The Duke Blue Devils have plenty to look forward to this season, with the biggest reason being the debut of highly-touted freshman Cooper Flagg. But looking ahead to the future, the Blue Devils will be in good shape having just secured the commitment of one of the top small forwards in the country, Shelton Henderson, to Duke as per Joe Tipton of On3 Sports.
Shelton Henderson’s commitment to Duke gives Jon Scheyer his fourth recruit from the class of 2025. Henderson joins what’s already shaping up to be one of the absolute top recruiting classes in the country including Cameron and Cayden Boozer, the twin sons of former Duke star Carlos Boozer, and Nikolas Khamenia from Harvard-Westlake in California.
Henderson is billed as a five-star recruit and is considered the top high school player in Texas. He chose the Blue Devils over other top Division 1 college basketball schools such as Texas and Louisville. He also had offers from programs like LSU, Houston and Texas Tech.
Henderson spoke about Duke’s pipeline to the NBA as being a major factor in his decision.
“I chose Duke because they believe in me,” Henderson said. “The pipeline is so deep with who they have sent to the NBA and I think they could also get me there. I also enjoyed the atmosphere and the fanbase. This has been my dream school since I started watching basketball.”
Henderson will be completing his senior year in high school Bellaire High in TX.
While the star-studded 2025 class won’t arrive on campus until the following season, there is plenty for Duke fans to be excited about his season. One of those reasons is the debut of Cooper Flagg. Flagg is widely considered to be on the frontrunners for the No. 1 pick in the 2025 NBA Draft.
Flagg participated in camp and mini-scrimmages competing against Team USA in Las Vegas this summer as they tuned up for the Olympics.
During his senior year at Monteverde Academy, Flagg was named Gatorade National Player of the Year, Mr. Basketball USA, Naismith Prep Player of the Year, and a McDonald’s All-American.
Flagg had also explored UConn throughout his recruitment process, owing to its proximity to his native state of Maine. NBA scouts and fans will undoubtedly keep a close eye on Flagg this season. He does have some competition for the top choice from incoming Rutgers freshmen Ace Bailey and Dylan Harper.
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