It’s mid-July, so some things fly under the radar and that seems to be the case with the first Duke basketball intrasquad scrimmage highlights that were posted to YouTube by the team last week.
While the Blue Devils are still not a healthy team as Maliq Brown continues to rehab from shoulder surgery stemming from his double shoulder dislocation last season, the rest of the team took part in the 5-on-5 game that gave a brief insight as to what things could look like in November.
One of the key takeaways was that a handful of players already have the inside track at being in the starting five on opening night; Caleb Foster, Dame Sarr, Isaiah Evans, Cameron Boozer, and Patrick Ngongba.
However, there are still a handful of other things that stood out in the nearly 4-minute video that are worth talking about.
Darren Harris’ Shooting is Elite
A remainder that this is a highlight video and there aren’t going to be many negative things included in the final cut, but if Darren Harris can shoot like that during the regular season, he will be on the court very often.
The seldom used freshman opted to remain in Durham for his sophomore year instead of hitting the transfer portal and looking for a landing spot that would have seen him have a bigger role.
Harris played in 21 games last season, and averaged 6.0 minutes per contest, but only posted 2.0 points on 22.7-percent shooting from 3-point range. It was an impossible rotation to crack but with a year of experience under his belt, the expectation is that Darren Harris will make a positive impact on this version of the Blue Devils.
Isaiah Evans’ Evolution
The biggest talking point among the Duke basketball returning players was how Isaiah Evans was going to take the next step developing into his body and it is noticeable already.
While Evans still has a slender frame given his body type, it’s very clear that he has been in the weight room and trying to add muscle to his frame. The most notable comparison for the sophomore wing is Brandon Ingram because of their similar body frames and Ingram, with all his success in the NBA, still has a slender body type.
While getting stronger was Evans’ first piece of business, his second task of the offseason was to develop his game and not solely be a threat from 3-point range, and that was also shown off in the scrimmage highlights.
The best thing for Isaiah Evans is that he still has a ton of time to continue his development before the season begins in early November. A lot is expected of him this season and he seems to be holding up his end of the bargain.