Brooklyn Nets convert David Duke Jr. contract to standard NBA deal

The Brooklyn Nets converted David Duke Jr. contract to standard NBA deal.|Art or Photo Credit: AP

BROOKLYN – The Brooklyn Nets have exercised the standard NBA contract conversion option for two-way guard David Duke Jr. Per team policy, terms of the deal were not released.

Duke Jr. (6’4”, 207) originally signed as a free agent with the Nets on Aug. 8, 2021, and had his contract converted to a two-way deal on Oct. 16, 2021. He then re-signed a two-way contract with Brooklyn on Sept. 16, 2022. In 43 games (seven starts) over two NBA seasons, Duke Jr. holds career averages of 4.0 points and 2.0 rebounds in 12.1 minutes per game. The Providence, R.I., native has appeared in 21 games off the bench for Brooklyn this season and is averaging 3.1 points and 1.0 rebounds in 8.6 minutes per contest.

The 23-year-old has also played in 35 career regular season games (all starts) for Brooklyn’s NBA G League affiliate, the Long Island Nets, posting averages of 20.4 points, 6.2 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.7 steals in 32.5 minutes per game. In 22 games with Long Island this season, Duke Jr. notched a team-leading 22.9 points (fifth in the NBA G League) on 47.8 percent shooting from the field, 32.1 percent shooting from 3-point range and 80.5 percent shooting from the free-throw line, to go with 6.1 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.9 steals (10th in the NBA G League) in a team-high 34.2 minutes per game. He earned a selection to the 2023 NBA G League Next Up Game during NBA All-Star Weekend, which featured this season’s top NBA G League performers, and finished third in the 2022-23 Kia NBA G League Most Valuable Player award voting. Duke Jr. also appeared in seven NBA G League Showcase games and played in two postseason games for Long Island this season, averaging 21.6 and 16.0 points per game, respectively.

Prior to joining Brooklyn, Duke Jr. played three collegiate seasons (2018-21) in his hometown at Providence College, where he featured in 91 games (all starts) and was an All-Big East Second Team and Associated Press All-America Honorable Mention selection as a junior.

Brooklyn’s roster now stands at 16 players.