Duke basketball practice footage ahead of 2024-25 season
Following Duke basketball’s annual media day, the Blue Devils practiced inside the K Center. Here’s some footage.
Duke basketball’s Countdown to Craziness offers fans the chance to get a first look at the Blue Devils ahead of each season.
It also serves as a huge recruiting weekend for head coach Jon Scheyer and the program, which had Cooper Flagg and Patrick Ngongba visiting in Durham during the event last season.
Flagg and Ngongba ended up committing to the Blue Devils, giving Duke a six-player recruiting class that was ranked as a top group in the nation. Kon Knueppel, Isaiah Evans, Darren Harris and Khaman Malauch are the other freshmen on Duke’s 2024-25 roster.
The Blue Devils host exhibition games at Cameron Indoor Stadium against Lincoln (Pa.) on Oct. 19 and Arizona State on Oct. 27 before opening the regular season against Maine on Nov. 4.
The Blue Devils are searching for their first commitment in the 2025 class. Here’s a breakdown of the three recruits set to visit Duke this weekend.
Nate Ament
A 6-foot-9 forward and top-five recruit, Ament is considered the No. 4 player nationally, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings. He arrived on the national recruiting services in June 2023, breaking in as the No. 28 overall recruit. One of the fastest-rising prospects in the nation since that moment, Ament could be the Blue Devils’ next versatile, wiry wing. Texas, Tennessee and UConn are among the other programs in pursuit.
Shelton Henderson
The 6-foot-6, 220-pound wing is a consensus top-20 recruit and the prized prospect in Texas. Like Ament, Henderson burst onto the scene in June 2023, cracking the top-100 rankings as a national prospect. A physical force capable of powering through defenders and stopping would-be scorers in their tracks, Henderson is also considering Texas and Louisville, among others.
Acaden Lewis
The 6-foot-3 guard from Washington, D.C., is down to three programs: Duke, Kentucky and UConn. Lewis is a top-40 recruit, according to the 247Sports Composite, and the fifth-ranked point guard in his class. A lefty known for his playmaking and change-of-pace craftiness, Lewis could get the ball rolling as the first player in his class to commit to the Blue Devils.
Staff writer Rodd Baxley can be reached at rbaxley@fayobserver.com or @RoddBaxley on X/Twitter.
