On Tuesday afternoon in front of friends and family, elite 2024 prospect Nik Khamenia picked Duke over hometown school UCLA.
Khamenia hails from Harvard-Westlake High School — a stone’s throw from UCLA’s campus. The Bruins signed two of Khamenia’s best friends from the same high school in PG Trent Perry and G Christian Horry. Regardless, Khamenia shocked pretty much everyone by opting for Duke over the Bruins.
Khamenia is a very gifted player. At 6’8″, he can toggle between both forward spots. A tough player, Khamenia is also super skilled. His feel for the game is among the best in the country for his age group. He’s a credible perimeter shooter, and his skill does fit rather well with what head coach Jon Scheyer wants to do.
Khamenia kept things very close to the vest the entire time. Also considering Gonzaga, North Carolina, and Arizona, many thought UCLA would win out here for several reasons. Khamenia’s high school coach is very good friends with UCLA head coach Mick Cronin. Khamenia grew up in the shadow of Pauley Pavilion and by proxy the most successful basketball program in College Basketball history. Additionally, UCLA loses both of its wings after this year (Kobe Johnson, Lazar Stefanovic). There’s a word in which Khamenia could’ve come in and potentially started at that vacant spot.
Alas, Khamenia (ranked No. 19 overall nationally by 247Sports) decided to head across the country for school. He’ll be in direct competition with recent Duke commit Cameron Boozer and potentially two other possible Duke pledges from this class Nate Ament and Shelton Henderson. How this impacts Khamenia’s possible early playing time is up in the air. Interestingly enough, Khamenia’s advisors hail from Excel Sports Management — the same service used by fellow Duke commit Boozer.