Duke basketball: Jayson Tatum continues to be aid for Jon Scheyer

Duke basketball forward Jayson Tatum (Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports)
Duke basketball forward Jayson Tatum (Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports)

Jayson Tatum is still helping the Duke basketball program amid NBA success. 

Duke basketball standout Jayson Tatum has not forgotten where his roots are despite his massive success in the NBA.

Tatum is around the Blue Devil program quite often and most recently flew to Chicago on Saturday night to surprise the team for dinner during its Name, Image, and Likeness trip.

Even though Tatum is not on the coaching staff he maintains a close relationship with head coach Jon Scheyer, who was an associate head coach during his lone season as a Blue Devil, and lends his services to try and improve the team.

Last week Tatum held his Elite Camp which featured a handful of prospects associated with the Duke program.

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Caleb Foster and Mark Mitchell were invited to the camp as the lone two Duke players selected from the college ranks while high school recruits Cooper Flagg, VJ Edgecombe, Caleb Wilson, and Isaiah Evans were also at the camp.

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Isaiah Evans, a 5-star wing in the Class of 2024, has already announced his verbal commitment to the Blue Devils while the other three prospect are all high on Jon Scheyer’s recruiting board.

Cooper Flagg, one of the best high school players in the country, has called Duke a “dream school” of his and has explained that Jayson Tatum is one of the players he models his own game after. The current 2025 standout began an unofficial visit to Duke on August 1.

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VJ Edgecome is one of Duke’s most recent offers but included the program in his Top-10 finalists while Caleb Wilson, a Top-5 player in 2025, also recently landed an offer from the Blue Devils.

Expect Jayson Tatum to be a constant presence around the Duke basketball program for the next several years and, who knows, maybe he will find his way to the coaching staff once his playing days are over.