Duke's Derryck Thornton to transfer

The writing was on the wall for Derryck Thornton.

With an impressive recruiting class on its way in, and fellow guards Matt Jones and Grayson Allen returning, the Duke freshman announced he's transferring out of the program.

"I have loved my time at Duke, but I want to pursue the opportunity to play college basketball closer to home," Thornton said. "I want to thank my teammates and coaches for their support this year. The relationships I have with them will always be special to me."

There's no word yet on possible landing spots for the California native, but the fact he indicated he hopes to play "closer to home" has to excite West Coast schools.

Thornton played 26-plus minutes per game last season and averaged 7.1 points, but it appears likely that incoming five-star guard Frank Jackson would claim most of his minutes in 2016-17.

It's a tough loss for Mike Krzyzewski's crew considering Thornton is a former five-star recruit himself, but it's tough to imagine the Blue Devils missing his services too much.

Duke is also welcoming the top two recruits in the nation next season in Harry Giles and Jayson Tatum.