Duke lands Ingram
Duke has struck again, continuing what has proven to be an amazing run for the Blue Devils in the month of April.
Just one week after Derryck Thornton's announcement to join the Blue Devils, the nation's No. 4 overall player Brandon Ingram has chosen to play his college basketball at Duke.
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Ingram, who grew up a Duke fan, and was a prime target of all the in-state schools simply felt head coach Mike Krzyzewski's program was the best fit.
"Next fall I will be attending Duke University," Ingram said from the podium at Kinston High School. "I chose the program because it's the best fit for me. Growing up I was a Duke fan, and I love everything about Coach K. I want to impact the program."
The slender 6-foot-9 wing forward has been to Duke on more than one occasion, and while the atmosphere of historic Cameron Indoor Stadium is a major draw, the way in which Krzyzewski has used similar forwards was very intriguing.
In fact, that was a component he wanted to make sure addressed, and he was more than pleased with what the Duke coaching staff had to say.
"[Krzyzewski] just told me so much about myself," he said. "He told me how unique I was and coming in I would be an impact player and he would help me get to the next level after college basketball."
The McDonald's All American and four-time state champion brings quite a bit to the table for the Blue Devils. One such aspect is his versatility and ability to create mismatches on the offensive end of the floor.
His ability to do such things is unique amongst his peers.
And his desire to do things a bit differently, carried over into his decision to choose Duke and debunk the Kinston to Chapel Hill pipeline.
"Today i created my own path," he said to a loud applause. "I wanted to get there by myself, with my family's help and keep going to fullfill my dream."
Ingram joins fellow five-star prospects Chase Jeter, Luke Kennard and Derryck Thornton in the class of 2015, as well as three-star big man Antonio Vrankovic.