Summer grinds!

[Troublemaker]

Man I love this kid already! And he may end up being my favorite recruit in this loaded group we have coming in. Power, grace, he is looking good. I have a sneaky feeling he could be much better than many realize/predict before all is said and done. Man our interior group this year appears to be locked and loaded for bear! Those perimeter guys best be bringing their A game night in and night out if they want to see the floor because with this talent, K it going to have to think harder than normal about running with just one big on the floor.

(NewtDawg14 ducks as all the thrown sneakers coming flying toward his head from the DBR folks that love small ball and believe K will always go small no matter what!)

While Coach K typically ends up using a stretch PF in his predominant lineup, I'm a believer that this season will likely be an exception. There's just too much traditional big talent that I don't even think there will be a close split like 60/40 between big and small lineups. I think it'll be more like 90/10 with Tatum playing PF about 10% of the time when appropriate, e.g. as part of a free throw shooting lineup to close out a game. There's enough positive offseason chatter about Jeter that I do think we end up rotating 4 big men like we did in 2010 with Zoubek-Thomas and Plumlee-Plumlee. In fact, that's pretty much my vision/hope for this year's team -- that we'll be a more athletic, more talented, deeper version of the 2010 national champs, including having big men that crush opponents on the offensive glass and the difference being that Giles, Jefferson, Bolden, and Jeter will provide more points than the 2010 guys. That the bigs can be piano players, too, not just piano movers, to use Bob Ryan's great analogy from 2010.

[flyingdutchdevil]

While Coach K typically ends up using a stretch PF in his predominant lineup, I'm a believer that this season will likely be an exception. There's just too much traditional big talent that I don't even think there will be a close split like 60/40 between big and small lineups. I think it'll be more like 90/10 with Tatum playing PF about 10% of the time when appropriate, e.g. as part of a free throw shooting lineup to close out a game. There's enough positive offseason chatter about Jeter that I do think we end up rotating 4 big men like we did in 2010 with Zoubek-Thomas and Plumlee-Plumlee. In fact, that's pretty much my vision/hope for this year's team -- that we'll be a more athletic, more talented, deeper version of the 2010 national champs, including having big men that crush opponents on the offensive glass and the difference being that Giles, Jefferson, Bolden, and Jeter will provide more points than the 2010 guys. That the bigs can be piano players, too, not just piano movers, to use Bob Ryan's great analogy from 2010.

I like your analysis, but I just don't believe. I believe that our frontcourt is loaded, and with a Healthy Harry, Jefferson, Bolden, and Jeter, it's formidable. A lot of really good players there. And I agree that Tatum will start at the 3 and play plenty of minutes there. But, like 2015, I suspect that Tatum will play plenty of minutes at the 4 and potentially even start there (like Winslow moving to the 4). Tatum is the perfect "Coach K Stretch 4" - tall, lanky, 3pt specialist... he's gonna be a star!

I also don't think your comparison to 2010 is apt; in 2010, we had 4 backcourt players, one of whom was a complete one-trick pony (Dawkins. Although that one-trick got us past Baylor!). This year, it's an embarrassment of riches: Allen (best returning player), Kennard, Jones, Jackson, and Tatum. It's pretty spectacular. My guess is that Coach K will be like Coach K and play his backcourt more than we think. I believe Jones, Tatum, and Kennard will all play some 3, and Tatum will play plenty of 4.

And speaking of Tatum, I think he's the most underrated player at Duke this year. Unlike Giles (deserved), Allen (deserved), and even Bolden (late committing recruits always get plenty of press), I feel like Tatum is very under-the-radar, and that's coming from the 3-4 best freshman in the class. He reminds me of a more physical, more athletic Rodney Hood (I understand the negative against Tatum is athleticism, but I think he's much more athletic than scouts give him credit for).

[MChambers]

Those perimeter guys best be bringing their A game night in and night out if they want to see the floor because with this talent, K it going to have to think harder than normal about running with just one big on the floor.

(NewtDawg14 ducks as all the thrown sneakers coming flying toward his head from the DBR folks that love small ball and believe K will always go small no matter what!)

The perimeter guys will get their minutes when K goes to the delay game.

[Ichabod Drain]

I like you're analysis, but I just don't believe. I believe that our frontcourt is loaded, and with a Healthy Harry, Jefferson, Bolden, and Jeter, it's formidable. A lot of really good players there. And I agree that Tatum will start at the 3 and play plenty of minutes there. But, like 2015, I suspect that Tatum will play plenty of minutes at the 4 and potentially even start there (like Winslow moving to the 4). Tatum is the perfect "Coach K Stretch 4" - tall, lanky, 3pt specialist... he's gonna be a star!

I also don't think your comparison to 2010 is apt; in 2010, we had 4 backcourt players, one of whom was a complete one-trick pony (Dawkins. Although that one-trick got us past Baylor!). This year, it's an embarrassment of riches: Allen (best returning player), Kennard, Jones, Jackson, and Tatum. It's pretty spectacular. My guess is that Coach K will be like Coach K and play his backcourt more than we think. I believe Jones, Tatum, and Kennard will all play some 3, and Tatum will play plenty of 4.

And speaking of Tatum, I think he's the most underrated player at Duke this year. Unlike Giles (deserved), Allen (deserved), and even Bolden (late committing recruits always get plenty of press), I feel like Tatum is very under-the-radar, and that's coming from the 3-4 best freshman in the class. He reminds me of a more physical, more athletic Rodney Hood (I understand the negative against Tatum is athleticism, but I think he's much more athletic than scouts give him credit for).

At this point I wouldn't call Tatum a three point specialist. From all the stuff I've read on him he hasn't shown consistency from that range yet. In his last EYBL season (2015) in 22 games he only attempted 23 threes and only made four of those. He has an excellent mid-range game but I'll be pleasantly surprised if he's a good/great shooter from deep this year.

[flyingdutchdevil]

At this point I wouldn't call Tatum a three point specialist. From all the stuff I've read on him he hasn't shown consistency from that range yet. In his last EYBL season (2015) in 22 games he only attempted 23 threes and only made four of those. He has an excellent mid-range game but I'll be pleasantly surprised if he's a good/great shooter from deep this year.

Excellent point. But he does have a complete mid-range game, and his FT % is 88%. There is a belief that FT% is a better indicator of 3pt potential than actual 3pt % (It's why scouts were so critical of Winslow's 3pt shot despite shooting ~40% in college. Turns out the scouts were right). I just hope that Jayson can find his 3pt shot in college.

[Ichabod Drain]

Excellent point. But he does have a complete mid-range game, and his FT % is 88%. There is a belief that FT% is a better indicator of 3pt potential than actual 3pt % (It's why scouts were so critical of Winslow's 3pt shot despite shooting ~40% in college. Turns out the scouts were right). I just hope that Jayson can find his 3pt shot in college.

The concerning thing is (ok not that concerning since we will still be extremely talented and shouldn't have much problem scoring) that if Tatum doesn't find his three point shot next year and is playing most his minutes at the SF spot, then we would only have two three point threats on the court a lot of the time.

As you point out though, he is a terrific free throw and mid-range shooter so all signs would point toward him being able to shoot well from deep.

[MChambers]

The concerning thing is (ok not that concerning since we will still be extremely talented and shouldn't have much problem scoring) that if Tatum doesn't find his three point shot next year and is playing most his minutes at the SF spot, then we would only have two three point threats on the court a lot of the time.

As you point out though, he is a terrific free throw and mid-range shooter so all signs would point toward him being able to shoot well from deep.

Having only two long distance shooters on the court at a time will certainly be a big change for Duke. That and the backcourt defense are my two biggest concerns. Which is pretty nice, come to think of it.

[cato]

The concerning thing is (ok not that concerning since we will still be extremely talented and shouldn't have much problem scoring) that if Tatum doesn't find his three point shot next year and is playing most his minutes at the SF spot, then we would only have two three point threats on the court a lot of the time.

As you point out though, he is a terrific free throw and mid-range shooter so all signs would point toward him being able to shoot well from deep.

Lots of bigs. Potential to control the glass. Not many consistent 3P shooters.

That doesn't sound like Duke. That sounds like . . . ah, let's not go there.

[Troublemaker]

I also don't think your comparison to 2010 is apt; in 2010, we had 4 backcourt players, one of whom was a complete one-trick pony (Dawkins. Although that one-trick got us past Baylor!). This year, it's an embarrassment of riches: Allen (best returning player), Kennard, Jones, Jackson, and Tatum. It's pretty spectacular. My guess is that Coach K will be like Coach K and play his backcourt more than we think. I believe Jones, Tatum, and Kennard will all play some 3, and Tatum will play plenty of 4.

Well, that's why I described this team as being potentially a deeper version of the 2010 team. You don't see that comparison at all? The potential to rotate 4 bigs. A large power wing in Tatum/Singler. Potentially converting a shooting guard to point guard.

[kAzE]

Well, that's why I described this team as being potentially a deeper version of the 2010 team. You don't see that comparison at all? The potential to rotate 4 bigs. A large power wing in Tatum/Singler. Potentially converting a shooting guard to point guard.

Jayson Tatum and Lance Thomas are both 6'8", so I'm not sure we should really put Lance in the "true big man" category. He was more of a "Justise Winslow 4" in my opinion. The way he played, especially on defense, was more of a do-it all roamer type of guy, with Zoubek staying in the paint. So I think the 2010 team really only had 3 "true" bigs.

But given that our last 2 championships came while playing an undersized power forward, I like the idea of going with Tatum at the 4. If he can hold his own on the boards, that could be a real key to success this year.

[Troublemaker]

Jayson Tatum and Lance Thomas are both 6'8", so I'm not sure we should really put Lance in the "true big man" category. He was more of a "Justise Winslow 4" in my opinion. The way he played, especially on defense, was more of a do-it all roamer type of guy, with Zoubek staying in the paint. So I think the 2010 team really only had 3 "true" bigs.

But given that our last 2 championships came while playing an undersized power forward, I like the idea of going with Tatum at the 4. If he can hold his own on the boards, that could be a real key to success this year.

I think both Amile and Harry will be used in versatile ways defensively as well, and Lance was closer to them on an interior-perimeter spectrum than to Justise and Tatum, who are perimeter players. I'm a fan of smallball as well; I just think it will be used sparsely this season compared to previous seasons.

[kAzE]

I think both Amile and Harry will be used in versatile ways defensively as well, and Lance was closer to them on an interior-perimeter spectrum than to Justise and Tatum, who are perimeter players. I'm a fan of smallball as well; I just think it will be used sparsely this season compared to previous seasons.

You could be right, but most likely, it will come down to match ups. If having 2 big guys in the game will give us an advantage, that's probably what we will do. If going small benefits us, then we will probably do that. Having the type of quality depth we have is a luxury that affords us the ability to play whatever style makes sense: big, small, fast, slow, zone, M2M, whatever will win games. No matter who we're playing against, there's going to be a lineup that we can use to exploit a match up. Can it be November now???

[Furniture]

https://mobile.twitter.com/Duke_MBB/...155520/video/1

Does anyone doubt if he loves Duke or not? Remember his words...

[flyingdutchdevil]

https://mobile.twitter.com/Duke_MBB/...155520/video/1

Does anyone doubt if he loves Duke or not? Remember his words...

Great talk! But that is an atrocious shirt he's wearing. That gray and that blue do not go together. Bilas - you see what happens when ESPN doesn't dress you?

[Edouble]

Great talk! But that is an atrocious shirt he's wearing. That gray and that blue do not go together. Bilas - you see what happens when ESPN doesn't dress you?

It's pretty bad. He also needs an undershirt. I thought he had a towel wrapped around his neck before I realized that was his chest hair.

[flyingdutchdevil]

Well, that's why I described this team as being potentially a deeper version of the 2010 team. You don't see that comparison at all? The potential to rotate 4 bigs. A large power wing in Tatum/Singler. Potentially converting a shooting guard to point guard.

I see some comparison, but we had no backcourt depth in 2010 that really restricted Coach K's options to play small ball. It completely worked out in the end, which is why I think 2010 is Coach K's best coaching job; he really deviated from his stretch 4 (and sometimes 5) that he is so accustomed to. Now? Coach K has 10x the number of options. He can go super small with Tatum at the 4 and Giles at the 5, or super big with Bolden and Giles/Jeter at the 4 and 5, respectively. He can have a line-up filled with 4 shooters (Grayson, Kennard, Jones, Tatum, [insert bigman]) or an offensive rebounding nightmare (Grayson, Tatum, Giles, Jefferson, Bolden. Okay, this won't be played, but it would be hilarious to watch!). In 2010, Coach K didn't have these options at all. Thomas could only play the 4, and the three Ss were really restricted to the 1-3 due to lack of depth.

I really think Coach K starts with the traditional, standard line-up of a PG (Grayson), a sharp-shooting SG (Jones), a versatile wing (Tatum), an athletic PF (Giles), and a center (Jefferson) but will revert back to his preferred "Coach K" line-up of a stretch 4 and an additional 3pt threat (Kennard or Jackson). Just my two cents.

[Troublemaker]

DBP posted a 23-second highlight clip from "Practice 1." I look forward to any over-analysis of the clip and might provide some myself later.



Technically, this "Practice 1" was:

• Maybe the first practice since Coach K returned or maybe the first practice since the school year started.
• Still an offseason practice, which the NCAA began to allow a few years ago. Official in-season practice starts at the end of this month, when teams up their level of activity significantly and being to practice regularly.

[kAzE]

So, nobody has been talking about him at all really, but Javin DeLaurier looks really good in all of these DBP videos. He looks extremely athletic (throwing down dunks WAY above the rim), and seems to have some skill shooting the ball out to the 3 point line, with pretty good form on his jumper. He probably won't get too much playing time this year, but I think it's evident that he's going to be really good player at some point down the line. His high school tapes didn't wow me in the same way, so it looks like he's really taken it up a notch this summer.

[flyingdutchdevil]

So, nobody has been talking about him at all really, but Javin DeLaurier looks really good in all of these DBP videos. He looks extremely athletic (throwing down dunks WAY above the rim), and seems to have some skill shooting the ball out to the 3 point line, with pretty good form on his jumper. He probably won't get too much playing time this year, but I think it's evident that he's going to be really good player at some point down the line. His high school tapes didn't wow me in the same way, so it looks like he's really taken it up a notch this summer.

I think this is very accurate, but a big reason no one is talking about Javin is that there is too much to look forward to this season, and there is a <1% chance that Javin sees meaningful playing time this year. Hell, no one is really talking much about Jeter, and he's a higher ranked player than Javin with a year under his belt and some really solid improvement (from Draft Express, who wrote a really nice piece about him). Our 2-5 positions are just too stacked to expect non-upperclassmen or highly ranked recruits (like Vrank, Robinson, Javin, or White) to make that big of an impact.

I see Javin as a more advanced Lance Thomas: similar size, high energy guy, defensive reputation, etc. The reason I say "advanced" is because Javin is shooting jumpers in his videos, which is LT in the NBA, not LT in college (well, he did shoot jumpers in college; they just weren't very effective). If Javin can be a rich man's LT, that really bodes extremely well for his junior and senior years.

[lotusland]

DBP posted a 23-second highlight clip from "Practice 1." I look forward to any over-analysis of the clip and might provide some myself later.



Technically, this "Practice 1" was:

• Maybe the first practice since Coach K returned or maybe the first practice since the school year started.
• Still an offseason practice, which the NCAA began to allow a few years ago. Official in-season practice starts at the end of this month, when teams up their level of activity significantly and being to practice regularly.

Grayson running in last place tells me he's either injured or sulking - possible transfer ???

Matt is clearly running the offense so mark him down for 30+mpg at point.

This team is going to shoot lights out but may struggle on D as I did not see a single stop.