Duke freshman Kon Knueppel to take the 1-and-done route to the NBA draft
Duke freshman Kon Knueppel to take the 1-and-done route to the NBA draft
Duke guard Kon Knueppel (7) drives against Arizona during the first half of a Sweet 16 round NCAA college basketball tournament game, Thursday, March 27, 2025, in Newark, N.J. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
Duke guard Kon Knueppel celebrates after scoring past Houston forward Ja'Vier Francis during the first half in the national semifinals at the Final Four of the NCAA college basketball tournament, Saturday, April 5, 2025, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
Duke guard Kon Knueppel celebrates after scoring past Houston forward Ja'Vier Francis during the first half in the national semifinals at the Final Four of the NCAA college basketball tournament, Saturday, April 5, 2025, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
Duke guard Kon Knueppel (7) drives against Arizona during the first half of a Sweet 16 round NCAA college basketball tournament game, Thursday, March 27, 2025, in Newark, N.J. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)
Duke guard Kon Knueppel celebrates after scoring past Houston forward Ja'Vier Francis during the first half in the national semifinals at the Final Four of the NCAA college basketball tournament, Saturday, April 5, 2025, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Brynn Anderson)
Duke's Kon Knueppel is heading to the NBA after one college season.
The 6-foot-7, 217-pound wing announced his decision Wednesday after a season that included him being named MVP of the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament while helping the Blue Devils reach the Final Four. Knueppel averaged 14.4 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.7 assists as the team's No. 2 scorer behind Associated Press national player of the year Cooper Flagg.
Advertisement
'Forever a Blue Devil,' Knueppel posted on social media. 'Taking the Brotherhood with me to the next chapter. #NBADraft.'
Knueppel is the first member of Duke's touted freshman class to go pro. He's widely projected as a lottery pick.
'He's a guy that is really about competition," Duke coach Jon Scheyer said in social-media video posted by the program Wednesday. 'He never shied away from the competitive plays that have to be made in order to win at a high level.'
Knueppel is an efficient, floor-spacing scorer who shot 47.9% from the field, 40.6% from 3-point range and 91.4% from the foul line. And while he typically played a wingman role to Flagg, he thrived in the forefront when Flagg was injured during the ACC Tournament, scoring 28 points against Georgia Tech, 17 against rival North Carolina and 18 against Louisville as the Blue Devils won a second title in Scheyer's three seasons.
Advertisement
Knueppel is only the eighth freshman to win MVP honors at the ACC Tournament.
The Milwaukee native closed with 16 points in a loss to Houston in the national semifinals. His free throw with 1:14 left marked Duke's final point as the Blue Devils faltered late with the Cougars rallying with the game's last nine points in the final 33 seconds.
___
Get poll alerts and updates on the AP Top 25 throughout the season. Sign up here. AP college basketball: https://apnews.com/hub/ap-top-25-college-basketball-poll and https://apnews.com/hub/college-basketball
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Yahoo
26 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner now take their terrific rivalry from the French Open to Wimbledon
Spain's Carlos Alcaraz celebrates with the trophy after winning the final match of the French Tennis Open against Italy's Jannik Sinner at the Roland-Garros stadium in Paris, Sunday, June 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson) Second placed Italy's Jannik Sinner reacts after the final match of the French Tennis Open against Spain's Carlos Alcaraz at the Roland-Garros stadium in Paris, Sunday, June 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson) Spain's Carlos Alcaraz celebrates after winning the final match of the French Tennis Open against Italy's Jannik Sinner at the Roland-Garros stadium in Paris, Sunday, June 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson) Spain's Carlos Alcaraz hugs Italy's Jannik Sinner after winning the final match of the French Tennis Open at the Roland-Garros in Paris, Sunday, June 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard) Spain's Carlos Alcaraz hugs Italy's Jannik Sinner after winning the final match of the French Tennis Open at the Roland-Garros in Paris, Sunday, June 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard) Spain's Carlos Alcaraz celebrates with the trophy after winning the final match of the French Tennis Open against Italy's Jannik Sinner at the Roland-Garros stadium in Paris, Sunday, June 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson) Second placed Italy's Jannik Sinner reacts after the final match of the French Tennis Open against Spain's Carlos Alcaraz at the Roland-Garros stadium in Paris, Sunday, June 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson) Spain's Carlos Alcaraz celebrates after winning the final match of the French Tennis Open against Italy's Jannik Sinner at the Roland-Garros stadium in Paris, Sunday, June 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson) Spain's Carlos Alcaraz hugs Italy's Jannik Sinner after winning the final match of the French Tennis Open at the Roland-Garros in Paris, Sunday, June 8, 2025. (AP Photo/Aurelien Morissard) The takeaways from Carlos Alcaraz's fifth-set tiebreaker victory over Jannik Sinner in the riveting and record-breaking French Open men's final were multiple and significant. Let's start with this: Anyone worried about how men's tennis would survive in the post-Big Three era can rest easy. Alcaraz and Sinner produced 5 1/2 hours of evidence Sunday that the game is in good hands — and that their rivalry will be, and perhaps already is, a transcendent one. Advertisement Take it from no less an authority than Roger Federer. The retired owner of 20 Grand Slam titles, and rival of Rafael Nadal (22 majors) and Novak Djokovic (24), began a post on social media by declaring, '3 winners in Paris today,' then listed Alcaraz, Sinner and 'the beautiful fame of tennis. What a match!' No. 1 Sinner and No. 2 Alcaraz could renew their rivalry at Wimbledon This was the 12th Alcaraz-Sinner meeting, the first in a major final. 'Hopefully not the last time,' Alcaraz said. 'Every time that we face ... each other, we raise our level to the top.' It would be shocking if there weren't many more of these to come — perhaps as soon as at Wimbledon, where play begins on June 30 and No. 2-ranked Alcaraz is the two-time defending champion. Advertisement His comeback against No. 1 Sinner from two sets down, then three championship points down, to win 4-6, 6-7 (4), 6-4, 7-6 (3), 7-6 (10-2) was unprecedented at Roland-Garros. It was unforgettable. Alcaraz's coach, Juan Carlos Ferrero, described his guy's best trait this way: 'His strength is (to) keep believing all the time, until the last ball is gone.' Carlos Alcaraz has five Grand Slam titles at age 22 Alcaraz's five Grand Slam titles at 22 — that's the age at which Nadal, Bjorn Borg and Pete Sampras also got to five; no one's done it younger — show how special he is. So does the Spaniard's 5-0 record in major finals, a career start surpassed among men only by Federer's 7-0. Sinner is pretty good, too. Tuesday marks a full year that he has been ranked No. 1. He has reached the finals of his last eight tournaments, a run last accomplished by Djokovic a decade ago. He has won three majors. He has won 47 of his last 50 matches. Advertisement Notably, all three of those losses came against — yes, you guessed it — Alcaraz. That hearkens back to the days when Federer would beat everyone other than Nadal. Sinner had claimed 31 Slam sets in a row right up until the moment he was up 2-0 against Alcaraz. What was unmistakable to anyone watching in-person at Court Philippe-Chatrier or following along from afar on TV is that Alcaraz vs. Sinner is a must-see. 'The level,' Alcaraz said, 'was insane.' Alcaraz and Sinner have won the last 6 Grand Slam titles Sinner's take? 'I'm happy to be part of this,' the 23-year-old Italian said. 'Would be even more happy if I would have ... the big trophy.' Advertisement As with any great rivalry — think Evert vs. Navratilova or Borg vs. McEnroe or Federer vs. Nadal, no first names needed — Alcaraz vs. Sinner provides a clash of excellence and a study in contrasts. Alcaraz displays emotion, pumping his fists, pointing to an ear to ask for more noise, yelling 'Vamos!' Sinner is rather contained. Sinner's long limbs get him to nearly every ball. Alcaraz's motor reaches speeds no one can equal. Sinner's ball-striking is pure. Alcaraz's drop shots are legendary. Both hammer groundstrokes that leave opponents exasperated and spectators gasping. Both can improve. Sinner has never won a match that lasted four hours. Alcaraz loses focus on occasion. Both are eager to improve. When Sinner returned from a three-month doping ban last month, he introduced a new, angled return stance. Alcaraz tweaked his serve and backhand technique. Advertisement Who knows what heights each can reach? They split the past six Slam trophies, and eight of the past 11. Roger Federer predicted big champions would come along again Federer saw this coming. During an interview with The Associated Press in December 2019, Federer predicted someone would win major after major the way he, Nadal and Djokovic did. Just didn't know there would be a Big Two doing it. 'It's going to happen, inevitably,' Federer said. 'And it's almost not going to be that hard, maybe ... because the players will have seen what we did. And they didn't see just one guy doing it, once every 30 years. They saw like three guys doing it, in the shortest period of time. ... Players are going to believe more." Advertisement ___ AP Sports Writer Jerome Pugmire in Paris contributed to this report. ___ Howard Fendrich has been the AP's tennis writer since 2002. Find his stories here: More AP tennis:
Fox Sports
29 minutes ago
- Fox Sports
Cristian Chivu appointed as Inter Milan coach
Associated Press MILAN (AP) — Cristian Chivu was appointed coach of Inter Milan on Monday. The club said he had signed a contract with the Nerazzurri until June 30, 2027. The 44-year-old replaces Simone Inzaghi, who took over as coach of Saudi Arabian club Al-Hilal on Wednesday. The appointment was announced just hours after Parma agreed to terminate Chivu's contract. __ AP soccer: in this topic
Hamilton Spectator
32 minutes ago
- Hamilton Spectator
Spain tries to stay upbeat after shootout loss to Portugal in Nations League final
MADRID (AP) — As Cristiano Ronaldo lifted the Nations League trophy and his Portugal teammates celebrated behind him, Spain's players watched in clear disappointment. There was no major letdown after the penalty shootout defeat in Sunday's final in Munich, though. There were no calls for a coaching change. There was no blaming of players who underperformed. The feeling was that Spain is still on the right track. Before leaving the field, coach Luis de la Fuente gathered his players and made sure they remained upbeat and ready to start focusing on next year's World Cup. 'It was time to remind them that we have to be proud of this team, of what we have been doing,' De la Fuente said. 'I reminded the players that I'm proud to have them in the team. Now we have to start focusing on the World Cup. I'm still counting on every one of them, on those who were here and those who couldn't come this time.' Spain is the European champion and as a nation has been enjoying one of its best runs in international soccer. The women's team is the World Cup and Nations League champion. La Roja also won the men's Olympic tournament in France last year, as well as the 2023 Nations League. 'You can't question what this team has been achieving,' De la Fuente said. 'It has been defining an era, a style, and it will continue to do so, not because of me, but because of the players that we have.' After beating France 5-4 in the Nations League semifinals last week, Spain lost the final 5-3 on penalties after a 2-2 draw following extra time. Striker Álvaro Morata was the only player to miss his spot kick. 'Morata is a champion and a reference for us,' De la Fuente said. 'I'm responsible for his missed kick because I'm the one who asked him to take the shot.' Martín Zubimendi (21 minutes) and Mikel Oyazarbal (45) twice gave Spain the lead but Portugal rallied with goals by Nuno Mendes in the 26th and Ronaldo in the 61st. 'We have to overcome this defeat as best we can and value the positive momentum we have had in recent years,' Zubimendi said. 'This time we let the title slip away because of details. We have to keep our feet on the ground. We have been used to winning. Since I joined the national team I've only experienced positive things.' De la Fuente took over from Luis Enrique following defeat to Morocco in the round of 16 at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar. He recently had his contract renewed by the Spanish soccer federation until 2028 and the next Euros. He is leading a team with a bright future thanks to young stars such as 17-year-old Lamine Yamal, Nico Williams, Pedri, Gavi, Dean Huijsen and Pau Cubarsí. Spain's next match is in Bulgaria on Sept. 4 in the World Cup qualifiers. ___ AP soccer:
