Report: Vernon Carey Jr. Declares for NBA

As expected, Vernon Carey Jr. declared for the NBA Draft and plans to hire an agent, according to multiple media reports. Carey led the team in scoring and rebounding and was national freshman of the year. Read more

Duke freshman center Vernon Carey Jr. is declaring for the NBA Draft, according to multiple media outlets.

Throughout the day, reports surfaced that Carey’s early entry was imminent, with Jeff Goodman of Stadium reporting it in early afternoon.

Jon Rothstein of CBS Sports, citing Carey’s father, former NFL player Vernon Carey Sr., said that Carey had officially declared and will sign with an agent—Jeff Wechsler. 247Sports also reported the news at about the same time.

Duke's Vernon Carey has officially declared for the 2020 NBA Draft, per his father. Carey will sign with Jeff Wechsler for his representation.

— Jon Rothstein (@JonRothstein) April 10, 2020

Carey is expected to be chosen late in the first round, according to a consensus of mock drafts. He led Duke with 17.8 ppg and 8.8 rebounds. He finished fourth in the ACC in scoring and third in rebounding, winning conference Freshman of the Year. He led the ACC in shooting at 57.7 percent.

Carey won the Wayman Tisdale Award, given to the national freshman of the year by the USBWA basketball writers. He also won the NABC (coaches) version of the same award and was a consensus second-team All-American.

It’s no surprise that Carey chose to leave for the NBA. The decision has seemed inevitable since early in the ACC season. Carey, who played the wing in high school, adapted quickly to playing the post in college and quickly became dominant in the paint. While playing back to the basket is not a good fit with the current style of play in the NBA, his previous experience playing outside and facing up should make him more versatile than his college play might indicate.