The Canadian men’s basketball team, featuring former Duke star RJ Barrett, defeated Spain on Friday for a third straight Olympic victory.
Former Duke basketball star [autotag]RJ Barrett[/autotag] and his Canadian teammates defeated Spain 88-85 at the 2024 Olympic Games on Friday, ending pool play with a perfect 3-0 record.
The undefeated Canadian team exploded with 30 second-quarter points, leading by double-digits at the midway point. Spain attempted to climb back, outscoring Canada by eight points over the last two quarters, but fell just short of the comeback.
Oklahoma City Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, a 2023-24 NBA MVP finalist, made two free throws in the closing seconds to preserve the win.
Canada now clinches a spot in the quarterfinals. With [autotag]Jayson Tatum[/autotag] and Team USA winning their first two games in Group C, Duke fans will have at least two different former Blue Devils to root for in Paris once the elimination bracket begins.
Incoming freshman [autotag]Khaman Maluach[/autotag], who plays for South Sudan, could join them in the final eight depending on his team’s result against Serbia on Saturday.
Former Duke star RJ Barrett is leading Team Canada in scoring in the early stage of the 2024 Olympic Games in France.
College basketball fans who tune in to Team Canada during the 2024 Olympic Games will be treated to quite a few familiar faces.
Whether it’s a trio of former Kentucky stars in Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jamal Murray, and Trey Lyles, a pair of former Zags in Kelly Olynyk and Andrew Nembhard, or other prominent CBB alumnus like Dillon Brooks (Oregon), Lu Dort (Arizona State) or Dwight Powell (Stanford), the Canadian roster is chalk full of former college stars.
Perhaps the most electric college basketball player suiting up for Canada is R.J Barrett, who was a consensus All-American with the Duke Blue Devils as a freshman in 2018-19, teaming up with Zion Williamson and Cam Reddish to create a formidable three-headed monster under coach Mike Krzyzewski.
Barrett has had an up-and-down NBA career since going No. 3 overall in the 2019 NBA draft, but he has risen to the occasion for Team Canada so far in France – leading the country in scoring in each of their first two games, a win over Greece on Saturday and a win over Australia on Monday morning.
The 6’7 forward dropped 23 points with four rebounds and three assists on 8-13 shooting in an 86-79 win over Greece, who got 34 points from superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo.
Then on Monday, Barrett once again paced the Canadiens – this time dropping 24 points with seven rebounds, five assists, and a pair of steals in a 10 point victory over Australia.
Barrett’s aggressive maneuvering with the ball in his hands works well in FIBA rules, helping him to thrive in this setting despite having an MVP candidate and All-Star caliber guard alongside him in the backcourt in SGA and Murray.
Canada will face Spain in the final group-stage matchup on Friday, August 2 at 11:15 AM ET.
Former Duke basketball star RJ Barrett led the Canadian Olympic team in scoring for the second straight time on Tuesday, a 93-83 win over Australia.
The Canadian men’s basketball team won its second straight Olympic game on Tuesday, and for the second straight time, former Duke basketball star [autotag]RJ Barrett[/autotag] led the team in scoring.
Canada beat Australia 93-83 on Tuesday, and Barrett made eight of his 14 attempts from the floor to finish with 24 points.
The Australians built a 49-45 lead through the first half of the game, but a six-point swing in the third quarter gave Barrett and the Canadians the advantage. Canada then dominated the final quarter, only allowing 13 points en route to the double-digit victory.
Canada also beat Greece, led by two-time NBA MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo, for an 86-79 win on Saturday. Barrett finished that game with 23 points, making eight of his 13 attempts. He’s averaging 5.5 rebounds, 4.0 assists, and 1.5 steals through two games in Paris.
With the top two countries from every four-team group assured of a spot in the quarterfinals, Barrett and his countrymen have virtually locked up their place in the elimination bracket.
Barrett, who put together one of the best freshman seasons in Duke history back in 2018-19, went third overall to the New York Knicks in the 2019 NBA draft. He was traded to the Toronto Raptors back in December.
Brooklyn Nets head coach Jordi Fernandez and Toronto Raptors forward RJ Barrett lead Team Canada to a 93-83 win over Australia on Tuesday.
Brooklyn Nets head coach Jordi Fernandez has had a busy summer as he is currently the head coach of the Canadian Men’s National Basketball Team with the hopes of winning a gold medal. Fernandez and Team Canada is well on their way to winning it all after another impressive victory over a formidable opponent.
On Tuesday, Canada beat Australia 93-83 to earn a 2-0 record thanks to a strong performance from Toronto Raptors forward RJ Barrett, who put up 24 points, seven rebounds, and five assists in the winning effort. Oklahoma City Thunder superstar Shai Gilgeous-Alexander dropped 16 points and four rebounds of his own while Houston Rockets forward Dillon Brooks amassed 16 points and three rebounds.
Canada had a tough task ahead of them as they had to face an Australian team led by Miami Heat guard Patty Mills and Chicago Bulls guard Josh Giddey. Mills had an off game as he put up just eight points on 2-of-10 shooting from the field, but Giddey played well as he put forth a stat line of 19 points, seven rebounds, and six assists to keep the Aussies somewhat close in the contest.
With a game that included 13 lead changes and nine other times where the score was tied, it became clear that this was a matchup between two teams that were capable of making it far in the Olympics based on the amount of talent on both sides. Ultimately, Canada came out on top thanks to the play of Barrett and the Canadians forcing Australia into 18 turnovers over the course of the game.
RJ Barrett, who now plays for the Toronto Raptors, will play for Canada in Paris this summer in the country’s first Olympics since 2000.
For the first time since 2000, Canada will play in the Olympics for men’s basketball, and former Duke star [autotag]RJ Barrett[/autotag] made the 12-man squad.
Barrett will play alongside Oklahoma City Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, an MVP finalist from this past NBA season, and Denver Nuggets guard and 2023 NBA champion Jamal Murray. The Canadians finished third at the 2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup to secure a spot in Paris this summer, defeating the United States in the bronze medal game.
Barrett, the No. 1 overall prospect in the Class of 2018 and one of the highest-rated Duke commits in program history, spent just one season with the Duke basketball program in 2018-19. He, predictably, had one of the best freshman campaigns in school history, averaging 22.6 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 4.3 assists per game while he and [autotag]Zion Williamson[/autotag] led the Blue Devils to the Elite Eight.
Barrett, after being the third overall pick in the 2019 NBA draft, spent his first four full seasons with the New York Knicks before being traded to the Toronto Raptors in the middle of last season. He’s averaged 18.4 points, 5.4 rebounds, and 2.9 assists per game as an NBA player.
Canada’s Olympic roster is set 🏀
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Jamal Murray RJ Barrett Dillon Brooks Kelly Olynyk Lu Dort Dwight Powell Nickeil Alexander-Walker Andrew Nembhard Trey Lyles Khem Birch Melvin Ejim
Barrett will join [autotag]Jayson Tatum[/autotag] (United States) and [autotag]Khaman Maluach[/autotag] (South Sudan) as Blue Devils in Paris for this summer’s games.
Duke basketball offered 2025 power forward Nikolas Khamenia as Jon Scheyer keeps an eye on the recruiting trail.
Duke’s recruiting pursuits in 2025 may be smaller class-wise than the 2024 class.
With the ever-growing dependency on the transfer portal for impact players year-to-year, it’s reasonable to believe that high school recruiting classes could potentially get smaller as teams try to find the right blend of high school talent and transfer portal adds to retool their rosters year to year. Duke head coach Jon Scheyer already said on The Brotherhood Podcast that an ideal class for him would include three or four signees.
With that in mind, it’s also important to note that Duke’s brand will allow them to be players amongst the best high schoolers in the country. Duke will always be an attractive destination, especially at the small forward and power forward positions, where Duke has become a factory of sorts over the last decade.
It’s hard to imagine any school competing with Duke in the forwards department as names like Jabari Parker, [autotag]Jayson Tatum[/autotag], [autotag]Paolo Banchero[/autotag], RJ Barrett, Zion Williamson, Brandon Ingram, Marvin Bagley, Justise Winslow, Cam Reddish have all gone on to become first-round lottery picks after spending their time at Duke.
The Blue Devils could see the same potential in 2025 forward Nikolas Khamenia, a 6-foot-8 prospect they offered recently who plays at Harvard Westlake in California.
Khamenia, a modern power forward, can guard multiple positions. He is athletic enough not to be a liability and can stretch the floor when necessary.
In short, he’s like the Duke forwards of the past decade in many areas. So it shouldn’t come as a surprise that Duke would offer him. He’s also got plenty of room for physical and skill development, making him a multi-year guy who could help alleviate roster turnover concerns.
With the communication window now open for the Class of 2026, Duke basketball coach Jon Scheyer is back at the Montverde Academy well.
Duke basketball keeps going back to the Montverde Academy well.
With the recruiting window now open for the Class of 2026, Max Feldman reported on Saturday that 2026 five-star Caleb Gaskins heard from the Blue Devils.
The five-star power forward currently sits as the seventh overall player in the class in 247Sports’ rankings.
Montverde Academy produced some Duke stars over the last decade. [autotag]RJ Barrett[/autotag], the third overall pick in the 2019 NBA draft, and [autotag]Cooper Flagg[/autotag], the top-ranked player in the Class of 2024, both played for the Eagles.
As a sophomore last season, Gaskins averaged 4.1 points and 2.4 rebounds per game for the undefeated national champion. He shot 64% from the floor, the fourth-best mark on the team.
The duo played at Montverde Academy, the school Flagg led to an undefeated season as a senior this past year. Barrett also played for Montverde from 2015-18 when he was the top-ranked player in the country, an honor Flagg also earned for the Class of 2024.
Montverde posted two videos of the duo going head-to-head with Barrett making one shot and Flagg burying two. Barrett nailed a step-back 3-pointer while Flagg drove and spun his way to midrange jumpers.
Barrett, a member of Duke’s vaunted Class of 2018 recruiting class alongside [autotag]Zion Williamson[/autotag] and Cam Reddish. After being taken third overall in the 2019 draft by the New York Knicks, he was traded to the Toronto Raptors in December.
Jared McCain tied a Duke freshman record with 35 points in a single game against the Seminoles on Saturday. Here’s a look back at the seven highest-scoring games by first-year Blue Devils.
It’s hard to find a slice of history in a program with five national championships to its name, but Jared McCain managed to do just that on Saturday afternoon in Tallahassee.
The first-year guard scored 35 points against Florida State during Duke’s 76-67 victory, tied for the most by a freshman in a single game in program history. His explosive outing was powered by a near-perfect first half in which he scored 25 points on 9/10 shooting and 7/8 from beyond the arc.
McCain looked unconscious for most of the afternoon, backpedaling behind the 3-point line in transition and firing long balls even with a hand in his face.
With McCain tying a Duke record, here’s a glimpse back at the seven most productive games from first-year Blue Devils.
Anunoby made his debut for the Knicks on Monday during a victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves, one of the strongest teams in the West. Although it was his first game, he finished with 17 points (7-of-12 from the field, 3-of-6 on 3-pointers) while adding six rebounds and two steals.
After the game, Knicks guard Jalen Brunson called his new teammate a “perfect” fit for this New York roster. While it was a small sample size, it provided insight into the role Anunoby will play for his new team.
On the offensive side of the ball, Anunoby was mostly used as a catch-and-shoot floor spacer who used off-ball screens and someone who finished cuts at the basket. But it was on the defensive side of the floor where he mostly proved his value.
Timberwolves coach Chris Finch summarized it well: Anunoby can defend star guard Stephen Curry during one game and star big man Joel Embiid the following match and have similar success against both.
OG Anunoby begins his first game as a Knick guarding Anthony Edwards – exactly the kind of player he was acquired to go up against.
During his first game in New York, for example, Anunoby exemplified that perfectly. The wing defended Anthony Edwards for 32.9 partial possessions and switched on to Karl-Anthony Towns for 10.5 partial possessions.
Edwards scored 8 points when he was defended by Anunoby on Monday. For comparison, Edwards scored 9 points on 20.4 partial possessions guarded by Josh Hart and 11 points on 7.6 partial possessions defended by Julius Randle.
Anunoby held Edwards to 24.3 points per 100 possessions during this game, which is significantly better than what the Minnesota star is averaging (36.9) this season. It was hard to ignore his defensive presence whenever he was on the court.
It was a significant upgrade for New York to have Anunoby for this matchup.
When the Knicks faced the Timberwolves earlier this season, Quentin Grimes drew the assignment against Edwards. Grimes’ defensive matchup difficulty has ranked in the 99th percentile or higher both this season and last, per BBall-Index.
Now, he won’t have to do that as Anunoby will take on such tasks. Even when it’s not Edwards, like Grimes did, we already know that Anunoby will step up to guard the best player on the opposing team.
Both this season and last, Anunoby has also ranked in the 98th percentile or better in defensive matchup difficulty. But his overall defensive impact is far higher than what we have seen from Grimes.
For example, per DARKO, Anunoby grades out far better than Grimes in the defensive catch-all metric D-DPM.
Last season, via dunksandthrees.com, Anunoby had the highest overall D-EPM (Defensive Estimated Plus-Minus) among those who played at least 26 minutes per game. He also led the league in steals and he earned NBA All-Defense Second Team.
While he isn’t having the same type of impact this season, he still has one of the most unique intersections of defensive positional versatility and matchup difficulty.
Knicks coach Tom Thibodeau had concerns about playing two smaller guards and he didn’t want to play Brunson and Quickley in the backcourt at the same time.
Anunoby, at 6-foot-8 with a massive 7-foot-2 wingspan, addresses those problems and will provide the length and versatility desired on the perimeter. His presence is a relief to Grimes and his offensive usage rate is low enough that he won’t take the ball away from Brunson, who is the most capable floor general and engine for New York.
This trade already looks like a win for the Knicks, who will eventually need to agree to terms on a long-term contract with the former NBA champion.
