John is waiting for the right time to make that jump as the market is dry due to the effects of the coronavirus pandemic.

That leads him to interest from Duke after Marquette fired head coach Steve Wojciechowski, who is a former Blue Devil player and assistant coach, and hired Texas’ Shaka Smart, who has already transformed the team’s roster.

John averaged 8.0 points, 5.0 rebounds, 1.2 assists, and 1.5 blocks per game as a senior and did not practice much at the end of the season due to a knee injury, but he never missed a game.

The 6-foot-9, 255-pound forward went through a similar situation in his junior campaign, in which he suffered a wrist injury but never sat out despite requiring surgery in the summer.

Chances Duke basketball can land the Marquette transfer?

It seems as if the Blue Devils are the current heavy favorite to land Theo John as he has picked up three Crystal Ball Predictions from 247Sports to commit to Duke.

John is familiar with the staff in Durham as assistant coach Chris Carrawell was in the same position at Marquette during his high school recruitment.

Carrawell left Milwaukee for Duke as Theo John was entering his freshman season.

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John would help replace the trio of front-court departures in Jaemyn Brakefield, Patrick Tape, and Matthew Hurt while providing help for the young freshman forwards of Paolo Banchero and Adrian Griffin Jr., in addition to sophomores Mark Williams and Henry Coleman.

Duke is also recruiting high school senior point guard Jaylen Blakes and forward Patrick Baldwin Jr. While it looks like the Blue Devils are the favorites to land Blakes, Baldwin Jr. seems destined for Milwaukee, where his father is the head coach.

All three players, Theo John, Jaylen Blakes, and Patrick Baldwin Jr., are expected to announce their decisions rather soon.