Inside Jayson Tatum’s Ongoing Relationship With Duke

The Duke Blue Devils basketball team has been getting ready for the start of their basketball season. They will get things started in a little over a month against the University of Texas. That is going to be a good match-up for the Blue Devils to start the season.

It is going to be a game that a lot of people are going to have their eyes on. The Blue Devils are ready to start the season as they are expected to be a top team this season. A lot of people are expecting this team to make a run into the final four.

Feb 5, 2025; Syracuse, New York, USA; Detailed view of the Duke Blue Devils logo on a uniform prior to the game against the Syracuse Orange at the JMA Wireless Dome. Mandatory Credit: Rich Barnes-Imagn Images | Rich Barnes-Imagn Images

Earlier this week, Duke received news that one former player will be taking a special position with this team. That former player is current NBA star Jayson Tatum. Duke University announced that Tatum will have a volunteer advisory role, as they titled it “Chief Basketball Officer.”

It seems like Tatum will be around the team as the NBA star is coming off a right Achilles tendon injury, which he suffered in the NBA playoffs this past May.

Oct 3, 2025; Durham, NC, USA; Jayson Tatum, NBA Boston Celtics Player helps coach alongside Duke Blue Devils head coach Jon Scheyer during the Countdown to Craziness at the Cameron Indoor Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jaylynn Nash-Imagn Images | Jaylynn Nash-Imagn Images

Jayson Tatum Relationship with Duke Basketball

Tatum's relationship with Duke goes beyond basketball and what he is here to do in his new position.

“That was Jon Scheyer’s first recruit,” associate head coach Chris Carrawell said in 2022. “Tatum was in a side gym, and Scheyer was watching Luke Kennard and [said] ‘Who's this guy, skinny kid from St. Louis?’”

Tatum committed to Duke after his first and only official college visit, launching a career that would become staple knowledge on the Cameron Crazies’ annual tenting test. Even after departing for the professional ranks, he remained a perennial Blue Devil presence.

mlklm — Oct 8, 2025; Charlotte, NC, USA; Duke head coach Jon Scheyer answers questions from the media at The Hilton Charlotte Uptown. Mandatory Credit: William Howard-Imagn Images | William Howard-Imagn Images

“We’ve been very close ever since I saw him play at 15 years old,” Scheyer said. “He’s always following our team, texting after games, and basically, I just asked him if he'd like to be a part of this program in more of a formal way.”

The Celtics star brings an NBA championship-level perspective to Scheyer’s college operation — but like all of Duke’s players and most of its coaching staff, he also remembers what it was like to take the court in Cameron. Tatum’s guidance, clout and experience put him in a unique position to give back.

mkm — Oct 3, 2025; Durham, NC, USA; Jayson Tatum, NBA Boston Celtics Player helps coach alongside Duke Blue Devils head coach Jon Scheyer during the Countdown to Craziness at the Cameron Indoor Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jaylynn Nash-Imagn Images | Jaylynn Nash-Imagn Images

“To have somebody that’s at the top of their game be a resource for our players, to be a resource for me and our coaching staff, with game strategy observations they see from afar, potentially roster construction, anything at all … to formalize that is a really special thing,” Scheyer said. “I think it's the power of The Brotherhood. It’s the ‘care factor’ that our guys have.”

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