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airowe
06-24-2009, 02:51 PM
While trying to figure out how to bring some positivity to this obviously negative day in the world of Duke Basketball, I thought it well to realize what we have and be thankful for it.

How amazing is it to have had a versatile player like Kyle Singler on the roster for the last two years and to have him come back for a third (at least.). In his Freshman year, while undersized, he was asked to play down low against players who had greater size and in many cases greater ability. Last season he played everywhere but the point and this year may very well do just that (atl least offensively.)

I can't remember a guy able to play anywhere on the court at a high level being at Duke. Ever.

Best wishes to E-Will and his family and here's to being positive.

camion
06-24-2009, 02:53 PM
I can't remember a guy able to play anywhere on the court at a high level being at Duke. Ever.



Grant Hill comes pretty close.

DevilCastDownfromDurham
06-24-2009, 02:54 PM
I can't remember a guy able to play anywhere on the court at a high level being at Duke. Ever.

http://blog.ingamenow.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/08/grant-hill.jpg

I also appreciate Kyle and am hopeful for what he can bring next season. :)

SupaDave
06-24-2009, 04:51 PM
I can't remember a guy able to play anywhere on the court at a high level being at Duke. Ever.

I seem to recall this Laettner fella...

airowe
06-24-2009, 04:59 PM
Point well taken guys. The just of my post still remains. We should be thankful that we have a guy who can play positions 1-5 on both sides of the ball.

COYS
06-24-2009, 04:59 PM
I seem to recall this Laettner fella...

Someone help me with this . . . Shane . . . what was his last name?

That being said, yes I am happy that we have a versatile player like Singler on the floor for us.

shadowfax336
06-24-2009, 07:00 PM
I think the fact that its so easy to fill in names of players that have been this amazing for us over the years makes us more prone to complain when things aren't perfect rather than appreciate what we have and the prospect of seeing how a team will grow and face challenges. We're not going to be a juggernaut next year, but I for one am excited to see what the team can become. :)

ACCBBallFan
06-24-2009, 07:38 PM
Not a bad year to have a guy as wily a Scheyer either, or a coach who can adapt, or two other seniors who know the Duke system, or a whole bunch of Mickey D's waiting for PT they will surely get.

Task of winning ACC is oibvously tougher but still in reach. Not a case of having to win the ACC tourney to get an NCAA berth.

Devilsfan
06-24-2009, 07:52 PM
Losing our two best athletes from last year I only hope we're not turning into Kansas. Good, big and white. I loved EW and am hoping everything turns out ok for his Mom. Wishing him and his family only the best. He'll aways be a Dukie to me. Thanks for last year Elliott!!!!

roywhite
06-24-2009, 09:06 PM
Curiosity

After the initial surprise, concern for Elliot's family, and disappointment for the effect on our team, I am now mostly wondering just how this 2009-10 team will fit together.

Coach K and his staff have to construct this team without some of the usual pieces, or at least a shortage of those pieces. It will take skill, determination, and patience on his part, and the players' part, for it to come together.

But it can be a very good team and just might be.

Stay tuned.

cspan37421
06-24-2009, 09:43 PM
Losing our two best athletes from last year I only hope we're not turning into Kansas. Good, big and white.

What?? :confused:

Is this the second time someone on this board has brought race into this situation? Someone else made a comment about how we have too few black players, etc. If so, IMO, this is ridiculous.

RelativeWays
06-24-2009, 10:34 PM
Besides, I'm sure he meant Wisconsin, not Kansas.

COYS
06-24-2009, 10:36 PM
What?? :confused:

Is this the second time someone on this board has brought race into this situation? Someone else made a comment about how we have too few black players, etc. If so, IMO, this is ridiculous.

I could understand how one could argue that it could become a perception problem if (a) Duke had never had more than a few black players in the past or if (b)Our three recruits already signed for next year weren't all African American

weezie
06-24-2009, 10:43 PM
One more time for the world....
Kyle, Nolan, Jon and Lance, four tested vets, four guys who are looking to win.
Four guys who aren't whining, believe that...........

BlueintheFace
06-24-2009, 10:54 PM
8 Man Rotation

Smith/ Scheyer
Scheyer/ Singler
Singler/ Kelly/ Plumlee1
Thomas/ Plumlee1
Plumlee2/ Zoubek

Spot Duty: Casey Peters and Jordan Davidson for foul trouble

1) we have done 8 man rotations before... a lot

2) Scheyer and Singler may be two All-ACC 1st team players. That's good enough for a decent season at the VERY LEAST.

3) All of our Freshman will get SERIOUS experience, and if we can keep Singler and Smith for 2010, our roster could look AMAZING. If you are a negative person, you can think of this next season as unprecedented training for Duke Freshman. How often do non-superstar (non- top10 recruit) Duke Freshman get the kind of minutes these guys are going to get? Think about this effect in the long run!

RelativeWays
06-24-2009, 10:59 PM
Speaking of optimism, this may be the first time in a loooooooong time that there is more hope and optimism for this season of Duke Football than the men's basketball team. I wonder if Thad would like to play guard his last year..........:D

jimsumner
06-24-2009, 11:23 PM
"Speaking of optimism, this may be the first time in a loooooooong time that there is more hope and optimism for this season of Duke Football than the men's basketball team."

I know what you're saying but I think this is a bit over the top. Most rational observers think .500 is a best-case scenario for Duke football this season. I'm pretty sure .500 isn't the best-case scenario for Duke basketball.

rthomas
06-24-2009, 11:32 PM
Let's Go, Duke!

RelativeWays
06-24-2009, 11:32 PM
Well the ceilings for each team are different because of past success (or lack thereof). Duke Football could finish 5-7 and most of us fans would be pretty happy with that. The Bastetball team could have another 22-11 season (which given our current roster situation would be pretty good) but it would be considered as yet "another sign of Duke decline". But the main point here is optimism, and there are currently more reasons to be optimistic about Duke football because they have a lot to gain, not much to lose, and honestly they have more room to fail. Only another 0-12, or 1-11 could be disasterous for Coach Cut. The bar of success is much higher for Coach K, due to not only his success but also the recent success of the evil ones down the road. Not exactly fair, but thats how it is. I'll be cheering for both teams, but I'm definitely more excited for football than basketball right now. I doubt I'm the only one who feels the same.

Hancock 4 Duke
06-24-2009, 11:34 PM
Optimism - let's see... Elliott's Mother all of a sudden gets fully recovered, he scores 22 ppg next season for Duke, and lives happily ever after. Then, Gerald Henderson gets outraged that he wanted to stay with Duke, and his name was mistakenly put in the draft. John Wall Transfers to Duke. We get Lance Stephenson. Roy Williams is fired, Travis and David Wear quit basketball for life. We win the NCAA and ACC Championship this season. Duke wins there bowl game in football. Pocius comes back. Paulus is suddenly allowed to play basketball for Duke again this year for some odd reason. McClure secretly applied for a redshirt last season and will play this year. Mason Plumlee scores more than he did in high school. Ryan Kelly goes 83-83 from the three next season. Casey Peters will be a beast. Czyz gets award for most dunks. NOTHING CAN GO WRONG!

shadowfax336
06-24-2009, 11:42 PM
Optimism - let's see... Elliott's Mother all of a sudden gets fully recovered, he scores 22 ppg next season for Duke, and lives happily ever after. Then, Gerald Henderson gets outraged that he wanted to stay with Duke, and his name was mistakenly put in the draft. John Wall Transfers to Duke. We get Lance Stephenson. Roy Williams is fired, Travis and David Wear quit basketball for life. We win the NCAA and ACC Championship this season. Duke wins there bowl game in football. Pocius comes back. Paulus is suddenly allowed to play basketball for Duke again this year for some odd reason. McClure secretly applied for a redshirt last season and will play this year. Mason Plumlee scores more than he did in high school. Ryan Kelly goes 83-83 from the three next season. Casey Peters will be a beast. Czyz gets award for most dunks. NOTHING CAN GO WRONG!

No offense but thats not helpful...
There really are genuine reasons for optimism.

For one we're returning 4 starters from a 30 win team. That as far as I can tell is historically a recipe for success. So is having a team that will be playing 3 seniors and 2 juniors heavily (and possibly, although most likely not starting all of them). Thats useful experience.

We add 2 McDonalds all americans to that mix, and if that was what we had started with, there would be reasons for optimism. Because we started with better or were teased by better, we're undervaluing what we actually do have I believe.

Clearly the 2 guard situation is a problem, especially if injuries occur. But I really believe that certain things are being taken for granted

El_Diablo
06-24-2009, 11:43 PM
Here's one reason for optimism:

http://www2.journalnow.com/content/2009/jun/24/williams-says-heels-lack-backcourt-depth/sports/

tommy
06-24-2009, 11:44 PM
Losing our two best athletes from last year I only hope we're not turning into Kansas.

Yeah, it'd be awful to be the consensus pre-season #1 in the nation with a deep, versatile, and veteran team returning, with no hint of any trouble with the NCAA.

RelativeWays
06-24-2009, 11:47 PM
and a top 5 recruiting class and a 2008 national championship. It sure would stink to be like Kansas.

zingit
06-25-2009, 12:07 AM
Here (http://img265.yfrog.com/i/g2c.jpg/)'s something to be optimistic about. (via the DukeBluePlanet twitter)

I will always enjoy watching our team learn and grow and try to overcome challenges, and hopefully come out better for it in 2011. But I enjoy watching us win even more.

ACCBBallFan
06-25-2009, 02:49 AM
8 Man Rotation

Smith/ Scheyer
Scheyer/ Singler
Singler/ Kelly/ Plumlee1
Thomas/ Plumlee1
Plumlee2/ Zoubek

Spot Duty: Casey Peters and Jordan Davidson for foul trouble

1) we have done 8 man rotations before... a lot

2) Scheyer and Singler may be two All-ACC 1st team players. That's good enough for a decent season at the VERY LEAST.

3) All of our Freshman will get SERIOUS experience, and if we can keep Singler and Smith for 2010, our roster could look AMAZING. If you are a negative person, you can think of this next season as unprecedented training for Duke Freshman. How often do non-superstar (non- top10 recruit) Duke Freshman get the kind of minutes these guys are going to get? Think about this effect in the long run! With Plumlee 1 now up to 245 pounds, I would change that MP1/MP2 rotation quite a bit and do it in terms of defender WF rather than offensive SF.

Smith/Scheyer but Scheyer runs the offense, limit turnovers
Smith/Singler one for dribble/drive other for shooting
Singler/Thomas two best tall wing defenders

with these four consuming all 120 minutes usually and rarely relegating Kyle/Lance to PF except at end of game stall ball if lance can hit FTs

PF Mason 6'11" /Kelly 6'10" taller and more offesnive threat than Lance, Kyle needed elsewhere for perimeter defense, Olek as needed.

C Zoubek 7'1" 280/ Miles 6'10" 240, Mason/Kelly as needed and against highly mobile centers like Monroe and Sims

with 6'7" 240 Olek Czyz filing in wherever needed in emergency.

Bob Green
06-25-2009, 05:00 AM
A couple of points from the every cloud has a silver lining perspective:

1. This is an opportunity for Nolan Smith to shine. He has demonstrated the skills: solid shooting stroke, excellent free throw shootin, fluid in the open court, and strong defensive presence. Now he has to step up and consistently execute for 30-35 mpg game after game after game.

2. The freshmen will have the opportunity to play right away. Ryan Kelly will see plenty of minutes to show off his perimeter range. He won teh McDonald's All-America 3-point shooting contest, but can he knock them down against Div 1 defenses? Mason Plumlee will play because Zoubek will probably be limited to 18 mpg.

Personally, I'm looking forward to seeing what type of freshman to sophomore progression Miles Plumlee makes.

ice-9
06-25-2009, 05:27 AM
How's this for half glass full?

Thank GOD Singler decided to come back for his Junior season. Can you imagine how questionable the team would've been next season without Singler?

Nolan
Scheyer
Thomas
Zoubek
MP1
MP2
Kelly
Olek

We'd only have two proven scorers. We'd have to play games and hope the total score doesn't exceed 100. We'd have to pray that our freshmen are ready to be studs.

gw67
06-25-2009, 08:02 AM
Count me among the optimistic fans for next year. The team returns five veteran players, two bench players who appear to have potential, and two outstanding recruits. They also have the best coach in the business and one of the best home court advantages in the country. Sure they may have an occasional matchup issue and they won't be the quickest team around but they have a number of talented players and the competition in the ACC (and nation) will be down next year, IMO. Further, it will be very interesting to see how Coach K and his staff put together the offense and defense for next year's team.

gw67

NSDukeFan
06-25-2009, 09:11 AM
Duke will not be a final four favorite next year or ACC championship favorite. I must say I would be very disappointed in a 22-11 season that I have seen posted by a couple of people. I expect Duke to be in the NCAA tournament and in the mix for the ACC title. I think we have a very realistic chance to be playing at least on the second weekend of the tournament. I agree with jyuwono that having Kyle back is huge. Having Jon, Lance, Nolan and Z will help as well.

I agree with Bob's most recent post for reasons for optimism as well. I agree it will be nice to see how much Miles improves from freshman year to sophomore. Especially after seeing the picture posted from Blue Planet twitter.:D

To add to Bob's post, Ryan and Mason were both McD's AAs not quite in the Favors, Wall, Bradley, Henry class of players, but not far from it. They have both been ranked in the top 20 of at least some of the recruiting sites. I have only seen their highlights and read about them, but I have to think, in a good class, these two could both be solid contributors. Yes, they are light, but skill does still have a place in basketball.

One exciting thing about college basketball as well is that these are kids and it is always fun to watch how players improve over their careers. I am looking forward to how each of our returning players improves over the summer. This is why I like college ball over the pros. Yes, I am perhaps too optimistic and we will have trouble defending teams with several quick perimeter players. Is there any possibility though that those teams may have trouble with a 6'3 quick guard matched up with Kyle? I'll take that matchup. Is it October yet?

NSDukeFan
06-25-2009, 09:31 AM
I just looked at this thread quickly and noticed that every poster on here except for the thread starter had posted quite a bit more than me and been a member longer than me. That doesn't seem to be the case in the non-optimistic posts. Coincidence?

Duke of Nashville
06-25-2009, 10:18 AM
Don't get me wrong I like winning just as much as anyone else. But I am not sure if we will see 30+ wins this year.

I am looking forward to next year more than I have in the past 2-3 seasons. It seems like we have alot of panic floating around the boards and I am really glad that this thread was started.

Come years end I think Duke is going to be in a position where they are going to have to be reckoned with. There may come a point where we are going to have match up problems on the defensive end but do you really think that K won’t exploit the same thing on the other end of the court?

We are going to be one of the tallest teams in the country and our bigs are extremely versatile, in the NBA there are perimeter players up to heights of 6'10. IMO I do not see K slowing down his game much and bringing in a NBA/European style of playing. But whatever K does Ill support.

I can not wait! I love Duke Basketball.

Go to Hell Carolina Go To Hell. Go Duke!

CDu
06-25-2009, 10:30 AM
How's this for half glass full?

Thank GOD Singler decided to come back for his Junior season. Can you imagine how questionable the team would've been next season without Singler?

Nolan
Scheyer
Thomas
Zoubek
MP1
MP2
Kelly
Olek

We'd only have two proven scorers. We'd have to play games and hope the total score doesn't exceed 100. We'd have to pray that our freshmen are ready to be studs.

Yes, that team would be quite bad. We'd have either Thomas, Czyz, or Kelly being forced to play substantial minutes at SG. And those same three would be playing all the minutes at the other wing. We'd have only one proven double-digit scorer on the roster. We'd have three post players on the floor at all times, so either Thomas would have to greatly improve as a shooter or we'd have a nightmare in terms of floor spacing.

In short, let's pray that Singler (or Scheyer or Smith) doesn't get hurt or sick at all this year.

SupaDave
06-25-2009, 12:02 PM
I just looked at this thread quickly and noticed that every poster on here except for the thread starter had posted quite a bit more than me and been a member longer than me. That doesn't seem to be the case in the non-optimistic posts. Coincidence?

What do YOU think? :)

Devil in the Blue Dress
06-25-2009, 12:57 PM
I just looked at this thread quickly and noticed that every poster on here except for the thread starter had posted quite a bit more than me and been a member longer than me. That doesn't seem to be the case in the non-optimistic posts. Coincidence?
Have you studied statics? I think of the term high positive correlation.

Scorp4me
06-25-2009, 01:12 PM
Well first off everyone has hated small ball and there is very little chance of that last year. I originally said zero, but I suppose he could play walk-ons and still do it. But the fact is while I'd love a more balanced line-up it will be nice to be the bigger team on the court this year. And the bigger guys we have in typical Duke fashion are very versatile.

Second, everyone always bemoans the incoming players who sit the bench. Well, very little chance of that as well. Again I orginally said zero, but he's used a very short bench before so he could, but I doubt it. We get to see the incoming players immediately, we get to see Lance in a more natural position, we've seen Kyle in the post now we get to see him on the perimeter, we get to see how much Zoubek has improved in 4 years (remember he was originally a bit of a project).

The fact is it's going to be a fun year if you can get past having a few more losses than usual. Hey K has always been an advocate of playing your best 5 as much as you can. Fouls, fatigue, situations, always change that some but still it makes sense. Our top 5 will still be very good. Not sure what our top 5 will be. It's the fouls, fatigue, and injuries at guard that could hurt us, but hopefully not too much. Luckily we have other guys who can walk, talk, and dribble at the same time too =)

Duke of Nashville
06-26-2009, 04:30 PM
I am looking forward to next year because it is going to be completely different than any other year for Duke Basketball. Finally, being on top every year got soooo old...not really...but in all seriousness we get to see Jon coming in for his senior year, see how Kyle adjusts to being the face of Duke basketball, and we get to see 2 freshman come in and play huge roles for us.

Jon is a senior and I don't have any doubt in my mind that he doesn't plan on losing to UNC...check that any ACC team again this year...not saying we are going undefeated in ACC play...but that is definitely his mindset.

Singler is our leader and will be the face of Duke Basketball next year. Dude is just straight up beast. Enough said.

Nolan Smith has the potential to come in next year and put it in everyone face that he is our PG and can produce synergy within this team.

Last year MP could have played major minutes for any other squad (other than UNC) and produce.

This year we get to see how far MP1 has come in from the off-season. Plus we get to see how MP2 lives up to the hype. There is going to be plenty of competition on this team there is no doubt about that. We are stacked with mobile forwards with plenty of PT to give away.

I hope that Cameron doesn’t take into these crappy attitudes that alot of the fans seem to have on these boards. I love Duke Athletics but it seems as if we have all become spoiled...yano what? We are in the position that we are in....and it's no ones fault....and let's make it into a hell of a year.

GO TO HELL CAROLINA GO TO HELL!

GO DUKE!