Coach had a lot to say concerning this seasons team, agents and many issues as he addressed the media about one hour ago. Here is a link to the entire interview via audio - http://bluedevilnation.net/2010/10/l...ses-the-media/
Thanks, Mark. Two things I heard in the interview that struck me:
(1) K said the plan is to pick up full court, or at least three-quarter court, most of the time;
(2) When he said Kyrie wasn't going to be the sole ballhandler, he mentioned that Nolan would have the ball in his hands, but did not mention Seth.
Interesting stuff.
According to K, Kyle is now 235!? Up from 217 apparently at this time last season. Wow! Should be interesting to see how that translates on the floor.
K really seemed to want to temper expectations, but at the same time he is very excited with what we have. I like how he said that if you expect perfection, you're going to be disappointed.
"Just be you. You is Enough."
Both Kyle and Nolan said they ran more this pre season than at any other time in their careers. I jokingly asked Nolan is he'd take the over or under on 90 ppg. Other players rolled their eyes when asked about running but all are game to fly up and down the court. Coach Wojo generally oversees the running drills and at times you'll feel as if you're watching a tennis match this season. I am pretty darn excited about the season and ready to tweet away from CIS tomorrow evening. We'll have more interviews coming, Josh Hairston is already up.
"Lance Thomas was as good as a leader as we've had in the last 10 years" - Coach K
That is an incredibly powerful statement if you think through the captains we've had in the last 10 years, namely Battier.
Loved the interview with K; great discussion of topics ranging from agent-player relationships, off-season work, team identity, and coaching strategy. Thanks Watzone for posting it here.
His take on agents was a twist. Despite the scandal down the road K remarked that there are a lot good people in that business, at least the ones that he knows. In stark contrast Roy remarked in his presser that he "hates" all of them. Though there may be good ones, they're good in a bad profession - according to Roy. I guess it's a little obvious that Roy is trying to distance himself from the whole situation publicly. I find the contrast interesting.
But back to Duke and K, it is always interesting to hear K put a different spin on things other than the obvious cliche we tend to hear from the general media. Thank you very much Watzone for putting this stuff up. I enjoyed the Hairston interview as well. I'm encouraged by the work he's put in already to get in shape and the results he's gotten already with his weight up to 227. Sounds like a very polite kid in the interview.
"Just be you. You is Enough."
Didn't read/hear about Roy's presser, but I guess he's handcuffed into saying something like that with all that's going on in UNC these days. Sure makes you wonder if that's a comment born out of frustration solely from the football fiasco. Though he vehemently denies any knowledge of wrongdoing regarding the bball team (and without proof, I think it's fair to give him the benefit of the doubt at this point), I wonder if he feels truly certain that nothing could be going on. That is to say, at the end of the day, would he bet his house on it?
Football players and basketball players talk. I'm sure many of the players naturally share friend circles. The whole thing K said about building a team culture is spot on. The UNC football culture was corrupt, from top to bottom. The UNC basketball culture? I'd like to think it's immune to such things.Time will tell.
Well, at some schools there seems to be almost a rivalry, so I'm not sure that's a safe assumption.
I found it interesting that Coach was saying this team has more OFFENSIVE talent than last year's team, but shouldn't say this team is more talented than last year's team that won 35 games and every banner they could. Obviously, this team's defense will be very different than last year's with a more extended perimeter pressure and as has been stated on this board many times, a lot will depend on how well the Plumlees, Ryan and Josh can learn to be in the right place with quick feet to challenge penetrators without fouling.
Thank you for sharing this Watzone.
“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.”
Many thanks to Watzone for link to the interview. Probably it's only because I'm a Duke fanatic, but to me, K is invariably very interesting.
Two things in particular got my attention, beyond what other posters have noted. First was his comment re "perimeter rebounding," a specific topic I don't recall being addressed in the numerous posts on '10-'11. I guess it might be vaguely related to concerns about a small 3-guard lineup on the floor at times, but even then, the concerns expressed have tended to be about, say, Seth being posted-up by a taller opponent. I think that accounts for the interest in Andre's possibly being a bit taller this season. Anyhow, the very phrase, "perimeter rebounding," just isn't a phrase one hears regularly.
And speaking of unusual phrases, K's ending comments comparing '09-'10 and '10-'11 on O and D concluded with the phrase "rationalizing defensive team." By this he referred to the '09-'10 team's clear understanding that they had to play excellent defense in order to win games. Because this season's team will be more explosive on O, K says he hopes our guys won't "rationalize" that they can win simply with great O; thus, he hopes they won't become "rationalizing defensively." I'm pretty sure that means he will remind them to adopt last year's close-to-perfect example of "playing every play," itself a phrase that fairly screams out: defense!
For all the obvious and justified excitement about whirlwind fast breaks, ankle-breaking crossovers, alley-oops, and 3-bombs, it's comforting to know that K is thinking about rebounding and defense.
Last season we were able to out-rebound our opponents and our offensive rebounding was outstanding. I hope we are able to do the same this season. Miles, Mason, Kelly, Josh, Kyle and the emphasis on perimeter rebounding can get the job done. Great job as always Mark. Go Duke!
I agree with both your statements. We will shoot a lot of 3's and we will play a 3 guard lineup at times. Kyrie, Nolan, Andre and Curry mean that 4 of our best players are guards. Then throw in Kyle as a perimeter player and you have a terrific shooting team. So there will be opportunities for long rebounds. Coach K will have the guards ready to pull in those long rebounds. Go Duke!