TJ Power: This is Why I Committed to Duke

Power’s commitment firmly entrenches the Blue Devils in the top spot of the 2023 team rankings.

TJ Power pieced together a dominant July in the Nike EYBL and on the Nike Peach Jam to earn multiple blueblood offers. In the end, he picked Duke over North Carolina, Boston College, Iowa and Virginia, and broke down his thought process behind the decision in a blog for Sports Illustrated.

I am happy to say that I’m officially joining The Brotherhood at Duke University.

For me, this whole process has been a learning experience. You go through each college, and you have the pros and cons, and Duke just checked most of the boxes.

I grew up watching them and their players and idolizing some of them like Cam Reddish, Marvin Bagley III, Jayson Tatum and Gary Trent. Now, I’m able to step in and play there for a guy like Coach [Jon] Scheyer, who I know really believes in me, and that’s so big for me.

I loved my visit, then you pair that with who they have coming in with me, just great guards and playmakers who can really score the ball. I know it’s gonna be such an electric experience to be able to be on the floor with those guys.

The overall brand of Duke also really got me. I think I really fit well with all the ideals there and how they approach things at that school.

All of that is what did it for me.

It’s crazy to look back on my last couple of months and how fast things moved. I was never really sitting on the Duke offer or waiting for big things to happen because I was in a really good spot with some schools.

Power turned in a dominant July that set him on a course toward Duke.

DFRITZ

My main thing is always just focusing on hooping and letting the rest take care of itself, and that’s what I did.

When Duke jumped in, and I was able to go see the school it definitely set things in a new direction.

Now, I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t wowed on the visit.

I was definitely talking to my parents and imagining what it would be like to play at Duke the whole time. It was really hard not to just commit on the visit, I won’t lie.

The biggest thing was I wanted to take time to know I wasn’t making the decision out of emotion and that it was really about the fit. To do that, I took some time away from recruiting after the visit and went camping and went to the beach and that really helped me clear my head.

When I got back and thought about it all again, the feeling I had at Duke didn’t change at all. It was maybe even stronger now, so that’s when I knew that it was real.

I called Coach Scheyer, and my intent was to just let him know that I was leaning toward them. I wanted him to be reassured, and I wanted to be on the same page with him.

I knew I wanted to wait a couple of weeks to announce, so I wasn’t gonna commit right then. But as we kept talking, my instincts just kicked in and I was like, Why am I holding back?

I told him I was coming, and he was just really excited. After I did it, it felt right. I knew before, but when I actually told him I knew even more.

Coach Scheyer wants me to come in and score the ball and be a playmaker. He basically just wants me to be me. You pair that with the explosiveness of what they already have and are bringing in and it’s gonna be dangerous. I’ll be positionless with a bunch of playmakers who love to share the ball and win. It’s gonna be pretty special.

People often speculated over the roster at Duke and how it has all this talent and if that would deter me. But for me, it’s like, Who do you think I am? I can hoop, too. I can play with these kids, and I don’t have to take a backseat to anyone.

We’re all talented, and we all have the right mindset to be successful.

I’m already really cool with my guys in our 2023 class. You have two big scoring wings in me and Mackenzie [Mgbako], and we’ve got pretty similar games. We can both shoot, defend, take you off the dribble and make plays. That’s gonna be hard to stop. Then Jared [McCain] and Caleb [Foster] are two of the best scoring guards in the country but love to share the ball, and then Sean’s [Stewart] a monster in so many ways and checks off a lot of boxes for us. It’s gonna be a scary combination of talent.

I’m super relieved right now. I don’t have to worry about this stuff anymore and to end up at a place like Duke is so special for me and my family. I’m ecstatic, for sure.

O.K. guys, I’ve gotta get going, but thanks for reading. I hope it gave you a deeper understanding of my thought process. Now it’s back to work for me.

Go, Duke.