Dereck Lively II is establishing himself as one of the best young players in the NBA with the Dallas Mavericks. After one season at Duke, the big man is already using his athletic gifts and playmaking abilities to great use.

Lively is not just the next generation of Blue Devils to make noise in the NBA, he was also the first draft pick from new head coach Jon Scheyer's program. Dariq Whitehead, Jared McCain and Kyle Filipowski are also in the new class of Duke products that just missed out on playing under Mike Krzyzewski. They’re all setting out to be great players in the NBA like dozens of former Blue Devils before them.

When he was asked for his Mount Rushmore of Duke NBA players, Lively named Mavericks teammate Kyrie Irving, New Orleans Pelicans star Zion Williamson, Orlando Magic star Paolo Banchero and Hall of Famer Grant Hill.

That’s not a bad list from Lively, right? It features the Duke player who went on to be the best NBA player to date in Hill, two of the most talented players from Duke who have gone on to be named All-Stars and another up-and-comer who should be a multi-time All-Star, too. The Blue Devils have plenty of good options to choose from and the youngster skewed his answers toward the present while also acknowledging a standout of the past.

The major omission from that list is Jayson Tatum, who’s fresh off a championship and has been an established star for a while. It seems like pumping off Williamson, who has been dominant but hasn’t accomplished much in his career yet, makes the most sense to get him on there. Still, when Williamson gets going, he is truly one of the most game-breaking stars in the sport.

Carlos Boozer, Elton Brand and Brandon Ingram are some of the other former Dukies who have gone on to enjoy lots of success in the NBA. Cooper Flagg seems extremely likely to be a permanent fixture of this thought exercise once he makes it to the professional level. The Tatum snub is bound to annoy Boston Celtics fans — and looks kind of cheeky after the C's just beat the Mavs in the NBA Finals — but Lively's list is perfectly fine.

Dereck Lively II cemented as franchise cornerstone for Mavericks

Lively has instantly become a key part of the Mavericks' success. The 20-year-old big man is seen as a potential future star, someone who will help raise the team's ceiling in the years to come.

In 55 games as a rookie, Lively averaged 8.8 points, 6.9 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 1.4 blocks per game while making 74.7 percent of his attempts from the field. He was named to the All-Rookie Second Team and fought through injury to play in the Finals. With Irving and Luka Doncic there to feed him lobs above the rim, he’s going to keep making a huge impact for Dallas.

Dereck Lively II may not go down as one of the all-time great Duke players but he looks like a good candidate to have a long, successful career at the NBA level.