Duke, John Scheyer to hire Oklahoma assistant Emanuel Dildy to bench

Jon Scheyer is making a big move, adding Oklahoma assistant Emanuel Dildy to Duke’s coaching staff, according to Brendan Marks of The Athletic.

“NEWS: Duke is hiring Oklahoma assistant coach Emanuel Dildy to its staff, multiple sources confirm to @TheAthleticCBB,” tweeted Marks. “Dildy fills Amile Jefferson’s spot on the bench, after Jefferson left for a job with the Boston Celtics earlier this summer. Story coming soon.”

Dildy has been with the Sooners men’s basketball staff as an assistant since 2021. He was highly-respected by Oklahoma head coach Porter Moser, who he coached with at Loyola Chicago from 2013-2016.

In between his time with Moser, Dildy was an assistant for Chris Collins’ Northwestern squad, where he continually helped improve the Wildcats’ recruiting game. He played a pivotal role in rebuilding their program with Collins.

Additionally, Dildy has coached at Valparaiso and Missouri as well, so he’ll bring a wealth of knowledge and experience to the Blue Devils.

Moreover, while the revelation that Dildy is joining the Blue Devils is the latest bit of news on Duke’s coaching staff, Duke also announced a promotion for assistant coach Jai Lucas to associate head coach earlier in the offseason.

The move comes after just one year on the staff for Lucas, who took the opportunity to link up with Scheyer when he got promoted to head coach last offseason.

The juicy part is he left Kentucky and John Calipari’s staff after just one year there to take a premier spot on the staff of the other biggest national college basketball brand. Now, after just one year as a plain old assistant, Lucas is getting the bump to second in command.

“Jai’s been an amazing addition to our staff this last year,” said Scheyer in his statement. “He’s great on the court, he’s run our entire defense. He’s somebody that comes with many different perspectives with the experiences he’s had before Duke, but now he also understands what it takes to win at the highest level. So, very proud of him, very excited to name him associate head coach.”

With coaches like Jai Lucas and Emanuel Dildy helping the cause, the future is bright for Jon Scheyer and the Blue Devils. Duke has been a premier team for a bevy of decades now, and that’s not going to change anytime soon.