Duke basketball adding the ‘best big man in the country’

Jon Scheyer has very high praise for one of his Duke basketball commits. 

The Duke basketball program officially announced the signing of its 2024 recruiting class which currently features Cooper Flagg, Isaiah Evans, Kon Knueppel, Patrick Ngongba II, and Darren Harris.

The Blue Devils are still in pursuit of 5-star prospects Dylan Harper and VJ Edgecombe but neither player is likely to announce his college decision until the spring.

However, head coach Jon Scheyer is finally able to speak publicly about his 5-man recruiting class and he had high praise of one of his signees.

“Pat [Ngongba] is the best big man in the country,” Scheyer said in a social media video and press release.

“He’s a guy that can score inside and out. What we love about him is his incredible skill level.”

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Ngongba, who was the final player in the current class to commit to Duke, picked the program over Kentucky and Kansas State.

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Patrick Ngongba is ranked as a 5-star prospect, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings, and the No. 23 player in the country as well as the No. 5 center in his class.

The 6-foot-11 forward attends Paul VI (Va.), where he is teammates with fellow future Blue Devil Darren Harris.

“He’s a great passer, he can really handle the ball, and he can shoot from three, as well as score inside – right hand and left hand,” Scheyer continued.

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“He has great footwork, he’s a high-level rebounder. He’s somebody, that when you play with him, he makes everybody better on the court.”

Pat Ngongba averaged 12.0 points and 7.4 rebounds per game on the EYBL circuit this summer and will be a much needed presence in Durham next season with the graduation of backup center Ryan Young and the anticipated decisions to opt for the NBA Draft from Kyle Filipowski and Mark Mitchell.

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