Thursday night, freshman guard DJ Steward unexpectedly declared for the NBA Draft, leaving an open guard spot in Duke's rotation.
It didn't take long for the Blue Devils to fill that spot.
Five-star guard Trevor Keels committed to Duke in a live broadcast on ESPN2 Friday evening. Keels is the No. 19 overall recruit in the Class of 2021 and the No. 4 shooting guard. He joins No. 3 overall recruit Paolo Banchero and No. 14 AJ Griffin as the third member of head coach Mike Krzyzewski's upcoming class.
Keels, who stands at 6-foot-5, was officially down to a final four of Duke, Villanova, Kentucky and Virginia, with many under the assumption that the top two candidates in his recruitment were Duke and Villanova.
The Virginia native, who was high school teammates with current Blue Devil point guard Jeremy Roach, has been lauded as one of the best shooters in his recruiting class who can move off-the-ball to find an open look and take over when needed. He fits perfectly in place of the departing Steward.
It remains to be seen whether Keels will round out Duke's 2021 recruiting class. The Blue Devils are still in play for No. 4 overall recruit Patrick Baldwin Jr. and were long considered to be the favorites to land him, though 247Sports' Crystal Ball now lists Wisconsin-Milwaukee—where Baldwin's father coaches—as the favorite.
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