Duke Basketball: Best player ever to wear every Blue Devil jersey number

No. 20: Gene Banks (1978-1981)

Banks was probably best known for being on Coach K’s first team at Duke, and he was a contributing senior in that season. They weren’t a competitor in the tournament, but they used that year as a stepping stone into the Coach K tenure.

No. 21: Trajan Langdan (1995-1999)

The No. 21 jersey is a very contested one. You have a Plumlee brother, Jay Bilas, and Chris Duhon. Duhon won a championship his freshman year as a role player, Bilas has gained fame in life after college, and Plumlee has the legacy. Above all those, I picked Trajan Langdan. Langdan was on many competitive teams, and he led Duke to a championship game their senior year. He was the second-leading scorer on that team behind Elton Brand and won all-tournament honors. Outside of Brand, there were other younger players on that team that stepped up when he left. He can take credit for being a mentor for them.

No. 22: Jay Williams (2000-2002)

Williams is a staple of the Duke brand. He won a title, got his own numbers, and won all sorts of personal awards in his three years. His presence on Gameday has kept his image relevant as new fans are born after his era. His jersey number is retired in Cameron. There’s not much more you could ask for in an all-time great.

No. 23: Shelden Williams (2003-2006)

Williams is a top-five player in Duke history. Any fan that saw him play would remember his highlights. Starting for four years is very impressive, especially when you’re coming off of a successful season in 2002. That’s how good Williams was. Adding in the fact that his jersey number is retired makes him a lock. He might not be the best player to wear number 23 in the state of North Carolina, but he was the best at Duke nonetheless.

No. 24: Johnny Dawkins (1983-1986)

Johnny Dawkins was a member of one of Coach K’s first recruiting classes, and he was also his first star. Every great coach has that one player who helped start a dynasty. Nick Saban had Mark Ingram. Phil Jackson had Michael. Coach K had Dawkins. He brought them to their first No. 1 AP ranking, their first tournament appearance, and many other milestones. Coach K still would have succeeded without Dawkins, but he definitely helped make Duke what it was today.

No. 25: Art Heyman (1961-1963)

Heyman is one of the best players Duke has seen before Krzyzewski came to town. He was a Player of the Year in his final year, and he averaged over 25 points a game over his entire career. He earned his jersey retirement without a doubt.