As basketball season approaches, the Blue Zone provides a detailed preview of each player on Duke men’s basketball’s 2024-25 roster. We’ve already looked at Cameron Sheffield and Patrick Ngongba II. Next up is freshman guard Darren Harris:
Darren Harris
Year: Freshman
Height: 6-foot-6
Position: Guard/Forward
Last Year’s Statline: N/A
Game breakdown: After turning heads by taking home the MVP award in the EYBL Championship, one of the biggest high school basketball showcases in the nation, Darren Harris then led St. Paul VI to a state championship during his senior year. The 31st-ranked recruit in the 2024 ESPN 100, Harris somehow enters as only the fifth-highest rated prospect in a loaded freshmen class for Duke men’s basketball.
Harris’ calling card is his shooting ability and the variety of fashions in which he utilizes it. Whether it be pull-up, off-the-dribble or catch-and-shoot opportunities, the freshman can produce from deep in nearly every scenario. While the other facets of Harris’ game are not yet at the same level, he displayed solid decision-making and defensive capabilities in high school. Perhaps Harris’ most underrated trait is his ability to attack closeouts; unlike some other shooters at the college level, the Herndon, Va., native possesses both the strength and frame to drive and punish defenders who contest his jump shot too aggressively.
As a big, well-rounded shooting wing, Harris embodies much of what modern basketball has evolved to become.
Role on the team: The talent to space the floor as a legitimate 3-point threat should place Harris in the conversation to earn occasional minutes in head coach Jon Scheyer’s rotation. However, the Blue Devils are by no means short of shooters after the additions of fellow freshman Kon Knueppel, as well as graduate transfers Mason Gillis and Sion James.
For Harris to carve out a meaningful role as a freshman, he will need to demonstrate that he has taken a step forward defensively and truly become a “3-and-D” wing — the most coveted role player across collegiate and professional basketball alike. If Harris develops in that manner, Scheyer will have little reason not to give the freshman an extended run on the court.
NBA comparison: When considering Harris’ role and playstyle, his game possesses many similarities to that of Cleveland Cavaliers swingman Max Strus. Strus, a 6-foot-5 wing, originally made a name for himself due to his flamethrower shooting — recording 37.4% from deep on 6.8 attempts per game over his last three seasons. During his time on the Miami Heat, Strus carried little ball-handling responsibility and rarely initiated offense, although he has grown to do so in an expanded role with Cleveland.
On a Duke squad stacked with gifted playmakers like Tyrese Proctor, Caleb Foster and Isaiah Evans — not to mention the do-it-all Cooper Flagg — Harris projects to fill a role more akin to Strus’ in Miami. The freshman’s proficiency and efficiency from beyond the arc should have him seeing the floor, but it will be his secondary and tertiary skills that will determine just how consistent and lengthy those appearances will be.
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