What Darren Harris Brings to This Year’s Duke Team

The Duke Blue Devils are looking to have a special basketball season. To do so, they will need all the players on this team to be all in and play their roles well. Head coach Jon Scheyer and his coaching staff are going to have these players ready for everything that they see on the court.

Apr 5, 2025; San Antonio, TX, USA; Duke Blue Devils head coach Jon Scheyer reacts after a play against the Houston Cougars during the second half in the semifinals of the men's Final Four of the 2025 NCAA Tournament at the Alamodome. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

He will put his players in the best position to be successful both on and off the court. These players have full confidence in Scheye, and they believe in him and his coaching staff.

Duke is coming into this season with a young roster. They do have a key veteran players who will return and will have an important role in teaching the freshmen how things are done for this program and how Scheyer wants to do things.

Oct 4, 2024; Durham, NC, USA; Duke Blue Devils center court logo before the Countdown to Craziness at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jaylynn Nash-Imagn Images | Jaylynn Nash-Imagn Images

One player who is going to have a bigger role for this team this season is sophomore Darren Harris. He is back and ready for another season.

ewdedw — Mar 21, 2025; Raleigh, NC, USA; Duke Blue Devils guard Darren Harris (8) dunks the ball against the Mount St. Mary's Mountaineers during the second half in the first round of the NCAA Tournament at Lenovo Center. Mandatory Credit: Zachary Taft-Imagn Images | Zachary Taft-Imagn Images

Darren Harris

"Harris’ game centers around his ability to shoot the 3-pointer. While he struggled last year in his limited opportunities from behind the arc, Harris was a highly touted shooter coming out of high school. Particularly impressive is his catch-and-shoot 3-pointer."

"Harris does a phenomenal job of getting himself open and immediately firing from deep. When Duke gets an offensive rebound, look for Harris to maneuver himself to the corner and spot up," said Vishwa Veeraswamy of The Chronicle.

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

"Harris isn’t just a catch-and-shoot guy, however. While he likely won’t be running the pick and roll, he can certainly shoot the ball well off the dribble."

"In his limited playing time last season, Duke was able to run off-ball curl screens for him to take the pass and get to the rim. Due to his size, Harris can finish well through contact and also pull up from mid-range at times. He was also an aggressive rebounder last year, especially on the offensive end. Of his 24 rebounds on the year last season, eight of them were on the offensive end."

"Harris saw the court in limited minutes last season due to fellow freshmen Kon Knueppel and Isaiah Evans taking the roles of the sharpshooters, alongside Tyrese Proctor, Sion James and Caleb Foster generally occupying the other guard slot. This season, Harris is going to have to fight for minutes once again with yet another strong incoming class for head coach Jon Scheyer."

Apr 6, 2015; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Duke Blue Devils fan sports a logo on his head for the 2015 NCAA Men's Division I Championship game against the Wisconsin Badgers at Lucas Oil Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images | Jamie Rhodes-Imagn Images

"As Evans and Foster return, Scheyer brings in even more elite shooting with Dame Sarr, Nikolas Khamenia and Sebastian Wilkins. Harris will get opportunities early, but Scheyer will certainly want to give his freshmen a chance. It’s unlikely that Harris will find himself in a starting role to begin the season, and he will probably be fighting for a spot in the rotation off the bench as a scoring threat."

Apr 5, 2025; San Antonio, TX, USA; Duke Blue Devils head coach Jon Scheyer directs players before a semifinal of the men's Final Four of the 2025 NCAA Tournament at the Alamodome. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-Imagn Images | Bob Donnan-Imagn Images

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