David Duke is starting strong in summer league play (w/highlights)
Duke is earning praise for his play in the first week in Vegas.
David Duke is making the most of his opportunity this summer after signing an Exhibit 10 contract with the Brooklyn Nets.
Playing on what figured to be a crowded roster consisting of five players taken in the 2021 NBA Draft, Duke has started all three of Brooklyn’s games so far this summer, and has seemingly embraced his role. The Nets are asking Duke to be a defender first, and he has also more than chipped in on the glass while finishing well in the paint.
Through three games, Duke is averaging 7.6 points and 7.6 rebounds per game. He has turned the ball over just four times.
One of the shortcomings of his game in Providence was Duke’s inability to finish inside the 3-point arc consistently, but he has played at a good pace when taking pull-up jumpers and attacking the rim. The one area Duke has struggled has been from beyond the arc, where he has shot 1-8 and looks as though he is out of rhythm from long range.
After the opening summer league game, Duke was featured in The New York Post, with coach Jordan Ott explaining, “We’re out here trying to find guys that want to get after it defensively, and he displayed it every day in practice. He displayed it again [Monday]. He was unbelievable on the point of attack, the ball pressure. … So, we were really happy with the way he played [Monday] and throughout the week before.”
Duke was also ESPN’s interview choice at halftime of the Nets’ game against Milwaukee earlier this week.
You can check out his highlights against Milwaukee below. The video also includes his interview with ESPN: