Skip to main content
Join
Team Avatar
Kentucky

Report: Duke, Jon Scheyer contacted Kentucky assistant for job on staff

Barkley-Truaxby:Barkley Truax•04/20/22•

BarkleyTruax

jon-scheyer-discusses-coaching-first-game-as-duke-blue-devils-head-coach-in-waiting
Lance King/Getty Images

Duke‘s new head basketball coach Jon Scheyer is already looking to piece together his staff for next season, already contacting Kentucky assistant Jai Lucas, according to a report from The Athletic’s Brendan Marks. Lucas is expected to remain on head coach John Calipari’s staff despite, however.

“Scheyer is willing to hire outside the Duke brotherhood. [Mike] Krzyzewski, by the end of his tenure, placed an emphasis on hiring exclusively former Duke players (and captains, if possible), but Scheyer is casting a wider net,” Marks wrote.

Lucas just finished his second season as an assistant coach/recruiting coordinator with the Wildcats and losing him would be a major hit to Kentucky’s recruiting efforts, but according to the report, Scheyer will have to look elsewhere after Lucas, one of the top recruiting assistants in the nation, denied the offer.

Jay Bilas reacts to Oscar Tshiebwe’s decision to return to Kentucky for senior year

On Wednesday afternoon, Kentucky center Oscar Tshiebwe surprised many when he announced he was returning for his senior season of college basketball. He decided to not enter the 2022 NBA Draft and spoke with ESPN’s Sage Steele about his decision on SportsCenter. 

Tshiebwe said he wanted to be a lottery pick, and that factored into his decision. In returning to Kentucky, Tshiebwe becomes the first National Player of the Year to return to school since Tyler Hansbrough did at North Carolina in 2008. Jay Bilas gave his thoughts on the gifted center’s return to school and ESPN’s college basketball expert said the imapct NIL possibly played. 

“I think we’re going to see more of this with some of the better players that may not be lottery picks because they can now make money off their name, image, and likeness,” Bilas said on Wednesday afternoon. 

Jay Bilas makes a great point and it’s refreshing to see name, image, and likeness help keep a big-time talent in the college ranks like Oscar Tshiebwe. It’s great for Kentucky fans, great for Tshiebwe, and great for college basketball in general.