embarrassing moments as a Duke basketball fan

I have been following Duke basketball for a long time. I have almost always been proud of the team and its fans. The two exceptions being the booing of Jeff Capel in Cameron and the constant early criticism of Paulus and the recent criticism of McRoberts.
These are our players and they are trying very hard. If they are not as good as we expected, it is not for lack of effort.
It is worth remembering that even Laetner, Hill, and Battier to name three, made there greatest contributions as upper class men. It is also noteworthy that McRoberts is often farther from the basket than last year to help in the passing game.

Josh is playing hard- no question and he is asked to do a lot- no question. But at some point in a player's career- you find out what kind of player when they are in the big game or moment. Josh is at that point right now. Laettner did it as a soph in the Conneticut game. Grant did it as a soph in the Michigan final. Those performances propelled them to be great college players. We all want Josh to be that great player he can be. You need the moment for that to happen and for Josh- the moment is now.

i agree about finding out what a player is made of in big games. JJ had a mixed record in that department, putting up big numbers in some big games (Texas, Georgetown) but completely disappearing in some big games (LSU last year). We're seeing Josh respnd to big games this year in a similarly variable way. In most games Josh does several things very well, scoring, rebounding, passing and/or ball-handling. IN one of DUke's biggest games to date this year, last night at UNC, Josh was variable within the game. At times he seemed like he was trying too hard and committed some horrendous TOs or later in the game he seemed overwhelmed (probably due to exhaustion) by UNC inside. I don' t fault him for not shooting enough, hey, if you're not confident about a shot don't take it. Although he is consistently not using one of his offensive strengths, driving one-on-one against big guys. He forced the issue too much and made some bad passes. So from this game we learned that Josh is neither a total failure like some people want to make him nor was he a game-breaker like some want him to become.

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Originally Posted by DukieUGA

i agree about finding out what a player is made of in big games. JJ had a mixed record in that department, putting up big numbers in some big games (Texas, Georgetown) but completely disappearing in some big games (LSU last year). We're seeing Josh respnd to big games this year in a similarly variable way. In most games Josh does several things very well, scoring, rebounding, passing and/or ball-handling. IN one of DUke's biggest games to date this year, last night at UNC, Josh was variable within the game. At times he seemed like he was trying too hard and committed some horrendous TOs or later in the game he seemed overwhelmed (probably due to exhaustion) by UNC inside. I don' t fault him for not shooting enough, hey, if you're not confident about a shot don't take it. Although he is consistently not using one of his offensive strengths, driving one-on-one against big guys. He forced the issue too much and made some bad passes. So from this game we learned that Josh is neither a total failure like some people want to make him nor was he a game-breaker like some want him to become.

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In the big tourney- JJ did not have his best games- but in the ACC- JJ played great. And in last year's ACC tourney final- he hit some amazing shots. Yes JJ did not lead his team to NCAA finals victory but he showed his stuff often enough. His Freshman peformance in the ACC final propelled him. Josh needs his signature moment. Thursday is a start.

I think for embarrassing moments as a Duke fan it's hard to top Laettner's foot to the chest in what was otherwise one of the greatest games in NCAA history.

I beg to differ. If you have listened to Kentucky fans recently, Christian stood on the guy's chest, bounced with all his might, then kicked him.

If you look at the tape of the game, you see that Christian lightly put his foot on the guy's chest as a bit of a warning. There is another play in that game in which Christian was the recipient of the kind of behavior of which you're complaining... and nothing happened.

While I certainly wish he hadn't done it, I would hardly classify it as most embarrassing. I agree with siestadogz... the truly low point of Duke basketball were the boos that greeted Capel's return... although I still think that they were booing K's decision to put him back in rather than Capel himself. I like Jeff and respect him... but I'm mighty glad we didn't have Jason.

Great original post. Paulus has steadily improved. Duke's lack of penetration has really made Josh's job tough this year. He either has to come out to help/direct, or just doesn't get the ball in good scoring positions. Go back and watch the carolina game. Check how often Hasbrough scored because his guards either penetrated or got in positions to have good angles to get him the ball. Josh's best moments are yet to come, and last year the ACC and NCAA tourney's were some of his best games of the year. Hopefully that trend continues.

But I don't recall the Jeff Capel booing incident. Anyone care to refresh my memory?

I'd have to say that Hurley running to the bathroom during the 1st UNLV game was an embarrassing moment. Not for Duke necessarily, but I just felt embarrased for him. Can you imagine what it must have felt like to be playing in - at the time - the biggest game of your life and have diarrhea? I really hated that for him.

It has to be when Dahntay dunked on that player for Virginia and then proceeded to execute a few pushups. I was embarrassed FOR Virginia.