Probabilities of each Duke basketball player leaving after season
By Matt Johnson
Probabilities of Duke basketball players leaving: The 80 percent club
- G/F – Wendell Moore Jr. (Jr.)
I usually make this one my 90 percent slide, but the case of Wendell Moore intrigues me.
Once again, time is everything. If you had asked me going into conference play, I would have told you that besides Paolo Banchero, Moore will be Duke basketball’s highest draft pick this year.
Cut to March. Moore still has a first-round draft projection, but I can’t shake this nagging feeling that Blue Devil head coach-in-waiting Jon Scheyer is politicking behind the scenes to get him to stick around for his senior campaign.
Following a red-hot start to the season, Moore has regressed into old habits at times. Rushed shots and his trademark routine getting stuck under the basket when driving have crept back into his game. He seemed to have buckled down as he got his legs back following the COVID pause in early January, but that must be in the back of his mind.
His 13.5 points and 4.6 assists per game are respectable numbers. However, with an extra year at Duke, I believe he can improve even more. The backcourt is looking extremely thin next season with only a few guys possibly returning and four-star sharpshooter Jaden Schutt being the only addition — for now, anyway.
Depending on Duke’s result in the tournament, Wendell Moore may want to come back and be “the man” for the Blue Devils. That said, I still believe he will go while his draft stock is high and that this will be his final year on campus.