Jalen Johnson, D.J. Steward Projected for 2021 Draft
Vernon Carey Jr., Cassius Stanley and Tre Jones are still waiting to see where they go in the 2020 NBA Draft. The two one-and-done freshman and the sophomore, Jones, left Duke to declare for the pros following the truncated 2019-20 season. All three have been projected as potential mid-to-low first-rounders.
While the pandemic has pushed back all NBA business, including the draft, CBSSports has turned its attention to next year’s draft and projects two Blue Devils who have yet to play a game for Duke—and potentially a third—to be selected in the 2021 draft.
Jonathan Kuminga, who seems to be the wrench thrown into all the projecting works, is slated to go third overall, behind Oklahoma State freshman Cade Cunningham and one-and-done G-Leaguer Jalen Green.
Kuminga is the top-rated prospect in the class of 2021 and currently would be eligible to be drafted in 2022. He’s still considering the possibility of reclassifying to the class of 2020. Assuming that “big if” occurs, it’s not clear if he’ll go to college at all. Duke is one of the members of his top five, but so is the G-League.
Incoming Duke freshman Jalen Johnson is projected to go No. 8, behind USC center Evan Mobley, Kentucky guard B.J. Boston, UNC point Caleb Love and Stanford forward Ziaire Williams.
Johnson is a five-star small forward who is expected to be one of Duke’s top scoring options next season. CBSSports raves about his playmaking ability for his size and thinks his versatility will be one of the reasons he goes in the top 10.
The final Blue Devil expected to be taken in 2021 is combination guard D.J. Steward. The five-star from Chicago is projected to go No. 16 overall. Florida, Kentucky and Louisville are the only other schools with multiple projected first-rounders next year.
