Ranking all 24 Duke basketball players in the NBA this season

5. Former Duke basketball guard Gary Trent Jr.

Gary Trent Jr., who went No. 37 overall at the 2018 NBA Draft following one season in college, continues to improve from one year to the next. Now, in his second year with the Toronto Raptors, the 23-year-old has carved out an integral role by torching nets and acting as a smooth thief on the other end of the floor.

Across 48 games, in which he has started all but one, Trent is putting up the following season averages and percentages:

• 18.6 points per game (career-high)
• 2.7 rebounds per game
• 1.9 assists per game (career-high)
• 1.9 steals per game (career-high)
• 0.3 blocks per game
• 43.0 percent from the field
• 39.7 percent beyond the arc
• 81.4 percent from the charity stripe

Gary Trent Jr. and the Toronto Raptors (32-25), now No. 7 in the Eastern Conference standings, return from the All-Star break at 7 p.m. ET Friday in a road contest against the Charlotte Hornets (29-31).