Duke freshman Trevor Keels has decided to remain in the 2022 NBA draft, a source told ESPN’s Jonathan Givony (Twitter link). Keels is currently No. 27 on ESPN’s big board, so he has a chance to be a first-round pick.
In 36 games (30.2 MPG) for the Blue Devils, the guard averaged 11.5 PPG, 3.4 RPG, 2.7 APG, and 1.2 SPG on .419/.312/.670 shooting. At just 18 years old, Keels is one of the youngest prospects in the draft.
Keels, who worked out for the Hornets earlier today (Twitter link), was torn on whether or not to return to Duke for his sophomore season, reports Jeff Goodman of Stadium (via Twitter). Keels’ indecision makes a lot of sense, because as a potential late first-round pick, there’s a real chance he could fall to the second round and not receive any guaranteed money, so he must be reasonably confident about being selected in the top 30.
Mike Schmitz of ESPN describes Keels as a “skilled two-way combo guard with a strong foundational skill set” and praises his toughness on defense as well. However, Schmitz adds that there are questions about his motor and notes that he had a lot of ups and downs during his lone college season.
Remarkably, there’s a chance that five of Duke’s top six rotation players could be first-rounders in ’22, as Paolo Banchero, AJ Griffin, and Mark Williams are all projected lottery picks, while Keels is 27th and Wendell Moore is 36th.
It’s his decision but I watched Duke a lot. He will be a G-league player early in his career