Portal Tracking: USC’s Desmond Claude On The Radar

Jon Scheyer and Duke have been fairly quiet in the portal so far, but given the track record, that’s okay. Last year, he brought in Maliq Brown, Mason Gillis, Cameron Sheffield and Sion James. And as you know, James ended up being a tremendously useful addition, moving into the starting lineup early in the season.

However, Brown and Gillis were also significant additions.

Prior to that, Scheyer & co. brought in Ryan Young from Northwestern. Young is not overly talented, but he’s incredibly smart and played with immense intensity.

So early or late, Scheyer has shown a real knack for finding guys who fit in very well.

He’s already gained a commitment from Washington State’s 6-6 grad student Cedric Coward, who will now decide between Duke and the NBA Draft, and has apparently identified another target: 6-6 Desmond Claude, who spent last season at USC after two years at Xavier.

Claude averaged 15.8 ppg this season after putting up 16.6 at Xavier in his sophomore year. He has been contacted by a number of schools including Florida, Kentucky and UNC, but reportedly he has ruled all three of those out. He’s also heard from Gonzaga, Virginia and Ole Miss.