Old North Banter
Fansided

3 Things Duke Fans Should Be Thankful For This Thanksgiving

By Christian Candeloro

NEW YORK, NEW YORK - NOVEMBER 21: Duke Blue Devils head coach Mike Krzyzewski during their game against the California Golden Bears at Madison Square Garden on November 21, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - NOVEMBER 21: Duke Blue Devils head coach Mike Krzyzewski during their game against the California Golden Bears at Madison Square Garden on November 21, 2019 in New York City. (Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images) /
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No. 2: Duke Pros

CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – NOVEMBER 24: Daniel Jones #8 of the New York Giants looks to pass during the first half against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on November 24, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images)
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS – NOVEMBER 24: Daniel Jones #8 of the New York Giants looks to pass during the first half against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field on November 24, 2019 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Stacy Revere/Getty Images) /

Pick a pro sport, any sport and you can probably find a former Duke player making noise in their respective sport. Start with the obvious: Duke basketball. Fans have their pick of the litter, both old and new, from the West Coast to the East Coast. Fans can root for the rookies Zion Williamson, R.J. Barrett, and Cam Reddish, or an old wily vet like J.J. Redick. Duke has the second-most players in the NBA, representing over half the league’s teams. With the Hornets struggling mightily, you can latch onto former Duke stars like Kyrie Irving in Boston or Brandon Ingram in New Orleans.

Switch to football and Duke is well represented there as well. The obvious is Daniel Jones, the rookie quarterback for the New York Giants. Jones is just 2-7 as a starter for New York after taking over for Eli Manning, but he’s the quarterback of the future, having thrown for 17 touchdowns and only eight interceptions this season.

Duke has four other starters in the NFL, plus several back-ups. It makes it easy to find a team to root for.

Don’t you dare forget about the seven alumnae in the WNBA: Alana Beard (L.A. Sparks), Lexie Brown (Minnesota Lynx), Karima Christmas-Kelly (Minnesota Lynx), Chelsea Gray (L.A. Sparks), Haley Peters (Atlanta Dream), Jasmine Thomas (Connecticut Sun), and Elizabeth Williams (Atlanta Dream).

MINNEAPOLIS, MN – OCTOBER 11: Alana Beard #0 of the Los Angeles Sparks and Seimone Augustus #33 of the Minnesota Lynx get tangled up during the first quarter in Game Two of the 2016 WNBA Finals on October 11, 2016 at Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Augustus was called for a foul on the play. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images)
MINNEAPOLIS, MN – OCTOBER 11: Alana Beard #0 of the Los Angeles Sparks and Seimone Augustus #33 of the Minnesota Lynx get tangled up during the first quarter in Game Two of the 2016 WNBA Finals on October 11, 2016 at Target Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Augustus was called for a foul on the play. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Hannah Foslien/Getty Images) /

Duke is well represented with five players in the MLS, three in the NWSL, three players in the MLB, and

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