Looking Ahead To 2012-2013

[whereinthehellami]

teams.JPG

FSU is the obvious choice for a huge dropoff next year. They still have Snaer but they have been gutted.

Zeller is a huge loss for UNC. And they have alot of question marks on who will stay and who goes league. They also have alot of pieces to work with.

Virginia also loses alot, Scott is a huge void they need to fill. I could see them droping a couple of places next year.

NCSU is an interesting team. I think they are adding the most impact players next year. Does Leslie stay? If so, how does the chemistry play out between the upperclassmen and the recruit?

[OldSchool]

whereinthehellami

So according to your chart Barnes and Henson are returning once again to UNC? Have you alerted the media?

[riddle me this]

the new title of this thread should be looking back unexpectedly to the early 2000s. pun definitely intended

[unexpected]

We should start making people sign their posts about minute distributions and scoring projections for the next season on these boards in blood. That could be fun.

Or we should probably all give this a few weeks and see where the recruits land and who the NBA steals.

I am personally concentrating all my powers on helping the Ohio Bobcats beat Carolina by 33 until Duke's 2013 roster becomes a little more clear. First things first.

I face a moral dilemma when doing this. I feel like rooting against UNC so heavily now builds bad karma now that Marshall is hurt (much as UNC fans were laughing at Kelly's injury!). Best to lay low!

[unexpected]

the new title of this thread should be looking back unexpectedly to the early 2000s. pun definitely intended

I just think its worth noting our previous history when it comes to players. We have just spent 1 1/2 pages of posts discussing Marshal Plumlee's weight, height, and arm length. I'm sure in the next 2-3 pages, I will learn his zodiac sign, likes and dislikes, and his favorite thing to do on a first date.

[superdave]

I face a moral dilemma when doing this. I feel like rooting against UNC so heavily now builds bad karma now that Marshall is hurt (much as UNC fans were laughing at Kelly's injury!). Best to lay low!

There's no such thing as karma. If so, Unc fans would have caused plagues to overwhelm Chapel Hill years ago. I wont be openly hateful toward Unc, just inwardly. Enjoy laying low!

Super "Only 157 days until Duke's 2013 team pic is released and people start posting about how Marshall looks like he's 7'1'' and been in the weight room all summer." Dave

[Kedsy]

Jay Williams converted over 50% of his two point shot attempts and was significantly better at finishing through contact. I'd take 65% of and 1's over 65% of shooting two.

Austin shot 47.74% on his two-point shots this season. During his freshman season, Jason Williams shot 47.96% on his two-point shots. At the number of shot attempts they took, that's essentially exactly the same.

Jason Williams was a better passer and a better defender than Austin Rivers. But as freshmen their other stats, especially their shooting, were close to identical.

[OldSchool]

his favorite thing to do on a first date.

Gotta think those short "T-Rex" arms make it tough for him to put the moves on his date.

[MChambers]

I just think its worth noting our previous history when it comes to players. We have just spent 1 1/2 pages of posts discussing Marshal Plumlee's weight, height, and arm length. I'm sure in the next 2-3 pages, I will learn his zodiac sign, likes and dislikes, and his favorite thing to do on a first date.

It would be most helpful if we could have some pictures with cinder blocks in the background, so that we can be more certain about Marshall's exact measurements.

[whereinthehellami]

whereinthehellami

So according to your chart Barnes and Henson are returning once again to UNC? Have you alerted the media?

No I just set up the table to track the defections once they become public

[Sandman]

Next year, we will go as far as the seniors take us -- Ryan, Mason, Dre, and Seth. It is now THEIR team! The question is how hungry are they for excellence? How hard are they willing to drive themselves and their teammates to improve, to focus on making themselves a great team? All these guys were superstars in high school, coaches were convinced they had the potential for excellence. Now it's their last shot; what will they do with it?

How many times have we seen players reach new levels of performance their senior season? Carrawell and Smith come immediately to mind for us. And how about Robinson for Kansas. If our seniors dedicate themselves to success, and I'm convinced they will, we will have a highly motivated, highly skilled, and FANTASTIC team next year, considering all the talent on hand and incoming.

I'm really excited and can't wait to see next year's new and improved Duke Blue Devil team in action- the greatest show on earth!

[dukefan1980]

...I'm curious as to what you guys would like to see, what you think should happen, and what you think will happen.

I think a loss like this could be beneficial in certain ways. It's the kind of wake-up call that will force the staff to go back to the drawing board and reevaluate everything, which, IMO, is a good thing. My main hopes:

1. I've been fairly vocal this season about how I thought we should have been grooming Austin Rivers to run the show as a Nolan Smith-style lead guard (my reasoning). Now, after seeing Austin post-game and considering his situation, I think it could be beneficial for all parties if he return, assuming the staff would start drilling him on the point guard position starting this Monday. Austin is projected as the #16 pick by the most reputable site, currently, and that was before his late-season slump. What position would a GM even be drafting him at right now?

So basically, I hope Austin stays, K immediately names him a co-captain with Cook, and we hand him the reigns at the 1.

2. The other thing I've been fairly vocal about is how I thought it was a mistake to just put our most skilled offensive players on the floor, rather than building from defense-out (my alternate proposal, my reasoning).

Hopefully the staff will prioritize defense, rebounding, and getting to the rim higher than they did this year. I'm not sure if Gbinije will be the guy (or if he'll even be here), but I'm really hoping the positive progress reports for Murphy continue through the summer and he takes over the starting SF spot early on.

If we have Murphy at the 3 and Rivers at the pseudo-1, with SRs Mason and Ryan in the frontcourt, I don't really even care who's at the 2. Maybe Seth or Dawkins if they get their heads on straight, maybe Thornton if he can really become a Bruce Bowen-like 3-point shooter over the summer. That gives us a very solid defensive perimeter, solid rebounding, solid shooting, and several players who can get to the rim. Those are the kind of fundamentals that good basketball teams are made of.

3. I hope Mason stays, obviously. Not much reasoning needed here; we'll need him, badly, and I don't think his last few months have scouts salivating. If he returns, our frontcourt goes from a major, major question mark to easily one of the best, most experienced in the country.

4. Lastly, I hope few guys have their come-to-Jesus moment. A big problem this year was chemistry and attitude, whether it's publicly acknowledged or not. All of these X's and O's issues don't mean much if we don't have a group of guys who are all in and absolutely committed to winning and improving as a team; I want next year's team to belong to Thornton and Rivers, and if anyone thinks they're too cool to give as much as those two do every time they're on the court, they're free to go elsewhere. Harsh, but necessary, IMO.

Anyway, I'm actually very hopeful for the future, but I really this slap in the face jolts us into making some changes. What do you guys think?

It seems to happen every time a talented team gets upset or doesn't perform as expected, people say that their is a chemistry problem. From someone that doesn't live in Carolina and doesn't have access to the team, chemistry problems never seemed to cross my mind this year. Can you elaborate on some of these issues?

[gam7]

It would be most helpful if we could have some pictures with cinder blocks in the background, so that we can be more certain about Marshall's exact measurements.

Marshall seems to have a more ovular head and longer neck than his brothers, so I wouldn't be surprised if his effective height (height from the shoulders down) is about the same as his brothers.

[Des Esseintes]

Q. Does this in any way make you more eager to find a post player who can really score?

COACH KRZYZEWSKI: And a point. And we feel -- it's not like we haven't tried to find them. A couple of them have gone to other schools right at the last second. We were like a three-headed monster on offense. And it carried us a long way, but it couldn't -- they played a lot of five against three tonight.

March 26, 2009
Villanova over Duke 77-54, Postgame Press Conference

[superdave]

Q. Does this in any way make you more eager to find a post player who can really score?

COACH KRZYZEWSKI: And a point. And we feel -- it's not like we haven't tried to find them. A couple of them have gone to other schools right at the last second. We were like a three-headed monster on offense. And it carried us a long way, but it couldn't -- they played a lot of five against three tonight.

March 26, 2009
Villanova over Duke 77-54, Postgame Press Conference

Yep, and our roster has completely turned over since then so this quote is not relevant any longer.

Super "The angst is palpable" Dave

[Billy Dat]

Glad to see Seth Davis is so bullish concerning next year's team:

Seth Davis ‏ @SethDavisHoops
A step back. RT @jryan_33: I'm a duke fan. What can I expect next year?

[Kedsy]

Glad to see Seth Davis is so bullish concerning next year's team:

Seth Davis ‏ @SethDavisHoops
A step back. RT @jryan_33: I'm a duke fan. What can I expect next year?

Well, if Austin and Mason leave, a lot of talking heads will say that. Doesn't mean they're right.

[azzefkram]

Marshall seems to have a more ovular head and longer neck than his brothers, so I wouldn't be surprised if his effective height (height from the shoulders down) is about the same as his brothers.

Any relation to Candace Flynn?

[Des Esseintes]

Yep, and our roster has completely turned over since then so this quote is not relevant any longer.

Super "The angst is palpable" Dave

No, no. Sorry, I should have explained myself better. My point was K was getting asked about the need to recruit a post scorer and point guard the year before we won a national title. To win that title, we added no point guards, and though we brought in Mason, he was very much a role player as a freshman. The title was won on the backs of junior and senior leaders, who had been generally deemed to be an insufficient core.

I meant to show these concerns are a) evergreen and b) wildly overblown.

[Matches]

No, no. Sorry, I should have explained myself better. My point was K was getting asked about the need to recruit a post scorer and point guard the year before we won a national title. To win that title, we added no point guards, and though we brought in Mason, he was very much a role player as a freshman. The title was won on the backs of junior and senior leaders, who had been generally deemed to be an insufficient core.

I meant to show these concerns are a) evergreen and b) wildly overblown.

The fact that the 2010 team was able to overcome those deficiencies and win anyway doesn't negate the validity of the concern. Ultimately each season K and the staff do the best they can do with the pieces they've got, but they're not wrong to identify, and seek to correct, weaknesses before the season begins.