During his freshman season in Durham, Justise Winslow's highlight-reel blocks and bullying drives to the basket occasionally took a back seat to the dominance of center Jahlil Okafor.
Now Winslow will be looked to as a key to re-energize a team that already has a pair of perennial superstars.
Winslow was selected by the Miami Heat with the 10th pick in the 2015 NBA draft. The Houston native—who was in attendance to hear his name called at the Barclays Center—becomes the second Blue Devil to go in the top 10 after Okafor was selected third overall by the Philadelphia 76ers.
In his lone season at Duke, Winslow averaged 12.6 points and 6.5 rebounds per game and served as the Blue Devils' defensive stopper. Despite dealing with nagging rib and shoulder injuries in the middle of the year, the swingman was able to send his draft stock soaring during an impressive finish to the season—including Duke's six-game romp through the NCAA tournament during which he nearly averaged a double-double.
Winslow will now head to South Beach where he will join Heat stars Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh. At 6-foot-6 and 225 pounds, Winslow possesses the size and the athleticism needed to play multiple positions at the next level and could take over the small forward position that was vacated by the departure of LeBron James after the 2013-14 season. Miami finished the season 37-45.
Although teams had concerns about his ability to develop a consistent perimeter jump shot, it appears the Heat covet the grit, heart and pure athleticism that Winslow displayed for head coach Mike Krzyzewski.
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