Former Duke basketball forward removes name from transfer portal

Jaemyn Brakefield, a former freshman forward on the 2020-21 Duke basketball squad who wound up transferring to Ole Miss, entered the transfer portal again in mid-March. That decision came a few weeks after the school fired Kermit Davis and one day before the announced hiring of former Texas head coach Chris Beard.

At the time, some wondered if Brakefield might consider returning to the Blue Devils since he had praised first-year Duke basketball head coach Jon Scheyer on Twitter the same day he announced his plan to seek out a new school to call home (although he mentioned in his announcement that he would still consider returning to Ole Miss).

But it appears the 22-year-old, a native of Jackson, Miss., has since had a change of heart about potentially leaving the Rebels. On Wednesday afternoon, Brakefield tweeted his intention to remain in Oxford for at least one more season.

❤️💙 pic.twitter.com/gprkmFEGsE
— Jaemyn Brakefield (@Jaemyn1) March 29, 2023

Judging by the statement in his tweet, he's built a trusting relationship with Beard in the past few weeks.

The former four-star recruit, who arrived in Durham at No. 42 overall on the 247Sports 2020 Composite, has already played three seasons in college but has the option to play two more due to the NCAA not counting the truncated 2020-21 season against anyone's eligibility.

In his one season at Duke, Jaemyn Brakefield averaged 3.2 points and 2.5 rebounds in 12.5 minutes per game for a Blue Devil squad that became only the program's second since 1984 to come up short of an NCAA Tournament bid.

Last season, he averaged a career-high 11.1 points and 5.7 rebounds as a full-time starter for the Rebels, who finished with a disappointing 12-21 overall record.

Stay tuned to Blue Devil Country for daily Duke basketball content.