Duke Basketball: 3 takeaways after Trevor Keels departs for NBA Draft

Among a collection of announcements from the previous few days, Trevor Keels announced his intention to remain in the NBA Draft pool. Keels starred at guard for Blue Basketball, averaging 11.5 points per game and contributing greatly on a Duke team that marched all the way to the Final Four. A highly touted player, his freshman year was successful and it will be his only year of collegiate basketball.

Keels is an athletic guard who has shown the ability to make plays all over the court. He didn’t put up the most impressive scoring numbers in the world, though he did make 52% of his field goal attempts, but he did have 19 points in the Blue Devils’ Final Four loss to North Carolina. He scored a career-high 27 points at Pittsburgh in early March and had an impressive 25-point, 11-rebound game a few weeks earlier against Clemson.

Last season, Keels was one of the stars on a very deep and talented Duke team; one where Paolo Banchero was the main piece but Keels played an important role. Keels was the third-leading scorer on the Blue Devils and showcased his talent on both sides of the ball. He was the most important guard on a Final Four team and is ready to showcase those abilities on the next level.

Keels’ decision wasn’t unexpected but it does allow Duke to look forward, knowing that he won’t be back for his sophomore season. New head coach Jon Scheyer has already done a fantastic job building this roster on the recruiting trail, but the job isn’t quite done yet. Today, we’re going to take a look at how this decision impacts the Blue Devils going forward, looking closely at three direction takeaways from Keels’ departure.