Duke freshman point guard Tyrese Proctor, a potential first-round pick, has opted to skip this year’s draft and return to college, ESPN’s Jonathan Givony and Adrian Wojnarowski report.
Proctor had moved up from No. 42 to No. 30 on ESPN’s latest Best Available list for this year’s draft. He was ranked No. 36 by Bleacher Report’s Jonathan Wasserman entering the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Tournament.
“This is the best decision for my career, both present and future,” Proctor said. “Coach [Jon] Scheyer and I share the same vision; we have unfinished business. We have the best staff in the country, and they will push me each and every day.”
Duke won the ACC Tournament but fell in the second round of the NCAAs to Tennessee. Proctor was the team’s third-leading scorer at 9.4 points per game. He also averaged 3.3 assists and 3.1 rebounds while appearing in all 36 games.
The 6’5” Australian could move into the 2024 lottery with a strong sophomore campaign. He has dynamic shot-making ability, creativity as a play-maker and strong competitiveness defensively, according to Givony.
Proctor, still just 18, was originally scheduled to graduate high school at the NBA Global Academy in Australia this year. He elected to reclassify and enroll a year early at Duke.
Proctor has also decided not to compete for a spot on the Australian senior national team, which will participate in the FIBA World Cup in September. He’ll instead work on his skills this summer at Duke.
Proctor taking a Gamble
Most people won’t get that joke lol
Duke should be rising in future bets for Final Four in 2024 with this news
I suspect we’ll see more and more of this decision making with NIL money being available. It’s good for college programs to have some of these players longer. Proctor will get more playing time staying in college also.