After a week of whispers, Taylor King did what everyone thought he was going to do. The 6-foot-7, 215-pound small forward from the famed Mater Dei High School verbally committed to Duke on Thursday.

King ended all of the behind the scenes talk about him going to Duke and finally conceded that he was ready to take his game to Durham at a press conference at Mater Dei.

"After he saw me in South Carolina, I knew that was where I wanted to go," King told Rivals.com "I figured it was time to commit and not lead on any of the other programs that were recruiting me."

The Blue Devils turned the heat up on the No. 39 ranked junior in the country this season and shortly after Mike Krzyzewski watched King put in 35 points at the Beach Ball Classic in late December, the ACC school tendered an official offer.

King also considered Gonzaga and Villanova. He made trips to all three schools unofficially this year as well as North Carolina, Syracuse and USC.

"I was talking to Coach K and I can see myself playing in their system," King said. "I kind of always knew that was where I wanted to go. Coach K said he sees me coming in and helping right away with my scoring. What does that mean in a year and a half? I don't know but they run a lot of screens and I feel like I can come off of that and score but also run the floor. That's what I like to do."

The sharp-shooting forward fit's the mold of most Duke players in the sense he can "shoot the three ball very well in transition," says Rivals.com National Basketball Analyst Jerry Meyer. "He will have ample opportunities to do at Duke."

King made national headlines before he ever played a high school at Mater Dei when he committed to UCLA. A year and a half later, King decided to re-open his recruitment and explore his options.

For Duke, King's commitment is the second pledge of the day. Oak Hill junior guard Nolan Smith committed to the Blue Devils on Thursday morning.

"(Duke assistant Steve Wojciechowski) text messaged me that today and told me Nolan was coming," King said. "That's pretty big time. He's a good player. I'm looking forward to playing with him."

The Blue Devils move in quick fashion. In the class of 2006, Coach K landed Jon Scheyer, Gerald Henderson and Brian Zoubek on consecutive days.

With the commitment from King, Duke now centers it's attention on wing forward Kyle Singler or Medford, Ore.