Love talking these things, but so difficult
In the Coach K era, debate of the best begins and ends with one man: 1. Christian Laettner. In many instances within sport, the beauty of perfectly crafted prose is enough to call to mind and bring to life the memory of a star that has long since departed from his game’s brightest lights. Here, superlatives don’t even begin to touch the surface. They do Laettner’s legacy an injustice. It is the record of winning that most appropriately defines No. 32’s worth in the game’s annals. Most impressive of all is the four consecutive starts in the Final Four, something nobody did before Laettner and nobody will do after. The back-to-back titles aren’t bad, either. Oh, and he made perhaps the most clutch game-winner in the history of college hoops. And he did it twice.
2. Jason Williams. My goodness. The things Jason could do with the ball in his hands offensively. Outside of perhaps a handful of guys -- Bo Kimble, Chris Jackson, Allen Iverson, Randolf Childress -- I'm not sure there's been a more clever and purely dominating scoring guard in the game of college basketball than Jason Williams over the past 20 years. Not to mention, he was a two-time NCAA player of the year. No other Duke player in the K era has achieved this. Pound for pound, he was probably the most talented basketball player Duke's ever had or ever will see. Of course, I missed many decades of great Duke basketball and, after I'm gone, will miss many more.
3. Shane Battier. Leadership. Coach K called Shane the best leader he ever coached. Coming from Coach K, a man who graduated from West Point and honed his skill for coaching under the headship of Bobby Knight, that one compliment is far more impressive than anything else ever said of Shane Battier. And that's considering that Coach also labeled Shane the most complete basketball player he ever coached.
4. Johnny Dawkins. He started it all. And perhaps that's the only proper praise for this Blue Devil giant. (Also, I never saw him play:D)
5. J.J. Redick. Personal records are certainly never the only -- and often never the most appropriate -- measure of basketball brilliance in these types of rankings. But the scoring numbers and shooting performances Redick delivered during his four years in the greatest conference in college basketball history were something to behold, and performances we'll likely never see again. I remember once reading a piece on The Pistol somewhere, in a feature story within Sports Illustrated perhaps, trying to put into words Pete Maravich's grace and beauty on the basketball court. Of course, the write-up, however splendidly professed, could never do justice. Not even close. But it was the best illustration of Maravich’s game I've seen. It suggested that each time Pete Maravich put on those floppy socks and took the floor in another sold-out Southeastern Conference gym, he was playing a game of beat the clock just to keep up.
I think that perfectly explains the pressure -- no, maybe expectation is a better word -- that followed J.J. each time he walked out of the tunnel wearing D-U-K-E. People expected 35-point games every night he played in the winter of 2006. Think about that for a moment. Leaving school as the ACC all-time leading scorer is good enough to land a top five spot in my book. If it isn't, then perhaps that speaks even more to the current level of our program.
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But then, s#!@, I forgot about Grant Hill. Damn it. Not to mention Bobby Hurley, the NCAAs all-time leader in assists. Ah Danny Ferry!, he scored 58 in a single game and was basically unstoppable.
I did this purposefully, but only to point out how truly out in front our program has been ahead of everyone else since Coach Michael Krzyzewski took over in Durham. Simply amazing.
Can't we all just get real?
Like those few on the board familiar with Duke pre-K, I also think that Art Heyman may have been the greatest Duke player ever. But, the only other player that should certainly be included in the debate is the tall guy that made "the shot". So, we should have two guys that are #1 and #2, in either order of preference. That leaves 3 spots left. That's it. (Unless we give possible consideration for Dick Groat.)
To listen to all you uninformed young 'uns out there that think the only great players are in your generation is getting a bit disconcerting. Maybe ya'll should take a look at average points per game and whether or not the 3 point line was in effect, instead of total career points, when comparing offensive production. Also, take a look at average rebounds per game instead of total rebounds. Remember, when these guys played there were only eligible for three years and a 20 win season was remarkable. In addition, stats like assists were not even kept. So, I think you need think about if you woud rather have Heyman with the ball with a few seconds remaining for the big win or Redick, for example. If you spent a little research time on the subject, the answer would be a slam dunk.
Oh, and don't forget to include Mullins, Lewis, etc. for consideration for the last 2 or 3 spots using the same criteria.
ricks
Many didn't get to see Jeff Mullins
He was really good. Best bank shot from the outside I have ever seen, great rebounder, and he could really follow up his shot to get the rebound. Heyman got most of the hype but in retrospect I preferred Jeff's game. And he was natural two while Heyman was a three. Jeff Mullins was a three time NBA all star, a starter on an NBA championship team (1975) and scored over 13,000 NBA points.