Duke Freshman Dariq Whitehead Declares for NBA Draft

Duke freshman Dariq Whitehead has declared for the 2023 NBA Draft, making the announcement on Wednesday. 

Duke freshman Dariq Whitehead has declared for the 2023 NBA Draft. pic.twitter.com/mjg7aG7xAM

— B/R Hoops (@brhoops) March 29, 2023

Whitehead is a 6-foot-7 guard who missed the first four games recovering from an offseason foot injury. He averaged 8.3 points and led the Blue Devils in shooting by hitting 42.4 percent on 3-pointers. He seemed to get better and better as the season went along and was really hitting his stride in the ACC and NCAA tournaments. 

His size, defense, and shooting ability should translate well to the NBA level. 

This is nothing new for the Blue Devils since former coach Mike Krzyzewski began accepting the one-and-done model. With that said, two of Whitehead’s teammates have announced they are actually returning to Durham for another run next season. Freshman Mark Mitchell joined fellow teammate Tyrese Proctor in announcing they are coming back for 2023-24. 

Let’s run it back ?? pic.twitter.com/g3X4cu3Ls3

— Mark Mitchell (@Mark_mitchell25) March 30, 2023

TYRESE IS BACK FOR YEAR 2 ??

Averaged 9.4ppg, 3.3apg, 3.1rpg in his freshman season pic.twitter.com/vu9DQ5WQUh

— DukeLights  (@duke_lights) March 27, 2023

You have to believe that Duke will likely be among the top teams to be considered for the pre-season No. 1 next season. With the returning players and another strong class, the Blue Devils will once again be a force to deal with in the ACC.