Sierra Canyon’s Cassius Stanley adds Duke to college choices, schedules visit

By TAREK FATTAL | tfattal@scng.com | Daily News | Article Link

PUBLISHED: April 12, 2019 at 10:13 am | UPDATED: April 12, 2019 at 4:19 pm

Sierra Canyon senior Cassius Stanley narrowed his college recruitment to three schools in September: Kansas, UCLA and Oregon. But this week, the 2019 Daily News boys basketball Player of the Year added Duke to his list of potential schools.

Stanley plans to visit Duke’s campus in Durham, N.C., this weekend, according to 247sports.com.

Duke’s interest in Stanley, a 6-foot-5, 185-pound guard, grew during Sierra Canyon’s run to its second straight CIF State Open Division title in March. Sources close to the team said two Duke assistants were in attendance for Sierra Canyon’s home game against Westchester on March 2.

Stanley recently expressed how difficult this decision was, and adding Duke to the mix will likely make it more difficult.

“It’s way more difficult than I thought,” Stanley said regarding his recruitment. “When I was getting offers my freshman and sophomore year, I thought, ‘Oh, I’m going here … I’m going here’. But as I’ve gotten older, been on my visits, it’s hard not to get caught up emotionally. It’s so hard.”

Other than Duke being one of the most prominent names in college basketball, the potential for a lot of playing time could be a key factor for Stanley. Duke guards Cam Reddish and RJ Barrett have declared for the 2019 NBA Draft, and although Zion Williamson has not declared, most think it’s just a matter of time before he does since he’s projected to be the No. 1 pick.

The Blue Devils have three signed incoming recruits: Vernon Carey Jr., Wendell Moore and Rejean “Boogie” Ellis of San Diego. Only Ellis plays the guard position.

Stanley is rated a 5-star recruit by ESPN.com, and is the second player from Sierra Canyon to be recruited in the last three years by Duke, which signed Marvin Bagley III in 2017.

He averaged 17.8 points, 6.2 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game in 2018-19.