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Duke Basketball: Another Veteran Transfer No Longer in Play
The Duke basketball coaches' search for a seasoned guard or two now seems to be narrowing down.
In his breakdown of Tyrin Lawrence's options on Thursday, On3's Joe Tipton noted that the Duke basketball recruiters, on the lookout for perimeter talent in the portal, were "in the mix here [for Lawrence] and would be one to watch if they make a strong push." On Friday, though, the 6-foot-4 graduate transfer guard out of Vanderbilt announced his commitment to Georgia for his extra year of eligibility.
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Outside of Tipton's report, it's unclear how deeply the Blue Devils were interested in Lawrence, a former three-star prep from Georgia who averaged 13.8 points and 1.4 steals per game as a full-time starter for the Commodores this past season.
Nevertheless, the 23-year-old becomes another of the several perimeter weapons in this year's transfer portal who have reportedly heard from the staff in Durham but wound up committing elsewhere.
Duke basketball hopes to add backcourt depth. There's no doubt about that. For now, there are only two full-fledged guards on Jon Scheyer's currently 10-deep 2024-25 roster in rising junior Tyrese Proctor and sophomore Caleb Foster.
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Meanwhile, there has been no official word on a pledge from former four-year Tulane guard Sion James, a 6-foot-5 explosive bucket-finder who was the Green Wave's second-leading scorer as a senior at 14.0 points per game. That said, the growing chatter among fans and insiders on social media suggests good news could be just around the corner for the Blue Devils in that race.
Stay tuned to Blue Devil Country on SI for more Duke basketball news.
