Austin Rivers - where there is smoke, there is fire

[JasonEvans]

Kenny Boyton chose Florida instead of Duke.

Yes he did and he is having a pretty darn mediocre season considering how highly regarded he was as a recruit. He is scoring 13+ ppg, but that is largely because he is gunning (takes 12+ shots per game and hits only about 35% of them). He is horrible from 3-point range (26%). His draft stock has unquestionably suffered as a result of his play this year.

Many had forecast him as a potential one-and-done player when he was a top 10 recruit coming out of high school. Now he is not on any draft boards for 2010 or 2011.

I hope Austin Rivers pays close attention to Kenny Boynton's experience at Florida

-Jason "whew, there are some real busts so far in the 2009 HS class -- starting with the kid at #5... John Henson" Evans

[-bdbd]

"Kenny Boyton chose Florida instead of Duke. "

and how is that working out for him?

David Lee too. And some others. But we've certainly won our share of recruiting wars vs. FLA.

Each school has its attractions and detractions. But I would think, at this time, for a smart kid like Rivers, Duke has more to offer (program currently at a higher level/consistently a winner, always on TV (exposure), BB facillities, HOF coach with track record of sending PG's to the NBA, and academics to fall back on). Just hope HE sees it that way!! Fingers crossed.

[BD80]

David Lee too. And some others. But we've certainly won our share of recruiting wars vs. FLA.

Each school has its attractions and detractions. But I would think, at this time, for a smart kid like Rivers, Duke has more to offer (program currently at a higher level/consistently a winner, always on TV (exposure), BB facillities, HOF coach with track record of sending PG's to the NBA, and academics to fall back on). Just hope HE sees it that way!! Fingers crossed.

Austin has his dad Doc as an influence, who also looks at what happens AFTER the NBA career. Look at the number of Dukies involved in coaching, in sports management and in broadcasting.

I think the primary deciding factor is whether a recruit is willing to commit to the academic workload. Duke's staff requires a commitment to academics that other schools likely do not. Many recruits simply choose an easier path.

Those that choose the easier path, like Boynton, I wish well because they are good enough kids that Duke offered a scholarship.

I root for the ones that choose Duke.

[CrazieDUMB]

Austin has his dad Doc as an influence, who also looks at what happens AFTER the NBA career. Look at the number of Dukies involved in coaching, in sports management and in broadcasting.

I think the primary deciding factor is whether a recruit is willing to commit to the academic workload. Duke's staff requires a commitment to academics that other schools likely do not. Many recruits simply choose an easier path.

Those that choose the easier path, like Boynton, I wish well because they are good enough kids that Duke offered a scholarship.

I root for the ones that choose Duke.

Am I the only one that kind of pooh-poohs the notion that Duke is so tough academically? I mean, there's no way you can design a course path for someone that barely wants to do any work?

My spring semester junior year I took:

Dinosaur Biology
Hip hop appreciation
Special topics in History: Baseball in the Global Perspective
Econ elective I don't remember because there wasn't any work.

I'm not trying to say that Duke is an easy school, but there are definitely ways to knock out the requirements without killing yourself academically. Maybe I should be a class advisor for prospective athletes.

[ice-9]

Am I the only one that kind of pooh-poohs the notion that Duke is so tough academically? I mean, there's no way you can design a course path for someone that barely wants to do any work?

My spring semester junior year I took:

Dinosaur Biology
Hip hop appreciation
Special topics in History: Baseball in the Global Perspective
Econ elective I don't remember because there wasn't any work.

I'm not trying to say that Duke is an easy school, but there are definitely ways to knock out the requirements without killing yourself academically. Maybe I should be a class advisor for prospective athletes.

That schedule is...crazy dumb.

[flyingdutchdevil]

Am I the only one that kind of pooh-poohs the notion that Duke is so tough academically? I mean, there's no way you can design a course path for someone that barely wants to do any work?

My spring semester junior year I took:

Dinosaur Biology
Hip hop appreciation
Special topics in History: Baseball in the Global Perspective
Econ elective I don't remember because there wasn't any work.

I'm not trying to say that Duke is an easy school, but there are definitely ways to knock out the requirements without killing yourself academically. Maybe I should be a class advisor for prospective athletes.

While I completely agree with you that you can indeed take easy courses at Duke, which many athletes do indeed take, Duke, as an academic institution, is significantly harder than your average college. We're ranked in the top 10 (US News) in the COUNTRY and have an amazing basketball program. Also, by being surrounded by thousands of bright students, you do get a better education (the campus system).

There are students who like to push themselves academically, and Duke is a better place to do this than most.

[BD80]

Am I the only one that kind of pooh-poohs the notion that Duke is so tough academically? I mean, there's no way you can design a course path for someone that barely wants to do any work?

My spring semester junior year I took:

Dinosaur Biology
Hip hop appreciation
Special topics in History: Baseball in the Global Perspective
Econ elective I don't remember because there wasn't any work.

I'm not trying to say that Duke is an easy school, but there are definitely ways to knock out the requirements without killing yourself academically. Maybe I should be a class advisor for prospective athletes.

And they call my Engineering Degree BS!

Frankly, I don't recall a Duke basketball player being reported as having such an easy schedule and I would belittle anyone that did. You are supposed to distribute the crib courses throughout your 4 years, I thought even liberal arts majors knew that!

I would bet that as easy a courseload as you were able to skate with, a much easier one could be devised at UF.

[Acymetric]

And they call my Engineering Degree BS!

Frankly, I don't recall a Duke basketball player being reported as having such an easy schedule and I would belittle anyone that did. You are supposed to distribute the crib courses throughout your 4 years, I thought even liberal arts majors knew that!

I would bet that as easy a courseload as you were able to skate with, a much easier one could be devised at UF.

The other thing to remember is that this is just one semester. For one and done players I suppose one easy semester is all they need, but anyone who plans on or is considering 2 or more years will probably not get by with multiple semesters on that level.

[Bluedog]

Frankly, I don't recall a Duke basketball player being reported as having such an easy schedule and I would belittle anyone that did.

Do they publish Duke basketball players' schedules? No, and they shouldn't, so I'm not sure how any of us would know for certain. But there's certainly a way to devise an easy schedule if you're an athlete as you get early registration. I think we'd be kidding ourselves if we thought that all the basketball players have rigorous curricula; but with the time commitment to basketball, I'd certainly be the same way. You can easily get out even the "tough" requirements such as quantitative, science, etc. by taking the classes designed for non-science people (e.g. chem 83) or comp sci for non-comp sci people (no coding, and a joke). If your goal is to simply graduate with minimal effort and you have priority registration, you can certainly get a degree not taking many challenging courses.

I would bet that as easy a courseload as you were able to skate with, a much easier one could be devised at UF.

Probably true. See Wall, John. Over summer school he took a remedial math course at UK (I think Algebra 2) that was FOUR semesters behind the "remedial" math course at Duke (Math 25 - Laboratory Calculus and Functions I)...Cal says Wall has the highest GPA on the team though.

Sorry to be off topic.

[CrazieDUMB]

While it may be true that Florida could probably devise an easier path than Duke, my point remains that there are ways to go through Duke without pushing yourself academically, if that's what you want to do. The semester I laid out was an aberration, a confluence of scheduling and the courses I needed in specific areas to graduate. I only put it out there to demonstrate that for every requirement, there's going to be something easy.

Another thing I should point out is that most of these players attend summer sessions as well. Not only does this give them the chance to take fewer courses during the year, but also (I hear) summer session classes are easier than regular semester classes. So even if, as an econ major, you're forced to take Econometrics, you can still do it over the summer when you're competing against weaker students and you only have one or two classes to worry about.

Like I said, Duke is not an easy place, and for those that want to push themselves I believe Duke gives you the best resources and chance to do so. I was of the opinion that since I didn't care about science or history, I might as well take classes that are more interesting (not to mention easier) so I can spend more time on my areas of interest.

If your only thing is basketball, and even if you want to stay four years, yes a school like Florida probably has an easier path. But Duke will also be able to find a way to keep you afloat academically, it won't be that much harder than a lesser school, you'll have as much tutoring as you want, and should you be interested in pursuing higher academics you have the ability to do so.

Just sayin'

[chrisheery]

I agree it is easy to take 4 really easy classes at some point during your career at Duke. However, I think you are misremembering your time over the other 3.5 years. Even the easiest classes in most disciplines at Duke are well above the level expected from high school honors or even most AP classes. They require much more insight and thought. Math and Science classes are a perfect example. You have to be able to pass at least 2 of each of those to meet requirements (I think) and a kid who barely makes NCAA requirements will simply not be prepared to pass those classes.

That said, if a kid has no intention of graduating (meaning he plans to go pro after 2 years), there should be plenty of easy classes to take. He just would be saving up all the classes he probably couldn't pass until the end of his college career, which he would never see.

[BD80]

The other thing to remember is that this is just one semester. For one and done players I suppose one easy semester is all they need, but anyone who plans on or is considering 2 or more years will probably not get by with multiple semesters on that level.

Do they publish Duke basketball players' schedules? No, and they shouldn't, so I'm not sure how any of us would know for certain. But there's certainly a way to devise an easy schedule if you're an athlete as you get early registration. ...

While it may be true that Florida could probably devise an easier path than Duke, my point remains that there are ways to go through Duke without pushing yourself academically, if that's what you want to do. ...
If your only thing is basketball, and even if you want to stay four years, yes a school like Florida probably has an easier path. But Duke will also be able to find a way to keep you afloat academically, it won't be that much harder than a lesser school, you'll have as much tutoring as you want, and should you be interested in pursuing higher academics you have the ability to do so.
...

My point is that Coach K requires its recruits to commit to academics. He won't offer players who intend to just skate through school. He lays out what will be required and expected and the recruit makes an educated decision.

Other schools may recruit by saying that they will ensure that the academics won't interfere with basketball. Duke recruits by emphasizing that the recruit will learn to balance both academics and basketball.

It is understood that the players will load up in the summer and ease off in the spring when basketball is in full swing. The key is that they commit to academics. Some recruits to not want to make that commitment.

Player's schedules are not published, but their courses of study are, and often their GPA's are shown. Team academic progress is published. Duke players fair well according to what is published.

[Acymetric]

My point is that Coach K requires its recruits to commit to academics. He won't offer players who intend to just skate through school. He lays out what will be required and expected and the recruit makes an educated decision.

Other schools may recruit by saying that they will ensure that the academics won't interfere with basketball. Duke recruits by emphasizing that the recruit will learn to balance both academics and basketball.

It is understood that the players will load up in the summer and ease off in the spring when basketball is in full swing. The key is that they commit to academics. Some recruits to not want to make that commitment.

Player's schedules are not published, but their courses of study are, and often their GPA's are shown. Team academic progress is published. Duke players fair well according to what is published.

Just to be clear, I was agreeing with you, saying that nobody can take the easy classes mentioned by the other poster every semester (meaning athletes at Duke have to enroll in at least some difficult courses).

[grossbus]

FWIW, orlando sentinel quoted rivers as "reaffirming his commitment to UF" after their win in the regional finals last night.

[DevilHorns]

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/sport...,3251725.story

"Rivers has repeatedly said he remains committed to UF but is considering Duke."

Feb 19 article. Much of the same.

[duke=legacy]

FWIW, orlando sentinel quoted rivers as "reaffirming his commitment to UF" after their win in the regional finals last night.

Does anyone know if he was just responding to a question, asking him if he was still committed to Florida, in which case he gave the same answer as he's been doing all along? Or if he went out of his way to publicly state he's still committed?

[airowe]

FWIW, orlando sentinel quoted rivers as "reaffirming his commitment to UF" after their win in the regional finals last night.

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/sport...,5564755.story

Rivers was quiet for most of the game. The junior guard, who affirmed his commitment to Florida after the win, scored 10 in the first half with six points coming from the line.

This doesn't mean anything as he is still "committed" to Florida. Nothing to see here except that Austin's team keeps advancing in the state tournament, meaning he more than likely won't make it to the Duke - UNC game as planned unless they are upset...

[gumbomoop]

http://www.orlandosentinel.com/sport...,3251725.story

"Rivers has repeatedly said he remains committed to UF but is considering Duke."

Feb 19 article. Much of the same.

Fair enough all 'round. It's reasonable to assume Duke has, say, a 40% chance that Rivers will wind up in Durham. He's got roughly 8 months to keep "considering," which means carefully weighing his options, measuring the programs, coaches, future teammates, what his time [2-3 years?] will produce at Fla and Duke.

He's a good kid, bright, personable, way talented. We're fortunate still to be in the running, all things considered.

[Kdogg]

Could Billy Donovan's NBA ban have anything to do with his decision? It was five years from 2007. It might affect a player who will be on campus for more than a year.

[ArtVandelay]

Plus, do we really need 3 superstars of Irving, Rivers and Curry in the backcourt? I would almost call that too crowded. As a Duke fan I would love it, but it's a long shot.

Isn't it a bit premature to dub any of these guys "superstars" seeing as how none of them have played a single minute for Duke and two of them are still in high school?

I'm a little afraid everyone has a mild case of "Kyrie fever." By all accounts he ought to be a very good player for us, but it seems like people have already annointed him Duke basketball savior without having even set foot on campus. It's a safer bet to assume that Kyle and Nolan (assuming they both stay) will be our two best players next year and hopefully two of the best in the country.