Meet Duke’s Next Stars: Chase Jeter and Luke Kennard

Last year, not only did Mike Krzyzewski and his Duke Blue Devils have one of the best recruiting classes in the nation, some described the 2014 group as arguably the best class Coach K had ever signed.

Duke had landed four players who were labeled five-star recruits, including the class’ top-ranked center (Jahlil Okafor), top-ranked point guard (Tyus Jones), fifth-ranked small forward (Justise Winslow) and sixth-ranked shooting guard (Grayson Allen). Each player was ranked in the top 25 by ESPN and some considered Duke’s haul to be the best in the country – even better than Kentucky’s.

The freshmen – along with returning veterans like Quinn Cook and Amile Jefferson among others – have lived up to the hype and done a terrific job this season. The Blue Devils are in the Final Four despite losing key pieces like Jabari Parker, Rodney Hood, Andre Dawkins and Tyler Thornton after last season and dismissing veteran Rasheed Sulaimon from the team in January. Duke’s freshmen phenoms have the program one win away from playing in the national championship game.

One of the downsides of luring in such a talented class of freshmen is that many will leave for the NBA after just one season. Okafor could be the first overall pick in the 2015 NBA Draft, Winslow could be selected in the top five and Jones is projected as a first-round prospect too. Cook is set to graduate, and other players could consider leaving after this season as well. In other words, Duke’s roster will look very different next season. For most programs, a mass exodus of talent to the NBA would cause the team to take a significant step back and have a down year.

However, that may not be the case for Duke next season.

That’s because Krzyzewski will be handing the reins to two new freshmen studs. As we’ve learned from John Calipari and his loaded Kentucky squads, a team of one-and-done future NBA players can contend for a title if the players are talented enough, willing to make individual sacrifices and, perhaps most importantly, coached well.

Next season, if all goes as planned, Coach K will keep Duke in contention even if their NBA prospects leave. Just as he was restocking the roster with Okafor, Winslow, Jones and Allen last year while Parker, Hood and Dawkins were moving on to the next chapter of their basketball careers, Krzyzewski has another talented class set to arrive in Durham this summer.

Thus far, Duke has secured commitments from two McDonald’s All-Americans – five-star, 6’11 center Chase Jeter from Bishop Gorman High School in Las Vegas and five-star, 6’6 shooting guard Luke Kennard from Franklin High School in Ohio.

Not to mention, Coach K likely isn’t done adding top recruits. They’re still in the mix for five-star big man Caleb Swanigan from Indiana and five-star small forward Brandon Ingram from North Carolina. Other players are obviously on Duke’s radar as well, but these are just the most notable names currently receiving offers from the winningest Division I head coach in college basketball history.

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Prior to deciding to join Duke, Jeter and Kennard were being recruited by just about every juggernaut program in the country. However, they decided to choose the Blue Devils after becoming good friends and wanting to play together (much like Okafor and Jones last year).

Jeter and Kennard knew each other all throughout high school, but didn’t start bonding until they were playing in the same camps, tournaments and USA Basketball events. Top recruits often become friendly with one another since they are constantly traveling together and seeing each other at events. But perhaps the biggest reason for these friendships is because the top recruits can relate to each other. After becoming friends, those recruits finally have someone in their life who understands what they’re going through. The life of a top high school basketball star is far from normal. Very few teenagers spend their days traveling the country, being swarmed by fans to sign autographs and take pictures, while middle-aged men try to woo them to their respective colleges. Top recruits bond over the circus that is their life, and that’s what happened with Jeter and Kennard. They will be roommates at Duke next season.

“When we first played against each other our sophomore year, we didn’t really talk to each other or even know each other very well,” Kennard said. “But playing in USA Basketball and coming to camps and playing against each other in high school this year, we have gotten really close over the last couple of years. We even went on one of our official visits together last year so we are really excited to be roommates and teammates next year at Duke. We are ready for it.”

“Luke and I took our official visit together and while we were there, we talked a little bit,” Jeter said. “He committed before me, so when it was my turn, I ended up really liking Duke. Once I committed, we ended up talking about me and him being roommates and the rest is history.”

Strangely, Kennard grew up hating Duke and loving Kentucky – so it was a shock when he picked the Blue Devils over the Wildcats.

“Well, it’s kind of funny because growing up as a young kid, me and my family were huge University of Kentucky fans,” Kennard said. “If you saw the ‘I Hate Christian Laettner’ documentary, that was a reason why we disliked Duke back in the day. But things change, obviously, from being a Kentucky fan to now a Duke fan. I’m really excited about going to Duke, Coach K is a great guy and a great coach and I’m just really excited to have that opportunity.”

When asked why he decided to go with Duke over Kentucky, he pointed to a number of factors. First, he admitted that he heard some things he didn’t like from opposing coaches about Kentucky as he was going through the recruiting process.

“I think recruiting relationships with other coaches – not just with Duke but with other schools [too] – changed my mind,” Kennard said about why he started leaning away from the Wildcats. “I liked Kentucky a lot because Coach Cal recruited me and he was a great guy, but just listening and getting all the information from other coaches tends to change your mind a little bit.”

The possibility of being overshadowed by other top recruits also factored into Kennard’s decision not to commit to Kentucky. While playing on that large stage has worked wonders for some individuals, some talented players have gotten overlooked in the background. Look no further than Kyle Wiltjer (who transferred to Gonzaga) or Ryan Harrow (who transferred to Georgia State) for examples. Both players felt like they got lost in the shuffle surrounded by so many stars on the Wildcats, and have experienced success elsewhere.

“Right now, it’s just me and Chase Jeter that have accepted a scholarship to Duke,” Kennard said. “You always want to make an impact wherever you go and I’m ready for whatever gets thrown at me next year.”

Jeter and Kennard better be ready because there’s a strong chance they’ll each be playing a large role right away. They already have strong chemistry on and off the court so they should play well together. Kennard’s shooting and pick-and-roll skills should complement Jeter’s interior game. Former Duke star and current ESPN analyst Jay Williams believes Jeter and Kennard can form an excellent one-two punch for the Blue Devils.

“I’m a big fan of both of those players,” Jay Williams told Basketball Insiders. “I think Chase Jeter has the versatility to be a big-time player at Duke. He has the work ethic too. I’m a big fan of Luke Kennard too. I was watching him play the other day, and that kid has a short memory. All great shooters have a short memory, where they can miss 15 shots in a row, but that doesn’t stop them from taking the 16th shot. Luke is someone who takes that 16th shot with confidence. I mean, he averaged around 40 points per game. When you’re the second-leading scorer in the history of the state of Ohio, that says something about you. Depending upon who returns (and what the team looks like) next year, they may need him to do a lot of that scoring.”

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Putting up points is certainly what Kennard is known for and, as Williams alluded to, he even made national headlines due to his scoring ability. In early February, Kennard passed LeBron James on Ohio’s all-time high school scoring list. James had been fourth and, by the end of his senior year, Kennard climbed all the way to second on the state’s all-time list with 2,977 career points, trailing only former 2011 second-round pick Jon Diebler’s 3,208 points.

James was proud of Kennard, especially because the Franklin High School star played on James’ AAU team when he wasn’t dominating high school games.

“He’s good,” James said of Kennard, according to ESPN. “He’s going to Duke. He’s one of my kids. That’s great. I’m happy for him.”

When discussing what it meant to pass James, Kennard seems unsure how to respond. Should he play it cool? Or should he admit just how cool it was to pass James and get national recognition? His answer seems to veer in both directions.

“I was getting some pretty big attention before that,” Kennard said of passing James. “I made my decision to go to Duke before [that happened]. And even though that was a pretty cool experience – beating LeBron’s record – at the end of the day, it’s just scoring.

“But then again, it is LeBron James,” he adds with a smile. “I’m just blessed to even be mentioned in the same category with some of the greatest players to ever play in the state of Ohio.”

While passing James’ mark was good exposure for Kennard, that’s not what got him his scholarship to Duke. He was turning heads before that.

He averaged 38.1 points, 9.7 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 2.2 steals as a senior, while shooting 59.3 percent from the field, 49 percent from three and 89 percent from the free throw line. Kennard is obviously an excellent scorer and he mainly focused on that in high school because it’s what his team needed from him, but Jeter points out that he’s an incredible facilitator too – something that often gets overlooked because people just notice the points.

“What people don’t know about Luke is that he is just as good a passer as he is a scorer,” Jeter said. “Getting on the court with a guy who is going to be a leader and a pass-first type of guy, it’s comforting to know that being a bigger player, I’m going to get touches in the post.”

Kennard became just the fifth player to win Ohio’s Mr. Basketball award multiple times (joining James, Jared Sullinger, O.J. Mayo, Greg Simpson and Jim Jackson). And remember, he did all of this with opposing teams throwing multiple players at him and knowing he was getting the ball.

Oh, and just in case you still had doubts about Kennard, he had a 4.3 grade-point average and was a member of the National Honor Society.

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But, with all of that said, Jeter is actually the higher rated prospect of the two players. No, he didn’t pass a record held by LeBron James, but he has developed into quite the stat stuffer at Bishop Gorman. As a junior, he reportedly averaged 15 points, 11 rebounds, 10 steals, two assists and three blocks.

ESPN ranks Jeter as the ninth-best recruit in the nation, whereas Kennard is ranked No. 23.

Jeter is 6′ 10 with a 7′ 1.5 wingspan and 9′ 1.25 standing reach. ESPN also ranked him as the best player in the state of Nevada as well as the fourth-best center in this class.

The big man is a very good rebounder, who is smooth and fluid with a soft touch around the rim. He has been a double-double machine in high school and he has the skills to be a very productive center from day one at Duke. He’s no Okafor, but he’s talented.

Like Kennard, Jeter is also very bright. He has a 3.86 GPA and is a member of the National Honors Society too. According to his USA Basketball profile, he wants to major in political science while at Duke. He won his school’s Scholar Athlete Award “for his accomplishments inside and outside of the classroom” and also won “the Student of the Year in Morality for his character.”

In other words, it seems that Coach K has been working in some Durham laboratory to create these prospects with the perfect mixture of talent, high basketball IQ and quality character.

It is worth noting that Jeter doesn’t lack confidence (and understandably so considering his resume is damn near perfect for a 17-year-old). At one point during the McDonald’s All-American media availability, a reporter asked if his last name is ever mispronounced.

“Rarely; usually, most people in the basketball world know who Chase Jeter is,” he said, then perhaps realizing how cocky he sounded. “I say that with the utmost humility, but not too many people tend to mispronounce my last name.”

Even more people could know his name at the start of next year since he could be a key contributor from day one. While many high school players enter college basketball without much experience matching up against players who are just as big and talented as they are, that won’t be the case for Jeter.

In high school and AAU, Jeter was paired alongside 7’0 Stephen Zimmerman – a fellow five-star recruit – in the frontcourt. Zimmerman is ranked one spot below Jeter in ESPN’s ranking, at 10th in the nation. Not to mention, he’s two inches taller and 15 lbs. heavier. While facing this duo must have been a nightmare for opposing teams, it also allowed the two big men to improve significantly by playing against each other in practices and scrimmages.

“It’s been good because Stephen and I compete, and being on the same high school team and AAU program helped us,” Jeter said. “We just competed and battled it out day in and day out, so we have really helped each other’s development.”

In addition to his match-ups against Zimmerman, Jeter believes the AAU experience was excellent for him on the court as well as off the court since there were times he felt more like a college player than a high school student.

“Most definitely [AAU has helped me as a player],” Jeter said. “But also by being able to travel and see different places, whether it’s in high school traveling or in AAU traveling, it makes it a lot easier to get the feel of college. It’s been one of the best [preparations] for me heading into college.”

Early next season, Duke’s roster may not be easily recognizable. Some of their most important players will certainly be gone, likely suiting up for NBA teams. However, Jeter is holding out hope that some of the talented members of this year’s squad decide to stay (even though he knows that is unlikely).

Remember, just last year Willie Cauley-Stein, the Harrison twins and Alex Poythress stayed at Kentucky rather than entering the draft after they lost in the national championship game. Other stars like Marcus Smart, Cody Zeller and Jared Sullinger have made similar decisions to return to school in recent years. Jabari Parker reportedly seriously considered staying at Duke for his sophomore year, but then ultimately left, and lately D’Angelo Russell has been insisting that he doesn’t know if he’ll leave school to enter the 2015 NBA Draft.

When asked if Okafor, Winslow and Jones leaving for the NBA would be a positive for him so he could showcase his game while getting more minutes and touches, Jeter didn’t seem interested in that. He said he hopes those players return (even if it seems unlikely) because he has developed friendships with many of those players and knows that they could make Duke a very scary team if a portion of the existing core is back to play alongside himself and Kennard.

“You want to be around guys that you have relationships with and I have relationships with all those guys,” Jeter said. “Going in with the possibility of a few of those guys being able to stay, it [would] definitely be comforting to know that you are going to play with great guys around you in such a good program.”

Whether any of the current Blue Devils return or not, Duke should be in good hands with Jeter and Kennard next year. Both have the potential to be very special, and there’s no doubt that Coach K will put them in position to succeed, just as he did with this year’s batch of freshmen.