burgess leaves duke

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SoCalHoops Recruiting News

Chris Burgess Will Leave Duke. . .
No Surprise; Utah Or UCLA Next?--(April 27, 1999)

Well, the experiment is over. Duke sophomore center Chris Burgess (6'-10" So. C) has been granted a request to transfer, school officials announced Monday. Burgess saw limited action backing up national player of the year Elton Brand last season, averaging 5.4 points and 3.9 rebounds. Published reports now have the 1997 Woodbridge High grad looking at either Utah or UCLA.

A Mormon, Burgess had talked late in the season about possibly leaving the team to go on a two-year church mission. A statement released by the school didn't address the issue. "He didn't indicate what he planned to do about that," said Duke sports information director Mike Cragg. Burgess is the third Blue Devil to leave the team in the past two weeks. Fellow sophomores Brand and William Avery had announced their intentions to enter the 1999 NBA draft. Freshman Corey Maggette was also reportedly considering leaving early for the pros but hadn't made up his mind as of late last week.

The deadline for underclassmen to send a letter to the NBA declaring for the draft is May 16. Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski supported Brand's decision but opposed Avery leaving early. Burgess' decision apparently caught him off guard. "I am surprised by the decision and the timing of it," Krzyzewski said in a statement released by the school. "I certainly wish Chris and his family the best in the future." Duke went 37-2 last season, losing to Connecticut in the national championship game. Burgess was a Parade All-America at Woodbridge High School in Orange County but would have again competed for playing time next season. Krzyzewski lured a another stellar recruiting class that includes Nick Horvath, a 6-10 center from Arden Hills, Minn., and Casey Sanders, a 6-11 shot-blocking specialist from Tampa, Florida.

According to the LA Times this morning, Burgess is leaving because of concern about his development since graduating from Woodbridge High in 1997 as one of the top prep players in the nation, his father said. "He just wants a change due to lack of playing time," Ken Burgess said. "It didn't seem to be working." Burgess' destination is up in the air because other schools weren't allowed to talk to him under NCAA rules until he received his release from Duke, but his father said Utah is a candidate and expressed interest in UCLA, but ruled out Missouri, where former Duke assistant Quin Snyder is the new
coach. Burgess was expected to play a bigger role at Duke next season. But his father said he wasn't sure even Brand's departure would change things. "We just knew he wasn't getting better," he said. "Even with Elton Brand, when they were up by 20 or 30, it was not like [Burgess was playing much.]"