Duke's Kyle Filipowski, Christian Reeves undergo offseason surgeries

Wade-Peeryby:Wade Peery•04/13/23

The Duke Blue Devils basketball team got some surprising news this offseason, when superstar Kyle Filipowski decided to come back for his sophomore season in Durham. Surprisingly, he also had to recently undergo an arthroscopic procedure on both of his hips, per a press release from the school. The University statement issued on Thursday also said Filipowski is already in the rehab process to prepare for the upcoming 2023-2024 season.

The procedures for Filipowski were performed by Dr. Chad Mather.

Duke also said in the statement that freshman Christian Reeves had surgery on his left ankle. He’s also already started rehabbing and preparing for the 2023-2024 season. He saw action in 13 games last year for the Blue Devils. Dr. Ned Amendola performed the procedure on Reeves’ left ankle.

Filipowski carried the Blue Devils for much of their 2022-2023 campaign. He earned ACC Rookie of the Year honors and even earned honorable mention AP All-American honors after a dominant freshman season. He racked up 16 double-doubles this season, more than any other freshman in college basketball this year. Filipowski led the Blue Devils in points per game (15.1) and rebounds per game (8.9), starting in all 36 games.

Duke finished the 2022-2023 season with a 27-9 overall record and a 14-6 record in the ACC. Filipowski was dominant in the 2023 ACC Tournament, leading the Blue Devils to their 22nd ACC Tournament crown in program history. He earned MVP honors for the ACC Tournament. Filipowski stuffed the stat sheet with a double-double in both the ACC Tournament semifinals against Miami (17 points and 11 rebounds) and the ACC Tournament championship game against Virginia (20 points and 10 rebounds). Against Pittsburgh in the quarterfinals, he poured in 22 points after connecting on four of his six three-pointers.

Duke earned a No. 5 seed in the 2023 NCAA Tournament, despite starting four freshmen. They advanced to the second round, where they fell to the Tennessee Volunteers, 65-52.

The Blue Devils are expected to be loaded yet again in the 2023-2024 season, as they return plenty of talent. Many national publications have already pegged them as the No. 1 team in the nation for the 2023-2024 college basketball preseason. You can see On3’s Jamie Shaw’s breakdown of their returning players here.

In the 2022 recruiting class, Filipowski was one of the most highly regarded players in the country. According to the On3 Industry Rankings, he was ranked as the No. 5 overall prospect in the nation and a five-star prospect. He was the third-highest rated member of Duke’s 2022 recruiting class, behind Dereck Lively II and Dariq Whitehead.