Tag: Jaylen Blakes

Four former Duke basketball players stay in the ACC after transfer portal moves

Jaylen Blakes, Christian Reeves, Jaden Schutt, and TJ Power will all still play ACC basketball next season despite leaving Duke.

All seven Duke basketball transfers have chosen their next destinations, and four of them didn’t feel like leaving the ACC just yet.

Jaylen Blakes, a guard who spent three years with Duke, announced on Friday that he’d play for the Stanford Cardinal. Stanford, a longtime Pac-12 staple, will transition to the ACC for the 2023-24 academic calendar after its old conference fell apart.

Blakes will stay on the conference calendar alongside three of his old teammates. 7-foot center Christian Reeves announced he’d play for the Clemson Tigers, TJ Power left for Virginia after just one season, and sharpshooter Jaden Schutt jumped to Virginia Tech.

The Blue Devils don’t have the exact dates on their calendar yet, but they will host the Cardinal and the Hokies at Cameron Indoor Stadium in 2024-25. They will also travel to Clemson and Virginia, rounding out all four revenge games.

Former Duke basketball guard Jaylen Blakes signs on with the Stanford

Jaylen Blakes, who spent three seasons with the Duke Blue Devils, will stick around in the ACC after signing on with new member Stanford.

The last domino in Duke’s transfer portal exodus finally fell on Friday when the Stanford Cardinal announced that former Blue Devil Jaylen Blakes signed on to transfer to their program.

Blakes, who spent three seasons with Duke, appeared in 83 games during his time with the Blue Devils. His best season came in 2022-23 when he was a sophomore when he averaged a career-high 13.6 points. He finished that campaign with 3.4 points, 1.5 rebounds, and 1.3 assists.

The veteran guard first announced he would enter the transfer portal in early April. He and six other players from Duke’s 2023-24 roster left for a new school. Blakes is the last player to commit to a new school.

Despite Stanford’s association with the Pac-12 and geographic location on the opposite side of the country, Blakes actually remains in the ACC with this move. The Cardinal, along with California, move to the conference as new members for the 2024-25 academic calendar after the dissolution of their old conference.

Blakes joins multiple other former Duke players elsewhere in the ACC. Christian Reeves committed to Clemson, TJ Power departed to Virginia, and Jaden Schutt will play for Virginia Tech.

Jon Scheyer gives positive update on Jaylen Blakes, says he’s ready to go after scary fall

Duke head coach Jon Scheyer said Jaylen Blakes, who exited Sunday’s game against James Madison after a scary fall, will be ready for the Houston game.

Duke head coach Jon Scheyer sat down for his press conference ahead of the Sweet 16 matchup against Houston on Thursday, but he offered good injury news before anything else.

Jaylen Blakes, a junior guard, exited Sunday’s win over James Madison early after a scary fall. He went up for a breakaway dunk that was contested by the Dukes’ Noah Freidel, and the contact twisted Blakes around. The Blue Devil landed on his head and neck area, taking a few minutes to get up and get off the court.

On Thursday, Scheyer said Blakes would be ready to go against the Cougars.

“Yeah, that was really scary in the moment,” Scheyer said. “You always wonder, the next day, how they feel with a fall like that, and Jaylen’s been great. He’s felt really good.”

Scheyer added that the team didn’t have a very active day on Monday, so Blakes had some recovery time, but the junior has been a full practice participant from Tuesday onward.

Jaylen Blakes injured after scary fall during a breakaway

Duke guard Jaylen Blakes left the Blue Devils’ second-round game against James Madison after a scary fall on a contested breakaway.

Duke easily breezed past James Madison on Sunday evening, but for a brief moment in the second-round game, the score no longer mattered.

Junior guard Jaylen Blakes got out ahead of the Dukes’ defense on a breakaway possession during in the second half, and he tried to elevate for a dunk. JMU’s Noah Freidel caught up to him, however, and he got his hands on the ball to reject Blakes’ scoring effort.

The ensuing contact turned the Duke guard, however, contorting his body in mid-air before he landed hard on his head and neck area.

The third-year Blue Devil stayed down on his back for a few minutes, with head coach Jon Scheyer and the training staff swiftly moving over to make sure he was okay.

Blakes made it to the locker room under his own power, so any potential injury wasn’t close to the worst-case scenario. The team has not announced any status updates on his condition as of Sunday evening.

Iowa reportedly set to square off against Duke in the 2022 Jimmy V Classic

Iowa will meet the Duke Blue Devils in the 2022 Jimmy V Classic. Here’s a look at the all-time series history and Duke’s projected starters.

The start of Iowa’s 2022-23 men’s basketball season is still every bit of five months away. Still, the Hawkeyes just received fantastic news with the return of forward Kris Murray to Iowa City.

Paired with several other decisions by Iowa players to either return or exit via the transfer portal, fans now have a pretty clear idea of what the Hawkeyes’ starting five and key reserves will look like entering next season.

Now, Iowa fans know they can book flights and start planning a trip to New York City for a battle against a blue blood.

CBS Sports and College Hoops Today’s Jon Rothstein reported that Iowa is set to meet the Duke Blue Devils in the 2022 Jimmy V Classic from historic Madison Square Garden. Rothstein also reported that the other game in the event is expected to feature the Texas Longhorns against the Illinois Fighting Illini.

Duke is one of the pillar programs in all of college basketball and will enter next season fresh off the Blue Devils’ 17th all-time appearance in the Final Four. Of course, legendary head coach Mike Krzyewski’s 13th and final Final Four appearance ended with the Blue Devils’ archrivals in the North Carolina Tar Heels sending Duke packing, 81-77.

The Kansas Jayhawks would go on to win the national championship over North Carolina, erasing a 16-point deficit in a historic second-half flurry for the largest title game comeback in NCAA Tournament history, topping the Tar Heels, 72-69.

In its history, Iowa has met up with Duke on eight different occasions. The Blue Devils lead the all-time series 7-1. The Hawkeyes and Blue Devils last played on Nov. 27, 2001, in the Big Ten-ACC Challenge. It was not to be from the jump for an Iowa team led by guard Luke Recker and forward Reggie Evans.

Duke point guard Jason Williams scored 25 points, center Carlos Boozer added 22 and forward Mike Dunleavy chipped in with 18. The then-No. 1 and defending national champion Blue Devils routed Iowa, 80-62, inside the United Center.

Duke is set to replace some serious star power from last season’s Final Four team, but the Blue Devils have reloaded their roster with some serious talent. Here’s a look at the all-time series matchups between Iowa and Duke and a look at the Blue Devils’ projected starting five.