Top Recruit Dereck Lively II Blazing New Post-Krzyzewski Trail With Duke

Among the subjects that Dereck Lively II took this year as a senior at Westtown School outside of Philadelphia was dystopian literature. You know, typical jock stuff, right? OK, not exactly. But then Lively is a bit of a standout among top-level prospects in basketball or, for that matter, in ant sport.

“Learning is just something I love,” he said. “I was taking that (dystopian literature) now, as a class, and we learned a lot of different views and perspectives.”

He should acquire some perspective in the next few months. After all, what could be more dystopian as a top recruit heading to Durham, North Carolina, to play basketball than to be the leader of an incoming class of Duke Blue Devils but to not be coached by Mike Krzyzewski? That’s the situation Lively finds himself in now, as the No. 1 player in the Class of 2022 rankings from both ESPN and 24/7 Sports, who was also last week named the Morgan Wooten Player of the Year ahead of the 45^th anniversary of the McDonald’s All American game.

With Krzyzewski retiring as of last week’s Final Four loss to North Carolina, Lively will lead the next generation of Duke stars for new coach Jon Scheyer, who did the bulk of the recruiting on Lively. “Jon Scheyer, he was really the first person who reached out to me from Duke, he really started the relationship,” Lively said. “And as I got to know him and the Duke program, I started to see our relationship build, and I could really see myself playing under him, knowing that I could put my trust in such a prestigious university that’s had a long history of great players and development, I knew that something that was something that I could fit in with.”

Still, Krzyzewski did have a hand in Lively’s recruitment—he met with Coach K on each of his school visits and expects him to stick around the program even as he has officially ceded his role to Scheyer. That is a bonus for a prep star making a leap with a new coach like Lively is preparing to do.

“I met Coach K, I had multiple conversations,” he said, “and I was able to pick his brain multiple times, he is really an elder in the game. So you’ve got to respect what he has to say. … I know that he’s going to still be around somewhere because it’s going to be hard for him just to walk away from the game like that. I was just trying to make sure that I keep the legacy going.”

Mom Nudged Lively To Change Game

If Scheyer is to build on the legacy he’s inheriting, Lively is a good guy to have on hand. He is a 7-footer who had established himself as a defensive force as a sophomore in high school, a shot-blocking rim protector who was a strictly in-the-paint big guy offensively. But he has worked to expand his game, developing a perimeter shot and an ability to switch onto smaller players, giving him the kind of versatility that coaches (and, importantly, pro scouts) covet.

He was given the advice to modernize his game—become more of an inside and outside threat—by his mother, Kathy Drysdale, who starred at Penn State from 1988-92 (she scored 1,295 career points), worked for the Sixers for 13 years, and now works for the Nittany Lions’ athletic department.

“Being able to have someone like that in that corner is something I’m grateful for,” Lively said, “knowing that she has my best interests in mind and that I could always pick her brain about something on the court and off the court that goes from if my form’s right or are my feet are or if I’m in the right position, to how I should carry myself off the court moving forward.”

In that respect, Lively is also heading into new, unchartered waters. It was only in September that Duke installed its Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) policy and Lively will be in prime position to take advantage of whatever opportunities present themselves. Lively has signed with Klutch Sports, which represents LeBron James among other NBA stars, to represent him. He says he’s learned to be patient and selective in building a brand.

“At first, whenever I first heard about it, I really didn’t know anything about it,” Lively said. “So I really had to take some time to really kind of get some knowledge on it and get some background. Since then, I have tried to really just be patient and try to take advantage of it. Knowing that I’m not trying to rush into the first thing that I see or rushing to the first little gold coin that I see, I’m really trying to take my time and find the best deals and find the best experience for me.”