Duke Lands Class of 2019 Star Joey Baker

Joey Baker, the Class of 2019 small forward from Fayetteville (N.C.) Trinity Christian, committed to Duke on Sunday night.

Ranked the No. 13 player in the Class of 2019 by ESPN.com, Baker also considered UCLA, N.C. State, Texas, Wake Forest, Kansas, and Florida, per ESPN.

He took an unofficial visit to Duke last weekend.

“It was an honor,” he told ZAGSBLOG. “Coach K is one of the legends of our game, the tradition of Duke, it was special.”

Baker figures to be an asset to the Blue Devils.

“[I bring] shooting, dribbling, passing, versatility on offense and defense and rebounding,” he said recently. “I’m just trying to win as much as possible and keep getting better. I feel like if I do that everything else will work itself out.”

Baker is Duke’s first commit in 2019. For 2018, the Blue Devils have commitments from guards Tre Jones and Cam Reddish. They remain in the mix for R.J. Barrett and Zion Williamson, among others.

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Written by Adam Zagoria

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Adam Zagoria is a Basketball Insider who covers basketball at all levels. A contributor to The New York Times and SportsNet New York (SNY), he is also the author of two books and is an award-winning journalist and filmmaker. His articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide. He also won an Emmy award for his work on the SNY mini-documentary on Syracuse guard Tyus Battle. A veteran Ultimate Frisbee player, he has competed in numerous National and World Championships and, perhaps more importantly, his teams won the Westchester Summer League (WSL) championships in 2011 and 2013. He lives in Manhattan with his wife and children.