Duke Basketball: Analyzing transfer pickups Mason Gillis, Sion James and Maliq Brown

Mason Gillis - Purdue Boilermakers

2-time National Player of the Year center Zach Edey got 90% of the coverage at Purdue this past season, while the backcourt duo of Fletcher Loyer and Braden Smith got the other 9%. That doesn’t mean that there weren’t other key pieces on the roster, including reigning Big Ten 6th Man of the Year, Mason Gillis.

The 6’6 combo forward spent five years with the Boilermakers, starting 63 games before last season. He only came off the bench this past season, shooting 48% from the field and 47% from three-point range. Gillis had seven double-digit scoring games, including 14 points against Northwestern and 16 points versus at Nebraska, making 5/10 from deep.

There will be immediate connections to another former Big Ten transfer in Ryan Young, who was the backup big man. Gillis will likely come off the bench again for Duke as its preferred 6th Man, backing up Cooper Flagg and wings Isaiah Evans and Kon Knueppel.

We know that Gillis can play at the power conference level and his versatility will be key for the Blue Devils. More importantly, his shooting ability is one of the lone proven aspects on a roster filled with freshmen. As long as his shot keeps falling, the senior forward will be a key part of the overall roster.