Originally Posted by
Cameron
I have absolutely no qualms in stating that any time Seth Curry is on the floor we are playing with four defenders and a pair of arms (which are there to launch threes and pick up the occasional backcourt theft). He is an alarming liability when asked to pony up and play D against elite guards. That really cannot be debated, at least too successfully, IMO.
With that said, Seth is a vaunted shooter, one of the most prolific in the entire game. When he gets on a roll, he's like Super Mario with unlimited fire power. Just as it is when Andre gets on one of those delicious rolls, and as it was with J.J. before him, when Seth gets into an I-am-in-a-f'ing-zone rhythm, you might as well just flip the switch and turn the building's lights out. It's over. And in order for Coach K's open, spacing-predicated offense to really work, it is imperative we have that variety of shooter stalking the perimeter.
He is going to play. Unlike Greg Paulus, who is among my favorite five Blue Devils ever, without question, Seth has enough of a handle and the creativity with the ball in his palms to take a game over offensively on his own. He is that kind of scorer. It just becomes an issue of the staff finding some sort of defensive wrinkle that will help to offset Seth's defensive woes (likely a difficult task as we are certainly never going to seriously entertain the idea of any sort of long-term zone, and I am fine with that), or pairing him, as I have been suggesting, in the backcourt with Rasheed at the point (if Rasheed proves ready), at least against teams where we are likely to get abused by quicker, taller, more athletic guards. Something will have to be done in those instances, because a Seth and Quinn backcourt versus an All-American caliber backcourt is a recipe for a lot of heart attacks.
I would certainly strongly disagree with your first paragraph and am not sure how it cannot be debated when Seth was a starter on a team that ranked #8 in the country defensively in 2010-11. I don't think he has gotten worse as a defensive player with more time in Duke's system. He has not shown himself to be a defensive stopper so, like any current NCAA player besides perhaps Aaron Craft and Michael Snaer, he struggles to defend elite guards.
I agree he is a very strong offensive player, but don't see coach K trying to offset anything about Seth's game.
The other area I disagree is that Seth, Tyler and Quinn will get abused by all these teams of quicker, taller, more athletic guards. I don't think there are that many teams that have 2 big, quick and good wings that would be a difficult match up for Alex at one wing and Seth at the other wing. (My assumption: team defense is better this year.) I think anytime Duke goes against an All-American caliber backcourt this year that it will be a challenge and the team's defense will have to be at its best. Here are the teams that have at least one member of pre-season all American team in their backcourt from the lists I quickly looked at: Murray State, Ohio State, Lehigh, San Diego St., Arkansas, Louisville, Michigan, Missouri, Florida State, UCLA, Oklahoma State. UCLA has two players I have seen listed as potential wing all-Americans in Kyle Anderson and Shabazz Muhammad. In theory, if Duke played them, maybe Seth would have to guard someone much taller and slower than him (Anderson.) Otherwise, there aren't many teams that have an "All-American" backcourt that would not find it at least as challenging to guard Duke's guards.
Duke did not defend as well last year as in previous years and was small at all three perimeter positions. That is not likely to be the case for at least half the game this year. Along with some improved communication, I expect the team's defense to be much improved and do not think that any of the players will be seen as a liability if the whole team plays better as a unit.
“Those two kids, they’re champions,” Krzyzewski said of his senior leaders. “They’re trying to teach the other kids how to become that, and it’s a long road to become that.”