Amile Jefferson, Matt Jones and Grayson Allen are Duke's only three upperclassmen that have been major contributors during their careers, and they will be the Blue Devils' three captains for the 2016-17 season.
Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski announced the trio of captains in a news release Friday afternoon. Jefferson will be a captain for the third straight year and Jones will carry the honor for the second season. Allen will be a first-time captain after deciding to forgo the NBA draft and return to Duke for his junior season.
Jefferson enters this year as a graduate student after his senior year was cut short last year due to a broken foot. He was averaging a double-double with 11.4 points and 10.3 rebounds per game before his injury, and he earned an extra year of eligibility after his request for a medical hardship waiver was approved. The Philadelphia native is the first three-time captain in program history.
Jones started all 35 games he played in last year and enters his senior year primed to be an experienced leader on a team with six freshmen. He averaged double figures last year for the first time in his career with 10.4 points per game.
Allen had a breakout sophomore season after being the unlikely hero of the 2015 national championship game against Wisconsin as a freshman, improving his scoring average from 4.4 points to 21.6 points per game and earning first-team All-ACC honors.
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