Class of 2001

Duke had the best recruiting class in the nation with William Avery, Shane Battier, Elton Brand , and Chris Burgess. J.D. Simpson, also a member of the Class of 2001, is a walk on. Nate James came to duke in the fall of 1996 but redshirted his sophomore year and has three years of eligibility.

Read about how the future is bright for Duke.

Listen to Coach K talk about the role of the freshmen
in Duke's Sweet Sixteen win over Syracuse.
73k wav
RealAudio

N&O Staff Photo Illustration by Jim Bounds and Roger Winstead
Click on the above image of Elton, Chris, Shane, and Will
to read about how their season 1997-98 progressed.

N&O Staff Photo by Chuck Liddy
Coack K, Will, Chris, and Shane watch the end of the
Duke-North Carolina game from the floor in Cameron.
Duke came back from a 17 point deficit to overcome UNC 77-75.

Read a good story by Steve Politi about
how each of them became Blue Devils.

Shane Battier

Click on Shane below to go to The Shane Battier Zone.

N&O Staff Photo by Roger Winstead
Shane Battier made an immediate impact on the 1997-98 team and led the Blue Devils in rebounding, blocked shots, and charges taken. Shane took almost three times as many charges (29) as any Blue Devil all last season and more than the rest of the 97-98 Duke team combined. This season, Shane broke the career record for charges taken Duke which was 53 by Danny Ferry. He now has 60 charges taken on his career as well as 31 this season (a school record). Furthermore, he took 5 charges in the SC State game this season, the school record for charges taken in a single game. Shane is leading the team in steals this season and was voted the ACC's best defender. Shane made 3rd team All-ACC.

For more Shane photos, click on his number below.

AP Photo

Elton Brand

Elton Brand, who led the team in field goal percentage and rebounds per game last season, brings one home for the Devils.

AP Photo
Click on Elton to see more photos.
Shane and Elton are two players on a short list to make starting debuts under Coach K. Unfortunately, Elton Brand broke the fifth metatarsal in his left foot in practice and was out for much of last year's season. Elton healed more quickly than expected and played for the first time since his injury Sunday, February 22 against UCLA and finished out the season. This season, Elton has 15 double-doubles and led the league in scoring. He was a unanimous 1st team All-ACC selection as well as a 1st team All-American.

Chris Burgess

Chris Burgess has started 12 games this season, being a spark off the bench in the others. We can count on Chris for intensity and usually at least one spectacular dunk per game. Against Fresno State, "Burge" scored 15 points and pulled down 16 rebounds.

Click on CB for more photos.

AP Photo
Chris Burgess slams in two of his points against UNC
when Duke beat them 77-75 on February 28th, 1998.

William Avery

Will tied for the team-high 16 points including
11 points in 2:31 minutes against North Carolina A&T last season.

AP Photo
Will was second on the team in both assists
and free-throw percentage for the 1997-98 season. Will recently made 2nd team All-ACC and led all scorers with 24 in Duke's 20 point pounding of UNC at the Smith Center this season.
Click on the above picture to see more photos of Will.

Nate James

Click on Nate for more photos.

© 1996 McDonald's
Nate James is an essential spark off the bench on this year's Duke team.

J.D. Simpson

J.D. can't bear to watch the final seconds of Kentucky

AP Photo
J.D. Simpson, #30, is a walk-on from Woodside, California. He scored his first two points in Duke's ACC opener against Virginia on December 6th, 1997. He is already in the NCAA Tournament books after recording two points against Radford in the first round of last year's Tournament. He also played one minute against Syracuse in the sweet sixteen.

1998 | 1999 | 2000 | 2002 | 2003

Top of Page | Bethany's Duke Basketball Page

This page is not affiliated with Duke Athletics, Duke Basketball, or even the class of 2001.
bpeters@econ.duke.edu