Duke Blue Devils big man Jabari Parker is used to putting on a clinic in his hometown of Chicago. From his high school, the Simeon Wolverines, to his AAU team, the Mac Irvin Fire, to the McDonald’s All-American game at the United Center, Jabari Parker has always done work whenever he takes the court. In the Champions Classic, the Blue Devils versus the Kansas Jayhawks, it was by far his biggest stage yet.
There was so much NBA lottery pick talent on the floor tonight; with Jabari Parker, Andrew Wiggins, Gary Harrison and Julius Randle looking like the cream of the crop. He had a Champions classic high 27 points in Duke’s 92-83 loss to Kansas.
Jabari Parker is the first Duke freshman since Luol Deng to score at least 20 points in his first two games. Jabari Parker was the unanimous pick for ACC Rookie of the Week after helping No. 4 Duke top Davidson, 111-77, Friday in Duke’s season opener at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
In his first collegiate game, Parker tied for the team lead with 22 points on 8-of-10 field goals and 3-of-3 three-point attempts. He added six rebounds, two assists and a block as the Blue Devils shot 70.4 percent from the floor and 61.9 percent from three-point range.
A 6-8, 235-pound forward, Jabari Parker started against Davidson and hit his first five shots en route to the second most points by a Duke freshman in a season opener under head coach Mike Krzyzewski. His 22-point effort was only the fifth 20-point game by a Duke freshman in a season opener in the Coach K era.
Jabari Parker is also a Preseason All-America first team selection and a watch list pick for the Oscar Robertson and John R. Wooden National Player of the Year Trophy.
Paul M. Banks is the owner of The Sports Bank.net, an affiliate of Fox Sports. He’s also an analyst for multiple news talk radio stations across the nation; with regular weekly segments on NBC and Fox Sports Radio. Catch him talking Chicago Bears every Friday on WAOR, Illini and Northwestern for KOZN every Tuesday. Follow him on Twitter (@paulmbanks) and RSS