McDuffie on returning to WSU as a senior: 'This is what I've been waiting for'

Markis McDuffie is back and he's ready to lead.

After dabbling with the NBA draft process without an agent for the second straight spring, McDuffie recently made it official that he is returning to the Wichita State men's basketball team for his senior season.

That's good news for the Shockers, as McDuffie will be the only Shocker with significant Division I experience for the 2018-19 season.

"Being that guy who can take over the team and give that veteran leadership to my team, this is what I've been waiting for," McDuffie said. "We're going to have a lot of young guys and I'm going to have to step my game up. But I love it. I couldn't wait for this moment."

Following a 25-win season and a seventh straight NCAA Tournament appearance, WSU graduated six seniors, had Landry Shamet leave early for the NBA draft, and saw two players (in Austin Reaves and C.J. Keyser) transfer out.

The end result is just 11.2 percent of the minutes from last season returning, with McDuffie and senior point guard Samajae Haynes-Jones making up more than 90 percent of them.

Coach Gregg Marshall has replenished the roster with plenty of talent, length and athleticism, but none of it has any Division I experience (pending the appeal of West Virginia transfer Teddy Allen).

It will be up to McDuffie to lead his peers.

"They're going to be new, but they're very talented and they're going to be excited and hungry and work hard," McDuffie said. "They know what's at stake. Everybody wants to keep the winning going. Coach Marshall, he doesn't deal with losing. So I know we're still going to win."

McDuffie has always been vocal in the locker room and has tried to hype up a huddle every now and then, but he's never been counted on to be a consistent leader. He said he's ready for the job after being a sponge to Fred VanVleet and Ron Baker his freshman season. He will try to model his leadership after them.

"Fred probably influenced me the most my first year," McDuffie said. "You knew every time he walked into the building he was ready to lead. He wanted to win so bad. In this program, you're used to winning. That's all I want to be and that's all I've ever been my whole life. It's not going to change now because we have a lot of new guys."

Personally, McDuffie is ready for a bounce-back season.

He was drawing comparisons as the next Cleanthony Early in the program after a breakout sophomore season, but a stress fracture in his foot right last September derailed his junior year. McDuffie played in the Shockers' final 22 games, averaging 8.5 points on 44 percent shooting with 3.1 rebounds and 0.4 steals (all down from the 11.5 points on 46 percent shooting with 5.7 rebounds and 1.2 steals he posted the year before).

McDuffie admits he never regained his form while trying to play his way back into shape during the season, although he did show flashes, such as when he scored 26 points to lead WSU to a road win at SMU in February.

"Honestly, I feel better than I've ever felt before," McDuffie said. "I was 100 percent healthy my sophomore year, but I was young. Now I'm experienced and I'm 100 percent healthy and I feel like I'm at my best right now and I can only go up from here.

"I was in a position where I had to work my way up in the middle of the season and I'm not used to that. It was one of the most challenging years of my entire life, but I'm willing to take it to another level now."

In addition to playing pickup games back home in New Jersey, McDuffie had the opportunity to go through workouts with two NBA teams: the Oklahoma City Thunder and Atlanta Hawks.

That experience gave McDuffie another taste of what's possibly out there for him after college. But before that, McDuffie is ready to return to WSU on June 4 and begin putting the finishing touches on his legacy with the Shockers.

"Not only do you get evaluated by NBA teams, but you're going up against NBA guys and you're working out with NBA guys," McDuffie said. "When you're going up against the best players in the country, then that's going to make you better. To be the best, you've got to play against the best.

"I got some great feedback and now I'm ready to go into my senior year, my last year, and I'm ready to go do some special things."

This story was originally published May 30, 2018 at 3:54 PM with the headline "McDuffie on returning to WSU as a senior: 'This is what I've been waiting for'."