With the future arrival of shooting guard Luke Kennard, it’s hard not to let the mind drift back to a time when another mid-west shooting guard electrified Duke crowds with the same sort of scoring acumen that Luke Kennard is displaying in high school currently. It just so happens that we don’t have to go far for that walk down memory lane: that very guard, Jon Scheyer, will be coaching Kennard during his time in Durham as Duke’s newest assistant coach.
Jon Scheyer came into Duke with the same of high school pedigree as an elite shooter and scorer, a high IQ, and a fiercely competitive winner.
Kennard will enter Duke as an underrated athlete who doesn’t necessarily need to jump out of the gym to affect the game; just as Scheyer coming out of Glenbrook North, his lateral quickness and athleticism were questioned. Kennard, like Scheyer before him, is fully capable of getting his own shots, getting others involved, running a team if need be, and taking control of the game if necessary. Both players saw their high school careers gain traction quickly and each was anointed very early as a leader for their respective teams. Scheyer proved during his tenure at Duke that a talent for the outside shot is a tool but not the full definition of the player. Kennard, like Scheyer, possesses a full compliment of offensive weaponry and can score from any spot on the floor.
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Let’s look at the tale of the tape:
Jon Scheyer is 6’4.5 inches and weighs in at around 175 (playing days) and hails from Northbrook, IL and attended Glenbrook North High School.
Luke Kennard is a tad taller at 6’5 and a little bigger at around 182lbs and attends Frankin High School, in Franklin, OH.
Both put up gaudy numbers in high school and Kennard still has another year of high school ball left. Jon Scheyer in his senior year averaged 32 points a game and is the 4th-leading scorer in Illinois history with 3,034 points. Scheyer gained national attention and legendary status in his senior year by scoring 21 points in 75 seconds of play during a one-man comeback effort in the last minute and a half of a high school game. Scheyer scored 52 in that game. Kennard’s numbers are just as astronomical and he has a year left to play: the rising senior averaged 40 points, 10.4 rebounds, and four assists this past season, and has 1,910 career points so far. Kennard scored 920 points in 23 games this past season. Kennard scored a career-high and school record 59 points in February and has scored 50 or more three times while shooting over 50 percent from the field. Both Scheyer and Kennard were named Mr. Basketball in their respective states.
