Duke Now Favorites to Land Commitment for a Talented Top Guard

Duke basketball appears to be the favored to sign former four-year Tulane guard Sion James. Even if the Blue Devils win the transfer battle, they’ll still have two scholarships available.

It would not be surprising if head coach Jon Scheyer awarded one of those scholarships to 7-footer Stanley Borden, who is from Istanbul, Turkey. He joined the Duke basketball family in September 2021 and is now the sole surviving member of legendary icon Mike Krzyzewski’s final Blue Devil team.

Perhaps Borden had a role in the Duke staff’s apparent renewed interest in outgoing UC Irvine freshman Derin Saran, who is also from Istanbul.

It’s worth noting that the 6-foot-4, 190-pound guard attended Asheville School (N.C.) as a prep, so he’s familiar with the state.

 

 

NFcomtr, a page specializing on all things Turkish basketball, stated over the weekend that Jon Scheyer’s Blue Devils have joined Stanford, Vanderbilt, Northwestern, Georgia, and Marquette as potential suitors for Saran.

Bu sezon UC Irvine'da %50,2 şut isabetiyle 10,1 sayı, 3.4 ribaund istatistikleri ile dikkat çeken Derin Saran ile ilgilenen takımlara Duke da eklendi. 💥 Daha önce Stanford, Vanderbilt, Northwestern, Georgia ve Marquette gibi NCAA'in önde gelen takımlarının ilgisini çeken 1.93… pic.twitter.com/DVvtu2D067

— NFcomtr 🏀 (@NFcomtr) May 4, 2024

Derin Saran, 20, averaged 10.1 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 1.6 assists in his one season at UC Irvine. He shot 50.2 percent from the field, 34.9 percent from beyond the arc, and 80.0 percent from the charity stripe.

Derin Saran (04') vs. Utah Utes

• 23 dakika
• 16 sayı (takımının en skoreri)
• 6/12 saha içi (2/3 üç sayı)
• 2/2 serbest atış
• 5 ribaund
• 3 top çalma

Utah Utes, UC Irvine'ı 84 – 75 mağlup etti. pic.twitter.com/oJxgWHeiBp

— Can Peker Pekcan (@canpekerpekcan) March 20, 2024

Saran’s double-figure scoring average came in only 19.1 minutes per game off the bench over 31 games for an Anteaters team that ended 24-10 overall and had the best Big West record (17-3).