1. Grant Hill
The person who made the inbounds pass to Laettner didn’t have a shabby career, either. Hill, an All-ACC honoree in three of his four seasons at Duke, was part of national title teams in 1991 and 1992 (his freshman and sophomore seasons). He finished his stint at Durham averaging 14.9 points, six rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.7 steals per game. The third overall pick in the 1994 NBA Draft, Hill went on to be a five-time All-NBA honoree, seven-time All-Star and posted 20-plus points per game in five seasons. He was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame in 2018.
2. Christian Laettner
Laettner made one of the most famous shots in the history of basketball and, without question, in college basketball. Trailing the Kentucky Wildcats 103-102 with 2.1 seconds remaining in overtime, Laettner received a full-court pass at the free throw line from Grant Hill, turned around and made a buzzer-beater jumper to send Duke to the 1992 Final Four; the Blue Devils later won the national title. Across his four seasons at Duke, the big man was part of back-to-back title teams (1991 and 1992) and averaged 16.6 points, 7.8 rebounds, 1.6 steals and one block per game. Laettner is third in program history with 2,460 career points. He was the third overall pick in the 1992 NBA Draft, going on to play 13 seasons, earn one All-Star nod and average 12.8 points per game for his career.
3. JJ Redick
Redick scored at Duke — a lot. An All-ACC player in each of his four seasons with the program, Redick is first in Duke history with both 2,769 career points and 457 career 3-pointers. Redick, who was part of four teams that reached the Sweet 16 and one that reached the Final Four, is one of the best shooters and scorers in college basketball history, averaging 26.8 points per game in his senior season (2005-06) — which was second in the nation behind Adam Morrison — and finishing his career averaging 19.9 points per game. Redick played 15 seasons in the NBA, averaging 12.8 points per season, while shooting 41.5% from behind the arc.
4. Jayson Tatum
Tatum flaunted the potential to be both a high-end scorer and an impact defender in his 2016-17 campaign at Duke, averaging 16.8 points, 7.3 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 1.1 blocks per game. The lengthy forward built on his impressive freshman season at Duke in his first season with the Boston Celtics, who selected him with the third overall pick in the 2017 NBA Draft, helping them reach Game 7 of the Eastern Conference finals despite being without both Kyrie Irving and Gordon Hayward. Thus far, Tatum is a four-time All-NBA honoree who’s averaging 23.5 points per season and just helped the Celtics win the 2024 NBA Finals.
5. Zion Williamson
Williamson’s one season at Duke was special. Whether it was him being a force to be reckoned with off the dribble, skying above the rim, taking the ball the other way or occasionally pulling up from mid-range, Williamson was an unstoppable force at 6-foot-7, 285 pounds. In the 2018-19 season, he averaged 22.6 points, 8.9 rebounds, 2.1 steals and 1.8 blocks per game, while shooting an NCAA-record 74.7% from inside the arc on a Blue Devils team that reached the Elite Eight. Williamson was the first overall pick in the 2019 NBA Draft and, to date, is a two-time All-Star.
