Duke freshman phenom suffers injury setback ahead of NBA Draft

One of Duke's stellar freshmen is missing out on most of the NBA Draft Combine.

Kon Knueppel didn't participate in the athletic testing or shooting drills in Chicago, his agent told ESPN.

Why?

Knueppel "sprained his ankle three weeks ago and is not all the way back yet," his agent Mark Bartelstein said.

The return won't be long.

"He's at 85% now and we want him at 100%. He's really close," Bartelstein said. "Hopefully he's back by the end of the week and can participate in our Pro Day Friday."

It's the time of year where it pays to be cautious. There's no use getting Knueppel hurt more at this stage of the game.

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Knueppel was Duke's second-best player throughout his freshman season behind Cooper Flagg. He's widely expected to be a top-10 pick in June's NBA Draft.

He's a standout shooter and a sneaky-good driver with surprising length that can help get the job done defensively.

Knueppel will get the chance to impress teams at workouts leading up to the draft, and his stock is already in a good place, so his absence shouldn't matter much.

As long as the ankle problem doesn't linger, there shouldn't be any worries.

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