After becoming an unrestricted free agent this summer when the Brooklyn Nets didn’t extend him a qualifying offer, David Duke Jr. has officially signed an exhibit 10 deal with the Philadelphia 76ers. For those of you who are as curious as I was, an Exhibit 10 contract is a one-year deal (typically non-guaranteed) worth the league minimum that allows teams to convert it into a two-way contract before the regular season begins. The minimum salary for players signing contracts in the 2023-2024 NBA season amounted to over 1.1 million (for players with 0 years of NBA experience). This is also the first time that the minimum salary has exceeded the one million dollar mark.

Duke was named to All-G League First Team last season for the Nets affiliate, averaging 22.5 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 3.8 apg & 1.9 spg across 22 games. He also finished third in MVP voting on the Long Island Nets, a team that was top seed in the East and at one point won 16 games in a row.

The lone reason why the Nets may have been hesitant about keeping Duke may have been the inconsistency of his three-point shot so far. Even though Duke shot at a high clip throughout his collegiate career (37.7% over three seasons), he hasn’t quite been able to sustain that level over his two professional years so far, shooting just 20.4% over 45 games with Brooklyn in the NBA and 31.4% with Long Island. That is really the only part of his game that he needs to sure up in order to become a mainstay in the League. He can get to the rim, score in bunches, rebound very well for a guard, pass, and play stellar defense. If he can hit consistently from deep, I can see him becoming a very useful player in the NBA.

Best of luck with the change of scenery David, Friartown is, and will always be, rooting for you.