The transfer portal giveth and the transfer portal taketh away, but Duke Basketball has landed commitments from two players in recent days after the addition of Maliq Brown on Saturday and Mason Gillis today. Adding a veteran swingman from a Final Four roster like Purdue’s in Gillis is invaluable for a roster like the Blue Devils’, where they’ll be bringing in six true freshmen including two of the youngest players in all of college basketball — Cooper Flagg and Khaman Maluach.
At 6’6″, 225 pounds, Gillis brings elite perimeter shooting skills where he’s made 47 percent of his attempts outside the arc throughout his career including 58 of 124 (46.8%) as a senior. Known for his toughness on the court, Gillis also holds a 2:1 assist-to-turnover ratio and is taking advantage of his super senior year after four years at Purdue.
Bringing in a sharpshooter like Gillis will help Duke replace the loss of production from Jared McCain, who announced his intentions to enter the NBA Draft earlier this month, and provide versatility in the lineup as a guy who could play any of the 2/3/or 4 depending on the opponent.
Duke has added two players now via the transfer portal, replacing the seven guys they lost in April to transfer – Christian Reeves, Mark Mitchell, Jaylen Blakes, Jaden Schutt, Jeremy Roach, TJ Power, and Sean Stewart. Also departing the roster since the season’s end were Kyle Filipowski (NBA), McCain (NBA), and Ryan Young (graduation).
The Blue Devils are expected to target one more rotation-level player via the transfer portal, with their eyes set on an impact guard who can drive, dish, and provide defensive relief to projected starting backcourt players Tyrese Proctor and Caleb Foster. Should they do so, Duke would have a roster set with eleven guys and could finish out the roster with two non-scholarship players.
