Duke men's basketball has added another big-time recruit to the mix after 5-star center Patrick Ngongba II, the No. 20 recruit in 247Sports' 2024 class, committed to the Blue Devils.
Ngongba spoke with Travis Branham of 247Sports about why he made his decision, citing head coach Jon Scheyer along the way.
"When I was there on my visit I was liking the stuff that coach Scheyer was saying in how he would use me and I just feel like it is the best opportunity for me to get to the next level," Ngongba said.
"I also felt like I connected well with the players when I was there."
The 6'11", 235-pound Ngongba, who plays for St. Paul VI Catholic in Chantilly, Virginia, chose Duke over fellow finalists Kansas State and Kentucky.
Duke's class of 2024 looks to be the best in the nation. Ranked No. 1 by 247Sports, the group already includes a quartet of 4-star players in No. 1 overall prospect Cooper Flagg, No. 11 Isaiah Evans, No. 16 Kon Knueppel and now Ngongba. Four-star Darren Harris (No. 56) is also aboard.
Adam Finkelstein of 247Sports raved about Ngongba in a July 9 scouting report, writing in part.
"Ngongba has a tremendous combination of size, length, and offensive skill. He stands just shy of 7-feet with ultra-broad shoulders and a big frame that gives him a significant presence on both ends of the floor. He has extremely soft hands and touch, equally impressive footwork, and a high release point around the paint. He provides a true low-post scorer, but is also an inside-out threat with developing shooting range out to the arc."
Ngongba gave his own scouting report when asked by Joe Tipton of On3.
"I can score in the post rebound, protect the rim, but that's not it," he said. "I'm someone you can give the ball to and I can make plays for others."
He also said that Duke is getting "...someone who wants to win and do whatever it takes to win."
Duke is well-positioned to win quite a bit with him and the rest of the superstar class of 2024 aboard shortly. We'll see how that comes to fruition down the road, but for now, the 2023-24 Blue Devils are set to open the season on Monday against Dartmouth.
