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Duke freshman and former five-star prospect Darrick Whitehead suffered a lower leg injury in Monday’s 78-75 loss to Virginia Tech. Whitehead left the game early in the second half after landing awkwardly on his left leg. Unable to put any pressure on the injury, he left the court and was assisted and did not return to the game.
The blow came in the second half when Duke trailed 47-45 with 17:20 left. Whitehead jumped the ball in front of his man and tried to defend the inbounds pass, but he went down hard and immediately fell to the floor. The Virginia Tech offensive lineman got a leg up to end the play, but was found to be offside when the possession turned over.
Whitehead signed to Duke as a highly regarded five-star McDonald’s All-American and ranked No. 2 overall player in the 2022 class. He is a projected lottery pick in the upcoming 2023 NBA Draft and was ranked 11th in CBS Sports’ Top 50 NBA Draft Rankings before the injury. However, he did not live up to expectations after suffering a pre-season fracture to his right leg that required surgery. He missed the first two weeks of the season and slowly worked his way back into Duke’s rotation as the season progressed.
The severity of this second injury is unclear, but based on initial reactions and video replays, it could cause Duke to miss another season as they enter the heart of conference play. That adds up to one of the most intriguing cases in the 2023 draft’s mystery box of prospects, whose attention has long focused on his explosive leaping ability and his scoring ability from the inside-outside wing position. Two significant lower-body injuries in the space of a few months could open up some reasonable doubt about long-term projections at the NBA level.
Whitehead, who entered Monday’s game with 10 points and one rebound in 15 games with the Blue Devils this season, is averaging 8.3 points and 2.5 rebounds in over 20 minutes a night.
Duke falls to 14-6 overall and 5-4 in ACC play with the loss.
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