With Duval gone, what's next for Arizona, Kansas and others?

The recruitment of Duke commit Trevon Duval will go down as one of the most drawn out processes that we have seen in recent years. The five-star lead guard is the perfect remedy for the needs in Durham. How might his other finalists, Arizona, Baylor, Kansas and Seton Hall, recoup after striking out on the top-10 talent?

Arizona already had the luxury of returning its starting point guard from last season, Parker Jackson-Cartwright, while also welcoming in Alex Barcello, a 6-foot-1 freshman that can be leaned upon at times. While each are excellent pieces on the perimeter, neither bring the star power that Duval would have. The miss on the Delaware native does sting, but the bigger need is a scoring wing this spring as the Wildcats remain involved for Pitt transfer wing Cam Johnson and five-star 2017 small forward Brian Bowen.

Don’t expect Sean Miller and his staff to track any more lead guard prospects in the coming weeks but instead, attempt to land two prospects at that particular spot on the floor in the 2018 class. Brandon Williams, Devon Dotson, Jahvon Quinerly, Tre Jones and Quentin Grimes are just a few Arizona has tracked.

The Bears were never perceived as a legitimate landing spot, so missing on Duval doesn’t hurt as much. However, the five-star guard would have been a tremendous addition to the Big 12 program, the type of guy that could have lured Johnathon Motley back to Waco. Regardless, the Bears will rely pretty heavily on Manu Lecomte next season, a rising senior guard but also the only primary guard on its roster.

This now puts a giant emphasis on the point guard position in the 2018 class as Scott Drew must land a premier floor general. Baylor remains involved for five-star guard Javonte Smart, and have begun to heat things up for Quentin Grimes, Junior Farquhar and Tre Jones. While not a pure point guard, the Bears do sit in a great spot with Luguentz Dort, a Marcus Smart-type that can do a bevy of things in the backcourt.

Bringing in five-star forward Billy Preston this spring, a top-25 recruit that played with Duval in high school two years ago, was thought to be the catalyst to bring in Duval. While that didn’t happen, Kansas isn’t emptyhanded in the backcourt. Devonte Graham is returning for his senior year and former five-star Malik Newman will hit the floor after sitting out a year after transferring from Mississippi State. Kansas will also have incoming freshman Marcus Garrett.

Bill Self has relied heavily on guard oriented lineups and by bringing back Svi Mykhailiuk, a rising senior that has not hired an agent just yet, the Jayhawks should be set in the backcourt entering the fall. They also just landed Charlie Moore, the perfect replacement for Graham, who will transfer into the program by way of California. The Jayhawks also sit in good spots with 2018 guards Devon Dotson, Quentin Grimes, Immanuel Quickley and Jalen Carey.

While the Pirates don’t have the same cache as the other programs involved, Seton Hall did have a few unique in-roads with the local product as they offered the greatest proximity to his home and also had the Under Armour sell, a brand that sponsored both his high school and travel teams. The Pirates picked up a commitment from Jordan Walker two weeks ago, a super tough and productive lead guard that was planning on reclassifying into the 2018 class until they made their final push. Walker will immediately walk into starter’s minutes next winter, so landing another floor general in 2018 is a must. Seton Hall remains heavy in pursuit for Markquis Nowell, along with others including Jalen Carey and Jahvon Quinerly.