The calendar still says August, but the men's basketball team already has two freshmen for the Class of 2003.
Jason Williams, a point guard from Plainfield, N.J., verbally committed to coach Mike Krzyzewski late Friday afternoon during an unofficial visit to the Duke campus. He joins post player Nick Horvath, who committed to the Blue Devils in June, as very early pickups for Duke.
"It just felt right there," Williams told the Home News Tribune. "The campus life, the team. When I first got there, I got a chance to be in the locker room and Shane Battier, Elton Brand, Trajan Langdon and Chris Carrawell, all of them came over and talked to me and took me under their wing, took me around campus.
"I got a chance to talk to Coach K for a really long time, and I just feel like I can be the best player I can be under his guidance."
Williams, at 6-feet-2, 190 pounds, averaged 22 points, seven rebounds and five assists last season at St. Joseph's High School. He also made unofficial visits to Rutgers, Seton Hall and Connecticut. He is rated by the recruiting source Hoop Scoop as the top point guard and No. 6 player overall in the upcoming senior class. Most other recruiting publications also rank Williams among their top-10 prospects. One even compares him to Allen Iverson of the NBA's Philadelphia 76ers for his instant scoring ability.
"He has emerged and the world is beckoning to him," All-Star Sports publisher Bob Gibbons said earlier this summer. "He is strong, quick, can penetrate and dish off. [He] shoots well of the dribble; [is an] excellent passer, [and] can play either guard spot.
"The way the game is played today, there are few kids skilled in the fundamentals and Jason appears to be. That sets him in rarefied air because there are not enough outstanding guards to go around and everyone is looking for him."
It turns out Duke found him. Williams joins Horvath and the Blue Devils are likely to add another two or three players before the recruiting period ends. Of course, the process has hardly begun, as most athletes will not sign with a college until much later this year.
For Williams, the decision-making process is over just as his senior year begins.
"Everybody's been telling me that I'm one of the best players in the country, but I don't let stuff like that go to my head," Williams said. "The way I've been brought up is to realize that people can tell you you're great, but there's always somebody out there better.... I just want to play to the best of my ability."
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