The NBA off-season moves have accelerated rather quickly, with potential consequences for three former Duke players, with an accelerant by a one-time Duke recruit who would have teamed with Elton Brand and Corey Maggette, had he come to Duke.
Corey Maggette and Elton Brand have both opted out of their deals with the Clippers. In Maggette's case, he appears to want to move on; in Brand's case, he says he wants to stay and to free up cap room to pursue a major player.
That player appears to be Baron Davis, a kid who Duke pursued for a time before he made other plans. Davis shocked the Warriors by filing for free agency and then signing with the Clips.
This pretty much suggests the Clippers have little hope of a recovery by Shaun Livingston by the way, after his legendarily stomach turning knee injury (it still makes us cringe to watch it).
The Warriors may go after Gilbert Arena, and thus gut the Wizards, which would depress former UNC star Antwan Jamison, who just re-upped partly as an incentive for Arena to stay.
The move by Davis may also screw Maggette, who will have his Bird rights renounced by the Clips if they want to sign Davis, which means his move to free agency might backfire significantly.
Meanwhile, Chris Duhon is in demand, desired by several teams as a reliable potential backup. But the Knicks see him as their next point guard, and so he went to see them first. They've pretty much had it with Stephon Marbury and he isn't expected to be back next season.