Duke basketball enforcer lands Summer League invitation

The Duke basketball enforcer landed an invitation to the NBA Summer League. 

As if Thursday night was not great enough for the Duke basketball program, its backup center also received outstanding news.

Theo John was invited, and accepted, to play with the Minnesota Timberwolves during the NBA Summer League in Las Vegas next months.

Stadium’s NBA insider Shams Charania was the first to report the news shortly after the 2022 NBA Draft ended.

The Blue Devils saw five players selected from the Barclays Center on Thursday night, including the No. 1 overall pick Paolo Banchero.

Duke tied a program record for four first round draft picks and set a school record for having five players selected over the course of the two round.

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Mark Williams was the No. 15 overall pick by the Charlotte Hornets as freshman forward AJ Griffin was selected directly after the Blue Devil center by the Atlanta Hawks at No. 16.

Junior captain Wendell Moore was the No. 26 overall pick by the Dallas Mavericks, which eventually was sent to the Timberwolves, while Trevor Keels slid to the second round to the New York Knicks at No. 42 overall.

Duke basketball center looking to bring toughness to next level

It was very clear the role that Theo John would play on last season’s Duke team and he thrived in the moment.

John brought a level of toughness and physicality every time he stepped on the floor and made it extremely difficult for the opposition to get comfortable and score in the paint.

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After spending four seasons in the Big East Conference with the Marquette Golden Eagles, John played in 38 games for the Blue Devils and averaged 2.8 points and 2.5 rebounds per contest.

The NBA Las Vegas Summer League is slated to begin on July 7, but the Timberwolves will not play its first game of the session until July 8.