Duke basketball: Five-star pits Blue Devils against rival bluebloods
By Matt Giles
Duke basketball is about to host a 7-footer, days after he named finalists.
As of Thursday, Westtown (Pa.) center Dereck Lively is still considering a Duke basketball future plus six other favorites: Florida State, Kentucky, Michigan, North Carolina, Penn State, and USC.
Looking at that list, the Wildcats and Tar Heels obviously stand out as frequent threats to the Blue Devils on the recruiting trail. And it’s worth pointing out that all three either have hosted or, in the case of Duke next week, will host Lively for an official visit in June.
With that in mind, some might assume this trio of blueblood rivals represent the top contenders for the rising high school senior.
That said, note the zero Crystal Ball picks predicting a winner. Also, Lively has said he intends to take more visits in the fall. In other words, it doesn’t appear as if the 7-foot-1, 220-pound five-star will choose a college destination anytime soon.
Duke basketball recruiting target on the rise
Dereck Lively recently jumped from No. 35 to No. 20 overall on the 247Sports 2022 Composite. Plus, this week, the site’s Chris Fisher forecasted him to see “a huge bump in the next update.”
With so many traits of a modern center — particularly the nimble big man’s ability to run the floor like a small forward — it’s no wonder Lively has become such a hot commodity among elite programs.
Thus far, Duke head coach-in-waiting Jon Scheyer has extended offers to Lively in addition to four others from the class. Those four are Montverde (Fla.) five-star small forward Dariq Whitehead, Sunrise Christian (Kan.) five-star small forward Mark Mitchell, La Lumiere (Ind.) four-star point guard JJ Starling, and Coppell (Texas) four-star combo guard Anthony Black.
Next. Ranking Duke's 14 prospects from the 2023 class. dark
The Duke Blue Devils are still waiting on their first 2022 commitment.