Duke basketball fans got the news they wanted Monday. One month after the Blue Devils’ Sweet 16 loss to Michigan State March 25, Shelden Williams indicated that he would not enter his name in the June 28 NBA draft and would return to Durham for his senior year.
“The biggest thing for me is that I have unfinished business here on the college scene,” Williams said at a press conference Tuesday. “I want to take care of that before I move on to the next level.”
In his junior season, Williams set the Duke single-season record for blocked shots with 122, was selected for the All-ACC and third-team All-American squads, was named the ACC Defensive Player of the Year and earned NABC National Defensive Player of the Year honors. Williams, a probable first-round pick had he entered the draft, said he is returning for one more season in large part to add “NCAA Champion” to his résumé.
Williams will be returning to a team that will boast three more McDonald’s All-Americans: Josh McRoberts, Greg Paulus and Eric Boateng; and senior Daniel Ewing will be the only departing starter.
“This year one of our biggest problems was our depth,” Williams said. “This year coming up we’re going to have a lot of guys who can come in and relieve some of our starters and give us a few minutes of break.”
For long stretches last season, Williams was the Blue Devils’ only viable post option with Reggie Love and Shavlik Randolph missing time. With Randolph healthy and the addition of McRoberts and Boateng, Williams said he is excited about the prospects of fine-tuning other aspects of his game to impress NBA scouts and possibly further improve his draft status.
“With a lot more big men, I can see myself starting to showcase my jump shot a lot more than I did in the last few years,” he said. “A lot of people don’t know that I can step out and hit the outside jump shot.”
The 6-foot-9 forward spent the month after his team’s loss in the NCAA Tournament gathering information pertaining to the draft with the assistance of head coach Mike Krzyzewski and his parents. Williams said the decision was very challenging for him personally, but that Krzyzewski and his parents gave him their blessings regardless of his ultimate choice to return to Duke for his senior year or enter the NBA draft.
“I kind of toggled with it back and forth for the past few weeks. I was 50-50, weighing the pros and cons between going and staying,” he said. “It came down to late Sunday night where I was like, ‘I really want to come back and finish what I started.’”
Williams, will combine with five other seniors to form one of the most experienced teams in the country. He said he, J.J. Redick, Sean Dockery, Randolph, Lee Melchionni and Patrick Johnson have formed a very tight relationship doing their years playing together and that his bond with his teammates also influenced his decision to return for one last go-around.
“Hopefully we do well in the league, then go on from there and try to win a national championship,” Williams said. “We have the chance to do something really special.”
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.