Road to Duke
Christopher Nicholas Duhon was born August 31, 1982, in Mamou, Louisiana — a Cajun prairie town of about 3,000 people in the heart of Evangeline Parish. He was raised primarily by his mother, Vivian Harper, a former high school point guard who introduced her son to basketball before he could spell the word. He has a younger brother, Thomas.
The family moved from Mamou to New Orleans, then to Slidell — a suburban community on the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain — when Chris was ten. There was a weathered rim in the family driveway. Duhon shot on it every day. His mother’s guidance was constant. She had been a point guard herself. She knew the position. She understood that the game was about making other people better.
At Salmen High School in Slidell, Duhon became the best player in Louisiana. Senior year: Louisiana Mr. Basketball. McDonald’s All-American. Parade All-American. McDonald’s National HS Player of the Year. Won the McDonald’s Three-Point Shootout. USA Basketball Male Athlete of the Year. Ranked #13 nationally by ESPN, #6 by RSCI.
‘Growing up in Louisiana, LSU was always the school you kind of always wanted to go to. I thought that was the only place I would be able to go.’ But when every program in America called, he chose Duke. ‘I thought Duke gave me the best of both worlds.’
At Duke
Duhon arrived in 2000 with Jay Williams, Carlos Boozer, and Mike Dunleavy Jr. He was the point guard — the table-setter. Freshman year: started all 39 games, initially backing up Williams, then moving into the starting lineup alongside him when Boozer was injured. Duke went 35–4 and won the 2001 NCAA Championship.
What made Duhon irreplaceable was durability, steadiness, and defense. 133 starts in four years. 4,813 minutes — most in Duke history. 300 steals — most in Duke history. 819 assists — second in Duke history. A 123–21 record — second-winningest player in ACC history behind teammate Shane Battier. Three ACC Championships. The only ACC player to amass 1,000+ points, 400+ rebounds, 700+ assists, and 200+ steals.
Senior year: 10 PPG, 6 APG, 2.2 SPG, 4.1 RPG. Duke reached the Final Four. Duhon was a finalist for the Wooden Award, Naismith Award, and Rupp Trophy. Not flashy enough to win. Too important to ignore.
What did Coach K teach him? ‘You just learned how to be a man. Everything he taught us was about taking responsibility, and going out and working hard for what you want.’ Regrets about staying four years? ‘No, no regrets at all. Being in college for four years helped me play at a high level. It came with maturity and understanding the game; becoming a man.’
After Duke
Drafted 38th overall by Chicago in 2004. Rookie year: all 82 games, 5.9 PPG, 4.9 APG. Hit 8 of 9 threes in a comeback win over Atlanta — a Bulls franchise record. In 2006–07, the Bulls won their first playoff series since the Jordan era, sweeping Miami. Duhon was the sixth man who kept the machine running. Career-high 34 points with 9 assists against Golden State in February 2008.
New York Knicks: 2-year, $12M deal. November 29, 2008: 22 assists against Golden State — a Knicks franchise single-game record. The kid from Mamou owned the Garden for one night.
But the most important thing Duhon did had nothing to do with basketball. In August 2005, Hurricane Katrina devastated the Gulf Coast. Slidell was hammered. Duhon founded the Stand Tall Foundation and distributed over 3,000 boxes of supplies worth $450,000 to Slidell residents. Thanksgiving dinners. Free youth clinics. The kid who shot on a weathered driveway rim came back to feed the neighbors who watched him grow up.
Orlando (4-year, $15M). Lakers (2012–13, final season). Nine NBA seasons. 606 games. 6.5 PPG, 4.4 APG. ~$33 million in career earnings. Never an All-Star. Always the glue.
Where Is He Now
The transition wasn’t smooth. In November 2015, while coaching at Marshall, Duhon was arrested for aggravated DUI. In January 2017, arrested again for driving on a revoked license. He resigned from Marshall three days later. A painful public reckoning for a man who’d built his identity on steadiness.
He rebuilt. Illinois State coaching staff as an assistant (2018). In 2023, his wife Andrea — a mathematics professor — accepted a position at Davidson College. The family relocated to Gastonia, North Carolina. Duhon became head coach of the boys’ basketball team at Gaston Christian School. His eldest son Jeremy plays on the team. Five children: Jeremy, Eliana, Christopher, Faith, and Miya. The family chose the move to be together.
Inducted into the Greater New Orleans Sports Hall of Fame in 2024. His cousin is Jarrett Jack, the longtime NBA point guard. Point guard bloodlines run in the family.
He is 42. Born in Mamou, Louisiana, population 3,000. His mother was a point guard. He shot on a weathered rim in the driveway in Slidell. Chose Duke over LSU. Started 133 games, played more minutes and recorded more steals than anyone in Duke history. Won a championship as a freshman, reached the Final Four as a senior. Set the Knicks’ all-time single-game assist record. When Katrina destroyed his hometown, he drove 3,000 boxes of supplies back to Slidell and fed his neighbors. He stumbled after basketball — the DUI, the resignation — but he stood back up, which is what point guards do. Now he coaches his son’s high school team. His wife teaches math at Davidson. The foundation is still called Stand Tall.