The decision to bolt Durham for the pro ranks following his one-and-done Duke basketball campaign probably wasn't the best move for DJ Steward's development.
After arriving in Durham as a five-star prospect, Chicago native DJ Steward delivered an encouraging freshman campaign, albeit for a 2020-21 Duke basketball squad that finished 13-11 overall, 9-9 in ACC play, and without an NCAA Tournament invite. He averaged 13.0 points, 3.9 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 1.1 steals per game as a full-time starter for those Blue Devils .
But the 6-foot-2, 165-pound combo guard seemed like a talent needing at least another year or two to develop his next-level skills before trying to make an NBA roster. Nevertheless, Steward declared for that year's NBA Draft and went undrafted.
"So, at this point, it's taken me a couple of years to realize that maybe I did make a tough decision in leaving school early. I accepted that. I accepted that. That was the first thing I had to do was accept it, you know, just keep moving forward with my life."
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