CHARLOTTE, N.C. -- Duke freshman Jayson Tatum has a foot sprain and will be out two weeks, but coach Mike Krzyzewski said he's hopeful that the 6-foot-8 forward will be ready to go at the start of the season.
"We'll see how it goes next,'' Krzyzewski said at ACC media day. "We'll probably hold him out the two exhibition games, but hopefully he's ready to go at the start of the season.''
That's especially good news for the Blue Devils, who are still waiting on Harry Giles to recover from an arthroscopic procedure on his left knee. Tatum, who was injured during Duke's pro day on Tuesday, was expected to absorb much of the load in Giles' absence.
Giles, who had surgery Oct. 4, is rehabbing well. He tore the ACL in each of his knees while in high school and has not played competitively since last year. The arthroscopic procedure, done to clear out loose cartilage, was on his left knee, which he injured in 2013.
"We're not going to put a timetable on him, especially on a player who will be a one-and-done,'' Krzyzewski told ESPN. "He hasn't played in a while. We have to be really careful about his future. When he does come back, it will be full go.''
Krzyzewski said Giles was the one who noticed the problem first, feeling as if something was impeding his rehab.
"When they went in, he could actually see the particle, almost like something blocking a drain,'' Krzyzewski said. "I think being able to see it and realize that structurally his knee was fine -- there was just this one thing, and once it was cleared, he'd be OK -- I think that really helped him.''
Giles has not been cleared for five-on-five drills but is working with elastic bands.
The Blue Devils open the season on Nov. 11 against Marist.
