Why the shortest player on college basketball’s tallest team is ‘a blessing’ for Duke

On a team as dominant as No. 1 Duke — winners of 27 of its last 28 games, and owners of one of the most efficient seasons in college basketball history — it’s hard to imagine there’s room for an underdog story.

The Blue Devils don’t just beat their opponents; they overwhelm them. They lead the nation in scoring margin (+20.8), rank top three nationally in offensive and defensive efficiency and boast the tallest roster in college basketball, per KenPom.

And yet, there’s Spencer Hubbard.

The 5-foot-8 senior and former walk-on checks into games when Duke is putting the finishing touches on its latest blowout win. And yet, in those final minutes when Hubbard takes the court, the crowd rises. The Blue Devil starters, now resting on the bench, lean forward. And when he buries a late-game 3-pointer it becomes a rare feel-good moment for a Duke team whose season has been defined by dominance.

“I love Spencer, man, and our guys, the way they respond to him,” Duke head coach Jon Scheyer told reporters on March 1 after Hubbard recorded a career-high five points in four minutes against Florida State. “The thing is, Spencer can really play… so at the end, I’m not surprised at all when he makes those plays.”

When Hubbard plays, Duke wins. That’s not the reason the No. 1 seed Blue Devils are 31-3 heading into the NCAA Tournament, but he’s part of it. Hubbard’s presence is emblematic of something deeper. To his coaches and teammates, he’s more than just a reason for fans to stick around until the final buzzer — Hubbard embodies the grit, work ethic and selflessness that have come to define this Blue Devils squad.

“He’s a hell of a player and I think a lot of work goes on behind the scenes that he doesn’t get credit for,” Duke veteran starter Tyrese Proctor said. “I mean, he’s a really important person in our team and he’s why we’ve won a lot of games.”

A practice warrior

Hubbard’s low center of gravity, agility and dribbling skills have repeatedly challenged his teammates in practice as part of his role on Duke’s scout team.

Freshman Isaiah Evans admitted with a chuckle that Hubbard has torched him and his fellow guards — especially in one-on-one practice — and offered a warning to prospective opponents.

“You will look at him and think he’s a small guy, he can’t score — that’s the last thing you need to think,” Evans said. “I promise you, if we would release practice footage of him cooking us on scout team, he would probably get a scholarship somewhere, I’ll be honest.”

Evans emphatically thanked Hubbard for helping him on defense. Throughout the season, Hubbard has often stayed with Evans late after practice to allow the freshman to work on his lateral quickness.

Initially, the former walk-on dominated the five-star recruit. Evans recalled days when he was repeatedly scored on, returning to the locker room and thinking, “Man, I’ve got to figure this out.”

Eventually, Evans improved. He adjusted. And thanks to Hubbard’s speed and offensive gifts, the practice duo has been a “match made in heaven,” said Evans.

For Proctor, a junior, this is nothing new. He said guarding Hubbard for three straight years is why his defense “is where it is.”

Proctor recalled that, leading up to Duke’s win over then-No. 2 Auburn in December, Hubbard “kicked our ass in practice the whole week.” The junior guard credited Hubbard for waking the team up and preparing them for the primetime top-10 clash.

‘I showed up every day’

Hailing from Los Angeles, Hubbard attended Harvard-Westlake before joining the Blue Devils as a practice player — an experience he described as “sort of in between a walk-on and a manager” — in the 2020-2021 season.

“I showed up every day, worked hard, [and] just brought my competitive edge to practice,” Hubbard said. “I think, maybe it’s something that Coach recognized and picked up on.”

He soon earned a walk-on spot as a sophomore, a milestone he calls one of the greatest moments of his life, and quickly built an identity around consistency — pushing his teammates and doing whatever he could to be an asset to the program. That dedication paid off in September 2023, when he received a full-ride scholarship.

Hubbard described the moment, which made the rounds on social media, as “really emotional” and a tribute to his years of hard work.

“Being in the program and working your butt off for four years…it really was a tribute to the whole process,” Hubbard said.

Ask Hubbard about his favorite memories at Duke, and he won’t recall the easy wins — he’ll tell you about the hard moments. He’ll wax poetic about those early mornings: waking up at 6 a.m. for team runs, slogging through aerobic fitness tests, running a grueling mile or sweating through eight laps in 12 minutes. For Hubbard, these moments of hard work — where an entire team is “suffering together” — are the most rewarding because they’re the most challenging.

The 2023-2024 season was a breakthrough year for Hubbard. His perseverance started to pay off: he recorded his first bucket and assist against Dartmouth, logged a season-high four minutes against Bucknell, and made his debut in an ACC regular-season game during Duke’s win at Miami.

Most notably, though, he drilled his first career 3-pointer against Louisville — earning his first points against an ACC foe and sending the Cameron Indoor crowd into a frenzy.

‘A blessing’

This season, Hubbard continued to build on his role with some more memorable moments. On Nov. 8, he drilled a triple in Duke’s win over Army West Point, reaching 10 career points with that shot. But the highlight of the season came in the Blue Devils’ 110-67 trouncing of Illinois at Madison Square Garden in February.

With less than a minute left, the Duke coaches called for senior center Stanley Borden to screen at the top of the key for Hubbard. It worked. When both defenders rolled with Borden to the basket, creating a bit of space for Hubbard, he fired.

As the ball soared through the air, Hubbard’s teammates on the bench stood up in anticipation. And when the shot swished through the net, they lost their minds.

Sion James turned his head to the ceiling and roared. Kon Knueppel jumped up and down so high in the air he may as well have been on a trampoline. Cooper Flagg nearly ran out of ways to display his excitement. He flexed, grabbed Tyrese Proctor around the waist, clapped his hands emphatically and then found Khaman Maluach for a dap and chest bump.

“It was amazing,” Hubbard said of his teammates’ reaction. “We have a really good rapport as a team in the locker room, a really competitive group of guys. The fact that we’re able to share those moments together speaks volumes about the type of team we have.”

For these reasons and more, the Blue Devils see Hubbard as far more than a feel-good story, a viral moment, or simply an undersized walk-on.

Instead, as James put it, he’s a “blessing.”

“He makes us better every day,” James said. “He plays his role just as well as anybody I’ve ever been around. He’s a guy that brings life into the locker room. We all love him.”

This story was originally published March 21, 2025 at 6:00 AM with the headline "Why the shortest player on college basketball’s tallest team is ‘a blessing’ for Duke."