Why is Alex Murphy getting almost non-existent playing time?

[ricks68]

For a good part of last Summer, I believe we were hearing that Alex Murphy could be the second-coming of Kyle Singler in a sightly larger body. Am I incorrect about that?

What happened? Any input from Watzone or Jim Sumner, or anyone else possibly in-the-know, would be greatly appreciated. Please.

If the mods feel that the information, or discussing the topic, is inappropriate for the boards, please PM me and remove this thread.
Thanks.

ricks

[Sixthman]

Defense, Defense, Defense. Position, intensity, communication, and toughness. There is no reason he cannot be playing serious minutes before the season is over. He played thirty seconds in the first half of the Kentucky game and gave up a layup in the half-court defense in which we might as well have had four players on the court instead of five. Imagine -- and we can only imagine this -- that everyday before practice, in practice, and after practice, the coaches are preaching the importance of defense to Alex. When something like the Kentucky game happens this would, naturally, be a set back in the eyes of the coaches, even though as a fan I would say "he barely had a chance". He needs to make the most of his chances, and it seems like he has not. Anyone can see he has great talent and he must be a great kid or he wouldn't be a part of the pragram. He'll get it.

[CameronBornAndBred]

Here's what K himself has to say about Murphy.

Krzyzewski was asked after the game what Murphy had to do to increase his playing time.
"There are 200 minutes in a game,” Krzyzewski said. “If someone is playing worse than you ahead of you, then you should get some of those minutes. But if people are playing better than you, those minutes are eaten up. He’s just a freshman. We have confidence that he is going to be a good player.

Read more here: http://www.newsobserver.com/2012/11/...#storylink=cpy

[Saratoga2]

There are two more extremely tough games in which neither Jeffereson or Murphy are likely to get a lot of playing time, unless we get into foul trouble. The subsequent stretch of games should allow coach K to experiment with other lineups and give both of these guys more time. That said, we still have Marshall to get into the lineup and I would expect he too will become available after the Ohio St game, although I expecthis PT ro be limited at he gets into playing condition.

[mcdukie]

Well at least we can stop the talk of him being the next Singler. If he could help us K would play him.

[rocketeli]

Well at least we can stop the talk of him being the next Singler. If he could help us K would play him.

Exactly. If he plays better in games and practice than someone else he will get more minutes, if not, he won't. Isn't it funny how every year some player is annointed the official "What's wrong with so-and-so," or even worse "what's wrong with Coach K" guy because they don't play very much. Last year it was Gbinige (sp?). Somehow other players never get the love, like Hairston. It seems to qualify you have to be an athletic slashing wing with problems with basketball IQ and defense, who throws down monster dunks--in the blue-white scrimmage. I propose we have an annual award called "The Golden Calves" in honor of Marty Pocius and the apparently now-saintly Rick Majerus, that we award to the player who exemplifies this role and creates the most message board angst.

[CarmenWallaceWade]

I may be wrong, but I've heard Murphy is a solid scorer. That alone doesn't necessarily get you on the court at Duke. You have to have the fundamentals down on defense and consistently show that in practice before being granted significant court time.

I think we will eventually need someone off the bench (other than Curry, if he doesn't start) who can provide us an offensive spark. Having your all of your starters be able to score is great but when the fouls start piling up it becomes a problem. Maybe Murphy will develop into this role as the coaching staff develops confidence in other aspects of his game.

[OldPhiKap]

"Looking for love in all the wrong places ..."

[Wander]

Isn't it funny how every year some player is annointed the official "What's wrong with so-and-so," or even worse "what's wrong with Coach K" guy because they don't play very much. Last year it was Gbinige (sp?).

I don't know. This doesn't feel like it's in the same category as Gbinije or Pocius to me. At least for me, it's not a complaint in any way, especially given how good we've been so far, it's just more a "Hm, this is a little bit odd" thing, given his high recruiting ranking and year to prepare at Duke. It's based more in curiosity than in angst.

[Newton_14]

I don't know. This doesn't feel like it's in the same category as Gbinije or Pocius to me. At least for me, it's not a complaint in any way, especially given how good we've been so far, it's just more a "Hm, this is a little bit odd" thing, given his high recruiting ranking and year to prepare at Duke. It's based more in curiosity than in angst.

I feel the same way. Very odd. Two years in a row he practices well enough to start in exhibition games, plays tentatively, then disappears totally in the very first real game with a DNP-CD. I thought for sure he would be a starter this year, or at the least firmly in the rotation. It is just a weird situation. Reading between the lines on K's comments thus far, it seems the talent is there, but Murphy has not figured out how to use that talent in games yet. It is different than the situations with past players.

[davekay1971]

I try to not have angst on these issues, mainly because I assume K knows something more about practice performance and player development than I do. I assume that Murphy is riding pine because the coaching staff feel he's not playing better than Sulaimon and Jefferson, who are getting most of the time at the 3. I am concerned, however, because we could really use a little more depth. Right now we feel pretty thin on the perimeter, particularly with Seth's leg. If Seth can't go, we're down to Thornton, Cook, and Sulaimon on the perimeter. That's enough to get by at the 1 and 2, but then we'll absolutely need Murphy to perform, and perform well, at the 3. Whatever's going on with Murphy, we need him to get it together and be ready to contribute to this team.

[lotusland]

I'm sure there is a combination of reasons but the most important factor is probably the fact that Sheed is playing so well and we need him in the game. As much angst as we have collectively had about another 3 guard lineup, it's pretty hard to argue against Seth, QC and Sheed's minutes thus far. If/when Seth can't go I wonder who'll get the minutes.

Looking at next year's lineup I think Alex's PT in the near future may be at 4 and 5 anyway.

[ChicagoCrazy84]

I try to not have angst on these issues, mainly because I assume K knows something more about practice performance and player development than I do. I assume that Murphy is riding pine because the coaching staff feel he's not playing better than Sulaimon and Jefferson, who are getting most of the time at the 3. I am concerned, however, because we could really use a little more depth. Right now we feel pretty thin on the perimeter, particularly with Seth's leg. If Seth can't go, we're down to Thornton, Cook, and Sulaimon on the perimeter. That's enough to get by at the 1 and 2, but then we'll absolutely need Murphy to perform, and perform well, at the 3. Whatever's going on with Murphy, we need him to get it together and be ready to contribute to this team.

I think we were going to be thin on the perimeter Murphy or no Murphy. The kid may have been a scorer but I dont know who in their right mind would have him play on the perimeter alongside Cook/Thornton. As soon as Dawkins/Coach K made the unilateral decision to redshirt him this season, we were thin. Still not sure if I agree with the thinking behind it, but it is what it is.

[freshmanjs]

I think we were going to be thin on the perimeter Murphy or no Murphy. The kid may have been a scorer but I dont know who in their right mind would have him play on the perimeter alongside Cook/Thornton. As soon as Dawkins/Coach K made the unilateral decision to redshirt him this season, we were thin. Still not sure if I agree with the thinking behind it, but it is what it is.

unilateral? should they have taken a poll on dbr?

[lotusland]

unilateral? should they have taken a poll on dbr?

Yes and another poll for who should be the big man coach and when to use stall ball.

[ChicagoCrazy84]

unilateral? should they have taken a poll on dbr?

Yes, I think it would have been the appropriate thing to do

No, but I'm just saying we went from being a deep team to an injury away from being in trouble because I don't think Murphy was ever an option to play in the perimeter.

[mr. synellinden]

It's 5 games into his freshman season. We have played some very good teams so far. It is a big transition for a freshman - not all freshmen are a Sulaimon or a Singler.

Remember Elliot Williams? Sometimes it takes a while for things to click. Let's be patient and trust that Coach K knows when his players are ready to play meaningful minutes. He's proven that for 30 years.

[OldPhiKap]

It's 5 games into his freshman season. We have played some very good teams so far. It is a big transition for a freshman - not all freshmen are a Sulaimon or a Singler.

Remember Elliot Williams? Sometimes it takes a while for things to click. Let's be patient and trust that Coach K knows when his players are ready to play meaningful minutes. He's proven that for 30 years.

Very logical post. Which is to say, it does not belong on an Internet fan site.

{Panic. Immediate gratification. Know better from my couch.}

[DukeVu]

It's 5 games into his freshman season. We have played some very good teams so far. It is a big transition for a freshman - not all freshmen are a Sulaimon or a Singler.

Let's see, who coaches Duke's Big Men -- Hmmm, could that be Wojo who has had him for almost two years now?

[CDu]

It's 5 games into his freshman season. We have played some very good teams so far. It is a big transition for a freshman - not all freshmen are a Sulaimon or a Singler.

Remember Elliot Williams? Sometimes it takes a while for things to click. Let's be patient and trust that Coach K knows when his players are ready to play meaningful minutes. He's proven that for 30 years.

He's only sort of a freshman though. Sure, he's a freshman in terms of eligibility. But in terms of experience he is more than that. He's had a season's worth of practice and several exhibition games over two years. So it's not like he's this fresh out of high school kid.

The reality is that, with Cook, Curry, and Sulaimon on the perimeter and Plumlee and Kelly in the frontcourt, there are a limited number of minutes to be had. Basically, there are about 20 frontcourt minutes and 30-35 perimeter minutes to be had.

Murphy is competing with a scrappy junior who is very good at team defense and has earned the trust of Coach K (Thornton) on the perimeter. He's (in theory) more talented, but he hasn't shown that talent yet. But unless he really steps up or one (or both) of Jefferson and Thornton falter, he's just not going to get minutes, because there just aren't minutes available.

This is the reality of the way Coach K does things. He likes a 7-8 man rotation, where he plays his best 7-8 guys, and his best 5-6 get the vast majority of those minutes. We've had 1,000+ point scoring seniors get relegated to mop-up minutes under Coach K. If Murphy starts getting real minutes, that means somebody else is going to be relegated to less than 5 minutes per game, because the main guys are still going to get 30+ minutes per game.