Duke Basketball One-And-Done Ditches Walking Boot Without Hiccup
About this time last year, Duke basketball announced that then-freshman Dariq Whitehead underwent surgery to repair a right foot fracture sustained during a workout in Durham. Despite the injury costing him a handful of games while limiting his athleticism and confidence, he carved out an integral role for the Blue Devils.
He became the team's top 3-point marksman at 42.9 percent for the season. Then the former McDonald's All-American, who has admitted to essentially "playing on one leg" at Duke, went No. 22 overall to the Brooklyn Nets in June, even though he sat out of the NBA Draft Combine after undergoing another procedure on his foot.
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At the Las Vegas Summer League in July, Whitehead had to play the role of cheerleader while on the bench wearing a protective walking boot.
So he hasn't shown the world his full explosiveness since he was a five-star sensation at prep powerhouse Montverde Academy (Fla.).
Fast forward a couple of months, and Whitehead, who is only a few weeks removed from his 19th birthday and is the youngest Nets draft selection in history, looks to be all smiles as he works his way back to full strength. The franchise has indicated its hope he'll be ready when training camp begins in early October.
And according to the New York Post's Brian Lewis, Whitehead "hasn't done or said anything to dampen those hopes" as he "was walking among fans at Sunday's Ticketmaster x Nets Plaza Party event at Barclays Center without a limp or a boot."
"Rehab is going great," Whitehead confirmed to Lewis. "Foot feeling good. Definitely not trying to give it a definite timetable right now, and just trying to take it day by day. But everything's feeling good, and just looking forward to approaching the season, getting back to 100 percent."
Dariq Whitehead is currently the only Duke basketball talent on contract with a Brooklyn Nets franchise that has reached the NBA Playoffs in each of the past five seasons but hasn't advanced past the Eastern Conference Semifinals in that span.
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