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Duke basketball: 10 best NBA careers in Blue Devils history

By Kevin Connelly

Duke basketball legends Kyrie Irving and Jason Williams (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images)
Duke basketball legends Kyrie Irving and Jason Williams (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images) /
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Duke basketball forward Elton Brand (Howard Smith-USA TODAY Sports) /

No. 5 Greatest Duke basketball careers in NBA: Elton Brand

NBA Career Stats: 15.9 PPG, 8.5 RPG, 2.1 APG, 1.7 BPG, 0.9 SPG, 50.0 FG%

Elton Brand was one of the first players to leave Duke after just one season to go to the NBA.

He was the No. 1 overall pick in the 1999 NBA Draft and if Brand was a player in today’s game he likely would have been a multiple-year college player and second-round draft pick, at best.

However, in his era, he was one of the most dominant big men in college basketball and it translated over to the NBA.

Brand was the NBA Co-Rookie of the Year in 2000, alongside Houston Rockets guard Steve Francis, after 20.1 points and 10.0 rebounds per game in his debut season with the Chicago Bulls.

Elton Brand would average at least 20.0 points per game in six of his first eight NBA seasons and posted double-digit scoring in each professional season with the exception of his final four years.

Brand would become a two-time NBA All-Star in 2002 and 2006 while also being selected to the All-NBA Second Team 2006 when he averaged a career-high 24.7 points per contest with the Los Angeles Clippers.

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