Catching up with Duke freshman star Vernon Carey Jr. on his return to Miami
The rest of America is getting to see what South Florida high school basketball fans suspected for years — Vernon Carey Jr. is the real deal.
The son of former University of Miami and Miami Dolphins lineman Vernon Carey Sr. has the game to go along with his size — 6-10 and 270 pounds — and pedigree.
Carey left NSU University School in Davie as a five-star recruit, stepped into the Duke starting lineup as a freshman, and shrugged off comparisons to departed superstar Zion Williamson. He has quietly become Mr. Reliable for the second-ranked Blue Devils (12-1), who face the University of Miami in Coral Gables Saturday at 8 p.m. in ESPN’s prime-time game.
It will be Carey’s first time playing back home, and he will have a sizable rooting section of friends and family, including his younger brother, Jaylen, a 6-8 and 260-pound freshman center at University School who already is on the radar of many top college programs.
The Hurricanes (9-3) will have their hands full trying to contain Carey. UM coach Jim Larranaga and his staff are quite familiar with Carey, as they recruited him heavily and made his top-5 list.
A low-post bruiser with a sweet shooting touch, he leads the Atlantic Coast Conference with 61 percent shooting, ranks fourth in scoring at 17.9 points per game, third in rebounding with nine per game, and fourth in blocks (2.1). His 142 field-goal attempts lead the team and he is shooting 71 percent on putbacks after offensive rebounds.
Perhaps most telling of all the statistics, Carey’s Player Efficiency Rating of 39.89 leads the nation and ranks just behind the 40.8 Williamson registered last season.
“We watched Vern play from the time he was in eighth grade, and he’s so big, so strong, so athletic,” Larranaga said. “He has great instincts at both ends of the court. He blocks shots, gets defensive rebounds, runs the floor extremely well. He can dunk the ball in traffic or shoot a nice little jump hook. He’s shooting 57 percent from three, so he’s got the full package.”
“He’s not just a big guy; he’s a basketball player,” Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said of Carey on Dec. 3, after the freshman racked up 26 points and 11 rebounds in an 87-75 road win at Michigan State. “As a freshman, for a big guy to have that poise in the post is commendable.”
When Carey chose Duke over North Carolina, Michigan State, Miami and Kentucky, he knew the comparisons to Williamson were inevitable. Williamson was a huge presence with an equally huge personality.
But being the son of a former professional athlete, Carey learned long ago not to get wrapped up in hype and expectations. He has always carried himself with a calm demeanor and quiet confidence. Krzyzewski has also been reminding Carey and the rest of the Duke players to block out the noise.
Although he gets a tremendous amount of attention from the media and fans, Carey remains humble. He says the smaller-town lifestyle of Durham, North Carolina, suits him. He grew up in a big city, but has never been flashy. He is more comfortable with the casual off-campus sports grills than the glitzier South Florida nightlife.
“I think I’ve handled the pressure and expectations pretty well because I’m just focused on our team’s goal and our objective to win games, getting better as a team,” he said by phone Thursday. “I don’t focus on that other stuff. I just focus on my game. Durham fits my personality. I’m not a guy who goes out all the time.”
The biggest transition from high school to college basketball, he said, has been the physical nature of the game.
“I’ve had to adjust to the physicality and being more focused and alert on the court all the time,” he said. “My post game is what I’ve improved the most since I got here. In high school, I was mainly on the perimeter, but I started working on my post game when I got to Duke, and I feel like it’s getting better and better.”
The two areas he’d like to improve are free-throw shooting (63 percent) and defense.
Off the court, Carey has adapted well to college life. He got all B’s and 1 C his first semester, which he was happy with, considering the academic rigor of the school and demands on his time as a basketball player.
“Learning to manage time a lot better is one of the main differences between college and high school,” he said. “We get help from tutors and our academic coordinator, so that’s been going well.”
He said he has also been getting a top-notch basketball education from Krzyzewski, which is a key reason he chose to go to Duke.
“I’m learning the ins and outs of the game, and just about life in general and what’s after basketball,” he said. “My relationship with the coaching staff, and my personal relationship with Coach K were two of the biggest reasons I picked Duke. He told me he’d get the best out of me, and he’s doing that so far.”
This story was originally published January 3, 2020 at 7:00 AM.