Duke strengthens 2025 recruiting class with five-star Shelton Henderson
By SAM LANCE
The rich get richer. Jon Scheyer and Duke now have their fourth top-25 recruit of the 2025 cycle, as Shelton Henderson announced his commitment to the Blue Devils on Saturday, joining the Boozer twins and Nikolas Khamenia.
Henderson — the 6-foot-6, 220-pound wing from Bellaire (TX) and the JL3 Elite Nike EYBL AAU program — chose Duke over his other finalists Louisville and Texas.
“Coach Scheyer believed in me,” Henderson said of his decision live. “I really thank him and coach Jai Lucas. He’s been recruiting me. He’s from here, went to the same high school as me. So we have that connection already and I really appreciate them. They see me coming in and making an impact as a freshman. So that’s what I want to do.”
Henderson is regarded as one of the best defenders in the 2025 class, and he was coached by Scheyer during Team USA U18 training camp. Henderson made the final roster and posted averages of 8.0 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists to help Team USA win a gold medal at the 2024 FIBA Men’s U18 AmeriCup.
Duke already had the No. 1 overall class in the country via 247Sports before Henderson’s commitment. This only strengthens their grip on the ranking. Scheyer has pulled off a top-two class in each cycle since becoming Duke’s head coach.
Back to Henderson’s game, he averaged 14.7 points, 4.6 rebounds and 1.9 assists while leading his squad to the Peach Jam semifinals, where JL3 Elite fell to A.J. Dybantsa and the Oakland Soldiers. Henderson secured five total steals and tallied four blocks through seven games at Peach. His best outing was a 25-point, nine-rebound game vs. Arizona Unity. During the contest, he guarded five-star 2026 prospect Brandon McCoy and held him to 5-of-19 shooting.
“Shelton and I have been playing together since fourth grade, so to see him develop has been truly great,” his AAU teammate Sebastian Williams-Adams told ZAGSBLOG. “He is a two way player that’s very effective from everywhere on the court on both sides. He’s gonna bring a toughness to your team that doesn’t come with many players and a winning attitude that never gives up.”
A fun fact about Henderson is he can do front flips and back flips, as he used to tumble.
“I still got a little bit in me,” Henderson said.
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