It'll be up to him to make the decision work. Singler was in a similar situation; return and try for improvement at Duke, or be a late first-round (bench
or D-league) player? It didn't work out that well for Singler, but that was because he didn't improve his shooting. Actually, I don't know if he would have
done much better going the other way either (but he might have gotten a better rookie contract). Mason needs to show enough improvement to prove to the pros that he has more upside to come; otherwise it may not turn out any better for him either. But anyway, we're glad to have him back for one more year.
Hope to see him become an All-ACC level player.
I dont know if Mason will be a star in the NBA. Despite is athleticism and size, he is too mechanical in the post and doesnt have a good outside shot. If he can find his niche, rebounding and playing defense, he can turn out to be a good rotation player in the NBA for 8+ years.
As far as next season, I expect Mason to beast every opponents Center and be 1st team All ACC.
Favorite statement from his press conference.
http://goduke.com/mediaPortal/player.dbml?id=870612I had a good feel for where our team here was headed, and I thought the direction of our team and where coach wants to go was more exciting and something I wanted to be a part of and I feel I have a lot left to accomplish here. This team will have a really good chance to be special next year.
Q "Why do you like Duke, you didn't even go there." A "Because my art school didn't have a basketball team."
Well, possibly, but that's not a terribly high bar.
This season, McRoberts is averaging 2.4 points, 3.4 rebounds, and 1.0 assists per game in 13.7 minutes per game.
For his career, 4.6 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 1.3 assists per game in 15.2 minutes per game.
I could see Mason exceed that; I also would acknowledge a possibility of Mason having a Shav type NBA career at the end of the bench.
We'll see.
Now that posters have bashed McRob & Shav I would like to know their NBA stats.
Very excited to have Mason back. Does that leave us with two scholarships for next year? And if Hood say transferred to us and can't play next season does the scholarship count as one of those spots?
One thing that comes to mind is that he only needs 2 more classes to graduate, though perhaps he will wish to take some others as well. But one might speculate that the time demands from academics could be less than for some other student athletes, enabling him to spend even more time on fine-tuning his game, especially his offensive moves.
Has he already been to one of the big man summer camps? If not, perhaps that would augment his skills.
He frequently surprised me with some of his blocked shots out of nowhere, this is a real strength that few are mentioning.
For what it is worth, I see him having a better career than McBob or Shav in the NBA, since that has been mentioned as a comparison.
The fact that he is excited about Coach K's vision for next years team is very good to hear, especially if that vision includes using Mason more via decisive and precise entry passes from Quinn Cook!
If I recall, Shane Battier was in a similar position academically going into his senior season, and took only one (or two maybe?) classes his last semester. He enjoyed his time at Duke, worked hard on his game, and ended up with a national championship and a top 10 draft position. No guarantee Mason will do the same, but that's not a bad model.
Anyone else find it interesting that Mason's announcement isn't listed anywhere on ESPN's main college basketball page? There are headlines/links to stories about Zeller, Lamb, Robinson, Burke, and others' decisions but no Mason.
I'm fine with it, I actually enjoy flying under the radar at the start of the season, but I'm still a little surprised at the lack of mention.