The Chronicle On Jaemyn Brakefield

In Duke’s 2020 recruiting class, Jaemyn Brakefield was seen, if not as an afterthought, then maybe the least promising player.

Not that that’s a big knock considering how highly rated his new teammates are.

However, as we often remind, ratings don't mean much. First, players can be either over (Chris Burgess) or under rated (Chris Carrawell). It wasn’t all that long ago that Jordan Goldwire was supposedly in over his head, remember.

So you can toss the rankings out and look at the player and his potential. In Brakefield’s case, he’s athletic and versatile, and like Carrawell, could use that to build a role where he could sub in for four positions as needed.

The Duke Chronicle had this to say about him:

The Menasha, Wisc., native can thrive at any point on the floor thanks to his far reaching skillset...[He also has outstanding] court vision...Brakefield’s three-point touch will force defenders to stay on their toes. In addition, he is extremely comfortable with the ball for someone of his height. From complicated ball handling to no look passes, Brakefield checks all the boxes for a point guard, with the added benefit of a few extra inches...it shouldn’t come as much of a surprise that he can guard just about any position on defense.

He could spend some time at point guard, just as Carrawell did. His first year though he’ll likely be a utility man which is a really demanding but critical role. What a break for Brakefield that C-well is on the staff and can teach him that role better than anyone on the planet.