Andre Dawkins News!!!

[NYDukie]

Just scouring the sites and came across this potential great news from Jeff Goodman at FoxSports. I know it isn't officially confirmed but if anyone knows of any further hard facts, please pass it along!!!!

http://msn.foxsports.com/cbk/story/9812508/Sources:-Dawkins-cleared-to-play-for-Duke

[Kedsy]

Just scouring the sites and came across this potential great news from Jeff Goodman at FoxSports. I know it isn't officially confirmed but if anyone knows of any further hard facts, please pass it along!!!!

http://msn.foxsports.com/cbk/story/9812508/Sources:-Dawkins-cleared-to-play-for-Duke

After reading the article I had to check the calendar to make sure it wasn't April 1.

[NYDukie]

After reading the article I had to check the calendar to make sure it wasn't April 1.

I did a double take when I went to the FoxSports College B Ball page...LOL I'm still not sure whether to fully believe this or not????

[Oriole Way]

If this is true (how does a high school junior already have enough credits to graduate?), this is AWESOME news.

[airowe]

Is this fo real????? If so, it's the best news I've heard all day. If not, I hate Goodman.

[airowe]

If this is true (how does a high school junior already have enough credits to graduate?), this is AWESOME news.

Could this be how?


Dawkins averaged 22 points per game this past season at Atlantic Shores Christian in Virginia. He spent his freshman season at Deep Creak High (Va.) before repeating his freshman season at Atlantic Shores, where he, according to one source, has a 3.2 GPA.

[Oriole Way]

If this is true (how does a high school junior already have enough credits to graduate?), this is AWESOME news.

I guess I'll answer my own question...

"Dawkins averaged 22 points per game this past season at Atlantic Shores Christian in Virginia. He spent his freshman season at Deep Creak High (Va.) before repeating his freshman season at Atlantic Shores, where he, according to one source, has a 3.2 GPA."

So he repeated a year... I guess he could have been a HS senior this season anyway.

[roywhite]

There had been some whispers about an "August surprise".

Wonderful news!

He can help the 09-10 team a lot, IMO.

[Welcome2DaSlopes]

This has to be to good to be true idk i hope it is

[airowe]

Will he still have time to recruit if he's on the squad?

[BigTedder]

its a good day to be a devil
:D

[Newton_14]

So is this for real? Has anyone from Duke confirmed that Dawkins is in fact enrolling and will play THIS season??

If so, this is Christmas in July and our backcourt just got a huge boost! I am dying to see a press release or something to confirm this.

I am almost scared to allow myself to think this anything more than wishful thinking...:confused:

[Oriole Way]

So is this for real? Has anyone from Duke confirmed that Dawkins is in fact enrolling and will play THIS season??

If so, this is Christmas in July and our backcourt just got a huge boost! I am dying to see a press release or something to confirm this.

I am almost scared to allow myself to think this anything more than wishful thinking...:confused:

I'm no authority whatsoever, but a lot of respected posters on the Scout board who have sources fairly close to the program have apparently known about this for weeks. This looks to be true.

I'm very happy about this, and I think next year's team will be about 3-5 wins better with Dawkins than it would have been otherwise. An injury to Nolan or Jon won't be nearly as devastating, although obviously injuries to any of the guards will still be a major concern.

[Scorp4me]

Well this obviously can't be true. Coach K doesn't have near the time to get the logistics of something like this worked out while coaching Team USA.:rolleyes:

That's sarcasm. As in, even an unfocused Coach K is better than 99% of the others out there, lol.

[Greg_Newton]

:eek:Everyone cross their fingers and don't uncross them until we have a confirmation. I know everyone was starting to like Andre already, but if this is (knock on wood) true, it's going to elevate him to hero status among the faithful.

Here's to hoping that nickname comes a little sooner than we expected...

[Newton_14]

I'm no authority whatsoever, but a lot of respected posters on the Scout board who have sources fairly close to the program have apparently known about this for weeks. This looks to be true.

I'm very happy about this, and I think next year's team will be about 3-5 wins better with Dawkins than it would have been otherwise. An injury to Nolan or Jon won't be nearly as devastating, although obviously injuries to any of the guards will still be a major concern.

Awesome.. A definite boost to the team in more ways than one! I checked ESPN and GODUKE.Com but nothing yet. But reading the Goodman article it looks promising and I guess he scored the big scoop before anyone else. I assume it will get confirmed shortly.

The karma is changing.. Seth Curry to Duke, lose E-Will but then "The Negotiator" comes a year early... loving it!!

[BlueintheFace]

Yeaaaaaaah!!!

[gep]

Like Coach K said they "knew" about E-Will's situation when they recruited him... does anyone think maybe Coach K (and staff) knew that this was possible with A.Dawkins? Holy smokes... what a change in fortune:D

[roywhite]

http://www.dailypress.com/sports/dp-spt_teel_0716jul16,0,7473385.column

Another mention. Looking good.

[FireOgilvie]

Wow. If this is true, Andre Dawkins is the man.

[jipops]

http://www.dailypress.com/sports/dp-spt_teel_0716jul16,0,7473385.column

Another mention. Looking good.

why is that article dated tomorrow?

[BlueintheFace]

January-March:

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

Mix and match large players as needed.

8-man rotation?

[roywhite]

why is that article dated tomorrow?

Son, way back in the old days, we used to have daily newspapers that would be on people's doorsteps early every morning. Well, we'd work all evening on stories; some would be finished before midnight, and some right up till 2:00 the next morning.

It's the Thursday, July 16 edition of that newspaper.

[airowe]

This also opens up another scholly for the 2010 class.

Only if he is a one and done.

[miramar]

If this turns out to be true, I expect the following reaction from John Feinstein:

"Duke's hopes for a monster 2010 recruiting class were dashed when guard Andre Dawkins elected to attend the university a year early, a decision he took so that he could finish before Coach K completely abandons the team to coach in the Olympics."

[roywhite]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cFSBQaskzA0

Dawkins has an intriguing combination of run/jump athleticism and long-range shooting ability.

[Bob Green]

why is that article dated tomorrow?


Son, way back in the old days, we used to have daily newspapers that would be on people's doorsteps early every morning. Well, we'd work all evening on stories; some would be finished before midnight, and some right up till 2:00 the next morning.

It's the Thursday, July 16 edition of that newspaper.

It is the 16th in my neighborhood. :D

Seriously, the site servers are probably set to run off of GMT.

[RainingThrees]

Only if he is a one and done.

True but it also gives us more room at the guard spot for that class and we won't have too many 2's coming in at once.

[roywhite]

True but it also gives us more room at the guard spot for that class and we won't have too many 2's coming in at once.

Coach K always talk about spacing. He just had to make a few adjustments. :)

[DevilCastDownfromDurham]

Well this obviously can't be true. Coach K doesn't have near the time to get the logistics of something like this worked out while coaching Team USA.:rolleyes:

That's sarcasm. As in, even an unfocused Coach K is better than 99% of the others out there, lol.

Happily, he's NOT coaching Team USA this season. This is AMAZING news. A deadly shooter and great athlete, Dawkins gives us so many more weapons. It's funny that we'll have Dawkins a year early while Seth can't play until next season. Still, if this holds up I'm much more optimistic about next season. :)

[airowe]

Coach K always talk about spacing. He just had to make a few adjustments. :)

Love it.

[airowe]

True but it also gives us more room at the guard spot for that class and we won't have too many 2's coming in at once.

I would be ecstatic if we had too many 2's coming in 2010.

[moonpie23]

any way at all we could get something resembling an official nod on this?

[Welcome2DaSlopes]

This makes me wish E-mail somehow came back even more

[airowe]

How's this to whet your whistle?

http://bluedevilnation.net/?p=2473


Andre Dawkins torched the nets for 36 points and added 9 rebounds:D

[DukeCO2009]

Please let this be true. I just went from terrified about next season to incredibly pumped for it. GO DUKE!

[jagee44]

This has been done before. Greg Echnique did this last year.

[roywhite]

This makes me wish E-mail somehow came back even more

Does this happen if Elliot hadn't transferred?

Yeah, I'd like to see Dawkins' plans confirmed, and I'm interested to hear the story behind this. Did the Duke staff plant the seed, or perhaps add some encouragement to an idea Dawkins himself had?

[sivartrenrag]

Strangely, this makes me more excited about 2010 than 2009... imagine Dawkins after a year of development in the ACC, Seth Curry coming in, possible Singler as a senior, MP1, MP2, Kelly, Nolan after more time for development, and the other two members of our (already) great 2010 class... then (I'm crossing my fingers) Barnes and another major recruit?

Wow.

Not to mention it makes next year seem quite nice, as well. I've suddenly become an optimist :D

But before I get too excited I'll wait to see if this is even true ;)

[Welcome2DaSlopes]

Does this happen if Elliot hadn't transferred?

Yeah, I'd like to see Dawkins' plans confirmed, and I'm interested to hear the story behind this. Did the Duke staff plant the seed, or perhaps add some encouragement to an idea Dawkins himself had?

Yea idk if he would have came if Elliot was still here, but i think Elliot might have stayed if we had another guard.

[roywhite]

This has been done before. Greg Echnique did this last year.

Not exactly the same, but Mike Gminski did this in 1976.

[_Gary]

If this happens it certainly changes my expectations for next season, which were not good heading in. No doubt that Andre is a huge fan favorite next year just for saving our bacon (depth wise) if he does enroll in the fall. And it would be about time for something good to happen after some of the bad breaks this program has had recently. :)

Gary

[Welcome2DaSlopes]

I am very happy to hear this news but at the same time i am a little worried about how this will make over 2010 class now. I just hope this works out for the better

[DukeBlood]

I am very happy to hear this news but at the same time i am a little worried about how this will make over 2010 class now. I just hope this works out for the better

The 2010 class still rests on Harrison Barnes shoulder. Not to mention a PG of high quality.

Im sitting here trying to fathom this line-up

Nolan Smith
Seth Curry
Andre Dawkins
Mason Plumlee
Miles Plumlee

Of course that line-up could change due to Ryan Kelly being a prolific "3". Or perhaps a highly touted freshman.. *cough Harrison Barnes cough*

[Lord Ash]

Wow. What FANTASTIC news. Honestly I was far more terrified about this upcoming season than any other season in memory, simply because of having so few bodies at guard. This is just great, great news; time to go make Andre on the XBOX and play a few games! :D

Yay!

[RazzyBailey31]

It's true. HUGE news. Also opens up another ship for the 2010 class. Never count out K.

[COYS]

I am very happy to hear this news but at the same time i am a little worried about how this will make over 2010 class now. I just hope this works out for the better

This is great news, especially if the staff feels that Dawkins is ready to compete in the ACC right away, which I'm sure they are. The fact that he repeated a year and is essentially graduating with his original high school class is a big factor, I'm sure. As for 2010, I'm not sure why you'd be worried about the class other than the fact that the scout.com ranking will no longer be as lofty, lest we land two of our other top recruits. I agree with other who feel that this improves our prospects for this year and beyond immensely. Next year will feature a formidable team with a lot of veteran leadership in Scheyer, Smith, Singler, Zoubs, and Thomas plus some great young talent in Kelly, Plumlee 2, and now Dawkins. In 2010, we'll be better equipped to handle Kyle's departure if he does leave for the NBA as Dawkins will already have a year under his belt, Curry will be as close as you can get to a veteran who still has three years of eligibility left, Smith will be a senior, and the Plumlees plus Kelly will be able to hold down the post. This is, of course, assuming we fail to land anyone else for 2010. If we land Barnes or another top target, we've basically got the same team we would have had if Dawkins had stayed with the class of 2010 except that the 2010 class will join a better and more experienced Dawkins.

If anything, I'd say this makes our '09 class look really good. I'm not sure where Dawkins would be ranked in '09 but I'm sure he'd be ranked as another five star recruit (or close, anyway) along with Kelly and Plumlee.

[Greg_Newton]

But it's funny how this makeshift graduating class of 2013 could be turning into one of our best classes in a long time... Mason Plumlee, Ryan Kelly, Seth Curry, and Andre Dawkins? Jeez, and we thought next year would be the big-time class!

[Azdukefan]

This is the best information I may have ever heard.

[FireOgilvie]

Also opens up another ship for the 2010 class.

No...

If anything, it opens up another scholarship for 2013-2014 (assuming he stayed 4 years).

[RainingThrees]

So how much does Singler play on the perimeter after we take Dawkins into account?

[Bob Green]

Also opens up another ship for the 2010 class.

It does not open up another scholarship. The scholarship cap is 13. Whether Dawkins matriculates in 2009 or 2010 has no effect on the total number of scholarships that are available in 2010.

[socaldukie]

talk about interesting (or unbelievable) developments..I almost fell off my chair when I read the scrolling message on ESPN news...:cool:

[FireOgilvie]

So how much does Singler play on the perimeter after we take Dawkins into account?

I was thinking about that and I don't really think it changes much for Singler. I think that the vast majority (90%) of his minutes will be at the 3. We only have 3 guards (including Dawkins). I think that Dawkins' minutes will relieve Nolan and Scheyer from having to play 30-35 min/game, while also taking a few away from guys like Lance Thomas or Ryan Kelly at the 3. The only time we'll see Singler at the "4" is when Scheyer, Nolan, and Dawkins are all in at the same time (end of game free throw situations mostly), IMO.

[Kedsy]

So how much does Singler play on the perimeter after we take Dawkins into account?

Most (if not all) of the time. He was expecting to play almost exclusively on the perimeter when Elliot was still here.

Dawkins will probably take time away from somebody like Kelly (or possibly MP1), while also allowing Singler, Scheyer, and Smith to play fewer than 35 mpg.

(I apologize for saying pretty much the same thing as the previous post, which I hadn't read before I posted.)

[Carlos]

BTW - Andre Dawkins just gave up his sure fire chance to be a McDonald's All-American so that he could come to Duke a year early when the team really needed his help.

Hard to not love the kid.

[mo.st.dukie]

I was thinking about that and I don't really think it changes much for Singler. I think that the vast majority (90%) of his minutes will be at the 3. We only have 3 guards (including Dawkins). I think that Dawkins' minutes will relieve Nolan and Scheyer from having to play 30-35 min/game, while also taking a few away from guys like Lance Thomas or Ryan Kelly at the 3. The only time we'll see Singler at the "4" is when Scheyer, Nolan, and Dawkins are all in at the same time (end of game free throw situations mostly), IMO.

I agree, Coach K said it himself that even before Elliot transferred the plan was for Kyle to play primarily on the perimeter if not full time. The addition of Dawkins probably won't change that. I'm expecting the starting lineup to be unchanged (between having 2 guards and now 3 guards) with Smith, Scheyer, Singler, Thomas, Plumlee/Zoubek. Andre will probably mostly be used to spell Smith and Scheyer while Kelly will be used to spell Kyle at the 3.

[FireOgilvie]

BTW - Andre Dawkins just gave up his sure fire chance to be a McDonald's All-American so that he could come to Duke a year early when the team really needed his help.

Hard to not love the kid.

He would be a 5th year senior, thus ineligible for the McDonald's AA game. However, it's still hard not to love him :cool:

[Azdukefan]

For all of you that come on here and question Coach K and his ability to recruit and be innovative, take this and ponder how many other coaches on the planet could make this happen at a top tier academic university (I can count on zero fingers and zero toes). I think this places us back on top of the conference in the national hunt. While I would like to have them both, I would take a Williams for Dawkins trade eight days out of the week. Looking forward to 09-10.

[mo.st.dukie]

For all of you that come on here and question Coach K and his ability to recruit and be innovative, take this and ponder how many other coaches on the planet could make this happen at a top tier academic university (I can count on zero fingers and zero toes). I think this places us back on top of the conference in the national hunt. While I would like to have them both, I would take a Williams for Dawkins trade eight days out of the week. Looking forward to 09-10.

It's basically trading defense for offense, Elliot probably being the better defender of the two and Andre having more offensive firepower. They are both very explosive leapers with somewhat shaky handles.

[Azdukefan]

It's basically trading defense for offense, Elliot probably being the better defender of the two and Andre having more offensive firepower. They are both very explosive leapers with somewhat shaky handles.

While I am quite sure Dawkins is more skilled offensively, I am not sure that Elliot is that much better defensively. I guess we will see. At this point the addition of Dawkins is more than any of us could have dreamed of. It was only a few hours ago I was watching youtube clips of a walk-on and hoping he could be our answer. Believe me, AD is no walk-on (regardless of how good that walk-on is).

[RainingThrees]

The main weakness that I hear in Andre's game is his ball handling, while most articles say his defense has improved and is continuing to improve.

[FireOgilvie]

The main weakness that I hear in Andre's game is his ball handling, while most articles say his defense has improved and is continuing to improve.

Yep, ball handling and mid-range game.

He's going to really tough to guard when he develops a mid-range game... a lot like Gerald in this last year, with perhaps a slightly better 3 point shot (I'm not saying this will happen right away... maybe in a couple years).

If he develops his ball-handling, WATCH OUT... he's totally unstoppable. :D

[Greg_Newton]

BTW - Andre Dawkins just gave up his sure fire chance to be a McDonald's All-American so that he could come to Duke a year early when the team really needed his help.

Hard to not love the kid.

Amen. Let's just say he'll receive a friendly reception wherever he goes on campus next year.

Still, it's also true that this is a very smart move for him personally as well as the program as a whole. This is a great opportunity to step in as a freshman and play guaranteed major minutes on a talented veteran squad, while at the same time negating any potentially negative draft implications coming from being a year old for his class. It will also give him an edge in 2010-11 when he could potentially be competing with Nolan, Curry, Thornton and (fingers crossed) a top PG and wing for minutes - Hargrave plays at a high level, but it's no substitute for a year in K's system against top college competition.

Plus, unless he steps on campus and forgets how to put one foot in front of the other, he'll be a fan favorite for life!

EDIT: new link, including a quote for Boo Williams that doesn't confirm the news, but does confirm that he WOULD be elligible if he chose to enroll this fall: http://www.highschoolhoop.com/recruiting-news/2009/07/breaking-news-duke-recruit-may-have-found-way-to-get-to-durham-early/

[DevilDan]

Sayyyyyyy WHAT ?

This could be huge, and put us back on schedule to challenge in March. Andre could be the player who COMPLETES us. I still say our two biggest keys are to get a savvy, disciplined, yet dynamic NOLAN at point (which will free up JON to get his 7-8 good looks from the "2"), and to have MASON be the all-out, nose-to-rim, passionate kick-butt player that helps shape our improved frontcourt.

Like all my brethren here, I next want to have AD in our stable officially, and start salivating over our prospects in four more months. Here's hoping the "crawler" I saw on ESPN News tonite on the west coast will turn out to be TRUE. I want to go to CONFIRMATION CITY with this one ! GO DUKE !

[socaldukie]

A great addition. But, let's remember he will still only be a freshman and a learning curve to follow. Obviously helps depth no matter what. PG still not resolved, but what a releief to have another in the guard spot for the upcoming year.

[jagee44]

Remember how much Ewill helped at the end of last year? And that was with SIX gaurds on scholies. This is HUGE

[ACCBBallFan]

I was thinking about that and I don't really think it changes much for Singler. I think that the vast majority (90%) of his minutes will be at the 3. We only have 3 guards (including Dawkins). I think that Dawkins' minutes will relieve Nolan and Scheyer from having to play 30-35 min/game, while also taking a few away from guys like Lance Thomas or Ryan Kelly at the 3. The only time we'll see Singler at the "4" is when Scheyer, Nolan, and Dawkins are all in at the same time (end of game free throw situations mostly), IMO.
Agreed - the real change is guard backup and Lance not restricted to only perimeter defender. Takes some pressure off both Mason/Kelly having to be immediately effective and each play min 20 MPG.

As long as one is mini-Singler freshman and the other is typical freshman not quite up to Singler/Hansbrough frosh year, good enough now.

Or takes some pressure off Miles and more Mason in post, if both frosh are ready and Miles needs more time.

Whatever few minutes Olek would have gotten just got smaller.

Zoubek can now be used 15 MPG rather than previously hoping to get 20 MPG out of him. Lance can be closer to 20 MPG rather than hoping to get 25-30 MPG out of him. Dawkins plays 10-15 MPG as much as 20 usually 5 for Jon and 10-15 for Nolan.

[SMO]

BTW - Andre Dawkins just gave up his sure fire chance to be a McDonald's All-American so that he could come to Duke a year early when the team really needed his help.

Hard to not love the kid.

As a wise man (who always wore gloves) once said, "I love it when a plan comes together."

[roywhite]

I live nearly 100 miles from Chapel Hill, but I believe I detect a sound of teeth being gnashed and curses being uttered. :)

[CDu]

Obviously, we don't know if it's true or not, but I'm fighting myself from getting too excited before we hear it is official. This would be absolutely fantastic news for the 2009 season (and the 2010 season as well).

I'm assuming next-to-nothing about the abilities of Dawkins. Even if he's less than ready (which I hope isn't the case), the addition would be huge for no other reason than the fact that he could give us 15-20 minutes. That would be 15-20 minutes of a quick guy on the perimeter. It's 15-20 minutes that we can give Scheyer/Smith rest and protect them from foul trouble. It would be 15-20 minutes that Singler doesn't have to play the 2 spot (where I think he'd be exploited in terms of quickness). And perhaps most importantly, it is 15-20 minutes that Kelly and Thomas don't have to play out of position on the perimeter (where I think Kelly would get exploited defensively and Thomas would be ineffective offensively).

If Dawkins comes, we would then see a team with basically everybody able to play a position at which they're comfortable. We'd still be thin at guard, but we wouldn't be critically thin. With Scheyer/Smith/Dawkins, we would have a true guard playing at the 1 and 2 spots for the entire game, and we could occasionally go with three guards.

And not to be forgotten, this would give us four scholarship-quality guards for practice. Without Dawkins, the team would be running 5v5's with a walk-on on the blue team.

And it would help beyond this year as well. Getting Dawkins a year of experience would aid with the backcourt continuity when Scheyer leaves. We'd then have Smith and Dawkins with a year (or three) of game experience, and Curry with a year of practice. The team should be a bit more fluid right away with that added experience.

I was/am pretty skeptical of how well we would do with only two guards on the active roster. So needless to say, I'd be VERY excited if this news is true.

[Matches]

Fantastic news - even if he's not ready to do anything other than play spot minutes in a reserve role, he will be a huge help to the team. And if he's ready to do more than that - our outlook for 2009-2010 improves substantially.

[bjornolf]

It's interesting to read how he compares to Williams, but I don't really care if he's a few percentage points better or not as good here or there. This is HUGE news that will really help the team either way THIS season. He helps fill a GAPING hole on this team. Plus, he'll be a year ahead next year and take some of the pressure off of next year's class.

[MChambers]

Obviously, we don't know if it's true or not, but I'm fighting myself from getting too excited before we hear it is official. This would be absolutely fantastic news for the 2009 season (and the 2010 season as well).

I'm assuming next-to-nothing about the abilities of Dawkins. Even if he's less than ready (which I hope isn't the case), the addition would be huge for no other reason than the fact that he could give us 15-20 minutes. That would be 15-20 minutes of a quick guy on the perimeter. It's 15-20 minutes that we can give Scheyer/Smith rest and protect them from foul trouble. It would be 15-20 minutes that Singler doesn't have to play the 2 spot (where I think he'd be exploited in terms of quickness). And perhaps most importantly, it is 15-20 minutes that Kelly and Thomas don't have to play out of position on the perimeter (where I think Kelly would get exploited defensively and Thomas would be ineffective offensively).

If Dawkins comes, we would then see a team with basically everybody able to play a position at which they're comfortable. We'd still be thin at guard, but we wouldn't be critically thin. With Scheyer/Smith/Dawkins, we would have a true guard playing at the 1 and 2 spots for the entire game, and we could occasionally go with three guards.

And not to be forgotten, this would give us four scholarship-quality guards for practice. Without Dawkins, the team would be running 5v5's with a walk-on on the blue team.

And it would help beyond this year as well. Getting Dawkins a year of experience would aid with the backcourt continuity when Scheyer leaves. We'd then have Smith and Dawkins with a year (or three) of game experience, and Curry with a year of practice. The team should be a bit more fluid right away with that added experience.

I was/am pretty skeptical of how well we would do with only two guards on the active roster. So needless to say, I'd be VERY excited if this news is true.

I too was very skeptical about next year, and think this would be wonderful news. Even with Dawkins, Duke would still be very thin in the backcourt and vulnerable to injuries and foul trouble, but if the perimeter players stayed healthy, Duke will be very good.

Harrison Barnes certainly seems like a great student. Any chance he's got enough credits to come to Durham next month and stay? (Before anyone jumps on me, I'm just kidding.)

[NSDukeFan]

Obviously, we don't know if it's true or not, but I'm fighting myself from getting too excited before we hear it is official. This would be absolutely fantastic news for the 2009 season (and the 2010 season as well).

I'm assuming next-to-nothing about the abilities of Dawkins. Even if he's less than ready (which I hope isn't the case), the addition would be huge for no other reason than the fact that he could give us 15-20 minutes. That would be 15-20 minutes of a quick guy on the perimeter. It's 15-20 minutes that we can give Scheyer/Smith rest and protect them from foul trouble. It would be 15-20 minutes that Singler doesn't have to play the 2 spot (where I think he'd be exploited in terms of quickness). And perhaps most importantly, it is 15-20 minutes that Kelly and Thomas don't have to play out of position on the perimeter (where I think Kelly would get exploited defensively and Thomas would be ineffective offensively).

If Dawkins comes, we would then see a team with basically everybody able to play a position at which they're comfortable. We'd still be thin at guard, but we wouldn't be critically thin. With Scheyer/Smith/Dawkins, we would have a true guard playing at the 1 and 2 spots for the entire game, and we could occasionally go with three guards.

And not to be forgotten, this would give us four scholarship-quality guards for practice. Without Dawkins, the team would be running 5v5's with a walk-on on the blue team.

And it would help beyond this year as well. Getting Dawkins a year of experience would aid with the backcourt continuity when Scheyer leaves. We'd then have Smith and Dawkins with a year (or three) of game experience, and Curry with a year of practice. The team should be a bit more fluid right away with that added experience.

I was/am pretty skeptical of how well we would do with only two guards on the active roster. So needless to say, I'd be VERY excited if this news is true.

I was a little bit more optimistic than you about the coming season with only Nolan, Jon and Jordan as true guards, but agree this would help us a ton. I also agree that we may want to temper expectations for how much of an impact (especially early) he could make as it is always a difficult transition and Dawkins would not have had the advantage Ryan and Mason have had of practicing and learning all summer at more of a college level.

I doubt very much that he would be able to have the same kind of impact as a frosh that Williams would have had as a sophomore, but I will take it. The advantage he has over Williams last year is that his position is much less crowded next year and I would expect him to play right away.

I hope this turns out to be true as this would give us a better opportunity to challenge for the ACC title and be a legitimate elite eight- top 12 contender. I was already very excited for next year, this would make me even moreso.

[arnie]

Don't you know the State fans are loving this. They lose their hope to academics and we hopefully pull one out of the hat at the last minute.

[miramar]

has a subscription article entitled "Dawkins to Duke Early."

[CDu]

I was a little bit more optimistic than you about the coming season with only Nolan, Jon and Jordan as true guards, but agree this would help us a ton. I also agree that we may want to temper expectations for how much of an impact (especially early) he could make as it is always a difficult transition and Dawkins would not have had the advantage Ryan and Mason have had of practicing and learning all summer at more of a college level.

I doubt very much that he would be able to have the same kind of impact as a frosh that Williams would have had as a sophomore, but I will take it. The advantage he has over Williams last year is that his position is much less crowded next year and I would expect him to play right away.

I hope this turns out to be true as this would give us a better opportunity to challenge for the ACC title and be a legitimate elite eight- top 12 contender. I was already very excited for next year, this would make me even moreso.

Well, I don't really count Davidson as an ACC-quality guard. He's practice filler and end-of-game minutes only as far as I'm concerned. Relying on him for meaningful minutes would be asking too much I think. But yes, if Dawkins came, he'd make us a legitimate contender again assuming he can provide 15-20 adequate minutes of D-1 ball.

HOWEVER, I just read the articles, and I'm reigning in my optimism a bit.

Specifically, I'm hesitant about quotes like this:


"Assuming this happens — and right now, it’s just a 'what if'"

and


“I haven’t talked to his father about all of it, but he’s eligible,” Williams told us. “It’s not definite. There’s no doubt in my mind that he’s ready to play. I haven’t talked to anyone on Duke’s staff about this, so I don’t know what their take on it is. Nobody knows for sure what the deal is, but he’s got the option. I think he wants to leave all of his options open.”

Based on those quotes, it sounds much less than a "likely" situation but rather a "wouldn't it be neat if" situation. Hopefully it materializes though. That'd be a big boost.

[roywhite]

has a subscription article entitled "Dawkins to Duke Early."

Doesn't tell us much more, but was along the lines of "will be going to Duke".

[El_Diablo]

:eek: Great news if it comes to fruition. A couple people said they would like to hear Duke confirm this, but we shouldn't expect some sort of huge announcement from the staff just yet.


College coaches cannot comment on prospects until they sign a letter-of-intent or enroll

Since the signing period has ended, the staff cannot publicly comment on Dawkins until he officially enrolls at Duke, which may take a little while to put together. I'm sure that a firestorm will be following Andre closely in the coming days, so we may get the official scoop from him soon enough.

[Saratoga2]

Great News if true. He would provide the depth we desperately need. Judging from the way most players sizes are reported, he may be 6'3" and 190. Those that have seen him play note that he is very athletic and a very good outside shooter. The negative comments seem to be about his ball handling and to a lesser degree about his defense. He is probably a stronger kid than Williams and that should help his defense. Haven't heard about his wingspan as compared to Williams who is quite long.

He would clearly get decent playing time right away and take some of the pressure off of Jon and Nolan. We should expect him to have typical freshman flaws but with practice and game time, his game should develop well and he could be quite solid by the time the ACC rolls around.

Looking forward to this coming to fruition.

[sagegrouse]

I am very happy to hear this news but at the same time i am a little worried about how this will make over 2010 class now. I just hope this works out for the better

First evidence in this string of the fan favorite sentiment that "every silver lining has a cloud." Still reading -- there'll probably be more.

sagegrouse

[calltheobvious]

The only thing that could make this better would be if it were three weeks ago and there were still time for Andre to get to campus and take a class or two in the second summer session.

I hope Dawkins has known about this for a while to give himself time to get mentally ready to be a Duke student and basketball player starting in September (August?).

Christmas in July is awesome.

[Olympic Fan]

Just to clarify -- El Diablo is absolutely right.

Duke can make NO official comment on Dawkins until he enrolls or signs a letter of intent. That's by NCAA rule.

And since he can't sign a letter of intent until November (the spring signing period ended in May), then the first opportunity for Duke to officially confirm this news will be when Dawkins enrolls -- I don't know the exact date, but it will be sometime in late August.

On the other hand, there are several more AAU events in July, including the AAU Nationals in Orlando. Dawkins will be participating. He's sure to be confronted with this news at his next event -- he can confirm or deny or dodge an answer if the outcome is still in doubt.

Either way, we'll know more then.

[sagegrouse]

Don't you know the State fans are loving this. They lose their hope to academics and we hopefully pull one out of the hat at the last minute.

Actually, doesn't Hargrave Military Academy gain a recruit (Lorenzo) and then lose a recruit (Andre)?

sagegrouse

[sagegrouse]

The best thing is that Duke gains a good player, which we need, especially on the perimeter.

The second best thang (altho' way, way back) is that this will return the Main Board to the real problem for next year -- who is going to contribute on the inside?

Although EWill's departure was like nails scratching across a blackboard, our best three players are outside players. The real question marks are on the inside. None of our inside players are proven contributors. So--

Zoubs? Will it finally come together? He was effective last year against teams with big inside players.

LT? Will he find an offensive game?

MP1? Looked promising at times but had terrible stats on TOs and fouls.

Czyz (which is Polish IIRC for "walks on water," or something)? Decent physical skills but can he figure out the game?

MP2? Freshman big man -- we'll see.

Ryan Kelly? Ditto, but may contribute on the outside.

sagegrouse

[Classof06]

If this news is true, then Duke really did dodge a bullet. I'm still a little unsure about how this will be able to get executed but I'm happy nonetheless. This is great.

My question is, why was he going to go to prep school to begin with? People, or at least the people I know, that go to prep school usually do so because they haven't gotten the kind of D-1 offers they want and need another year to showcase their skills and gain more exposure.

[AtlDuke72]

i think Elliot might have stayed if we had another guard.

What do you base this on? The only information I have heard is that Williams left due to an illness in his family.

[jesus_hurley]

My understanding is that he was going to go to prep school to get better competition athletically. he has like a 3.2 GPA so I think he is pretty set academically. Hopefully this is true and he can come in and contribute!

[BD80]

... Harrison Barnes certainly seems like a great student. Any chance he's got enough credits to come to Durham next month and stay? (Before anyone jumps on me, I'm just kidding.)

Nope. Coach K just burned his 13th scholarship on Dre (and 2 walk-on guards). Looks like we are just stuck with Singler, Lance and Kelly (and Olek?) at the "3" until Harrison can come and be a 2 time player of the year for Duke.


First evidence in this string of the fan favorite sentiment that "every silver lining has a cloud." Still reading -- there'll probably be more.

sagegrouse

How about how this affects the rating for our 2010 recruiting class? We just lost our top-ranked commit from that class!


Do I really have to indicate sarcasm?

How about the negative impact of Coach K convincing a kid to give up a year of high school education? Or:

Are we now good enough that we would underachieve to miss the final four?


Setting aside the sarcasm, it is amazing the type of young men that Coach K attracts to the program. Even the player we lost is making a sacrifice to be with his family. Now we have a player that can step up and leave high school a year early. Darn this is good news.

With reports of Nolan developing his dribble penetration, moving Kyle to the perimeter, and adding Dre, Kelly and Mason, this could be a truly exciting offensive team.

[gotham devil]

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/recruiting/basketball/mens/columns/story?columnist=biancardi_paul&id=4331588

If Dawkins were in the 2009 class when we ranked those players, I believe he would have been somewhere between 25-30 nationally. His presence also would have moved Duke up a spot or two in our final recruiting rankings  the Blue Devils finished ninth.

[vango]

"That void will largely be filled by Andre Dawkins (Chesapeake, Va./Atlantic Shores Christian), who on Wednesday has declared his intention to enroll at Duke in the fall."


He did? It's official? (I mean, according to Dawkins)

[CDu]

"That void will largely be filled by Andre Dawkins (Chesapeake, Va./Atlantic Shores Christian), who on Wednesday has declared his intention to enroll at Duke in the fall."


He did? It's official? (I mean, according to Dawkins)

Yeah, that's a big jump from "it's possible" and "Dawkins's family is exploring it." And there are no quotes at all from Dawkins or his family (obviously there won't be quotes from Duke). Seems dubious.

Part of me suspects this is a case of just jumping to the next step on the rumor mill. But part of me wonders if this "source" may really have more new information. In any case, the guy who broke the original story was on 620 during lunch and said it was not official, but that it was going to happen pending a formality.

[MADevil30]

"That void will largely be filled by Andre Dawkins (Chesapeake, Va./Atlantic Shores Christian), who on Wednesday has declared his intention to enroll at Duke in the fall."


He did? It's official? (I mean, according to Dawkins)

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/blog/index?entryID=4331592&name=katz_andy

Andy Katz has this article up which goes into a little more detail than the fox one. Sounds like it has been in the works since Eliot left and may have been initiated by Andre and his family and not by Duke. The article gives the impression that its a done deal assuming that Andre passes one final high school class this summer

[CDu]

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/blog/index?entryID=4331592&name=katz_andy

Andy Katz has this article up which goes into a little more detail than the fox one. Sounds like it has been in the works since Eliot left and may have been initiated by Andre and his family and not by Duke. The article gives the impression that its a done deal assuming that Andre passes one final high school class this summer

That's pretty similar to what Jason Jordan said on Bomani Jones's show during lunch. Jordan is the guy who broke the original story (as far as I can tell). He said that it was going to happen pending a formality (which could be Dawkins passing his last summer class).

I'm trying hard not to get too excited about what is still a rumor and may not come to fruition. But the possibility is certainly exciting.

[Poincaré]

If Harrison Barnes is the new Shane Battier (personality-wise, since their games are obviously different), then is Andre Dawkins the new Jason Williams (again, personality-wise)?

What an eager guy this Deadeye is. I get the feeling that Dawkins' personality alone will add something very nice to the team next year.

[Skitzle]

http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/blog/index?entryID=4331592&name=katz_andy

Andy Katz has this article up which goes into a little more detail than the fox one. Sounds like it has been in the works since Eliot left and may have been initiated by Andre and his family and not by Duke. The article gives the impression that its a done deal assuming that Andre passes one final high school class this summer

I think it's reasonable to believe that that this was in consideration before Elliot was thinking about leaving.

[Greg_Newton]

From the Katz article:
The source with direct knowledge said Duke wasn't rushing Hawkins to campus, but was pleasantly surprised his early admission was doable. The source said they were "shocked to find that he was that far along."Sounds like, if it comes to fruition, this situation really would be just an incredibly lucky break rather than some kind of ingenious behind-the-scenes backup planning by K. Come onnnn Andre, pass that summer class!!!

[duke5021]

Watzone from BDN hinted about a surprise about a month or so back and it's safe to say this was it. This has been in the works for awhile, but people like Watzone had to sit on it out of respect for the family.

There is still some final things that have to be done, but this is pretty much in the bag.

Welcome Dawk.

[roywhite]

Also from the Katz article:
"Dawkins won't be able to officially sign until November"

Uh, Andy...so after 3 months at Duke, one month of practice, and perhaps an exhibition game or two, then Andre goes down to the basketball office and signs an LOI??

Did Katz just mis-state that, or is that how he thinks it works?

[CDu]

Also from the Katz article:
"Dawkins won't be able to officially sign until November"

Uh, Andy...so after 3 months at Duke, one month of practice, and perhaps an exhibition game or two, then Andre goes down to the basketball office and signs an LOI??

Did Katz just mis-state that, or is that how he thinks it works?

I have to believe he either is referring to signing a letter of intent (which Dawkins can't do until November, right?) or he's just mistaken. If it's the former, I think it's a non-issue. If it's the latter, well, he's just mistaken.

Nobody else is referring to this being a situation in which Dawkins would arrive in January.

[roywhite]

I have to believe he either is referring to signing a letter of intent (which Dawkins can't do until November, right?) or he's just mistaken. If it's the former, I think it's a non-issue. If it's the latter, well, he's just mistaken.

Nobody else is referring to this being a situation in which Dawkins would arrive in January.

My point is that the LOI is unnecessary. Dawkins is offered admission, enrolls in August and signs the institutional financial aid arrangements.

[Kedsy]

My point is that the LOI is unnecessary. Dawkins enrolls in August and signs the institutional financial aid arrangements.

When I read the article I assumed he meant the LOI in November was the plan until he started thinking about enrolling early. Of course, I don't know Andy Katz so I can't say if my interpretation is accurate or not.

[CDu]

My point is that the LOI is unnecessary. Dawkins is offered admission, enrolls in August and signs the institutional financial aid arrangements.

Yeah, that's what I meant by "he's just mistaken." Like I said, if he's referring to the LOI, it's a non-issue (he would just enroll). If he's just mistaken in thinking that Dawkins can't commit until November, then he's just mistaken.

If he can come early, it would seem that the LOI is a non-issue. If he can't come early, then the earliest he can sign an LOI is November.

[Greg_Newton]

http://hamptonroads.com/2009/07/dukebound-basketball-player-mulling-options

Sounds like it might be another month of knocking on wood until there's anything official...
Dawkins’ father, also named Andre, said nothing has been finalized.

“We’re definitely looking at it, but it’s definitely premature,” he said. “I don’t know where people got that information from.”

Dawkins said he and his son, a 6-foot-5 guard, will know more by mid-August.

[Duke of Nashville]

Just my thoughts....

Andre Sr. sounds like he may be downplaying the whole situation in order to relieve a bit of pressure on his son. It is obvious that Deadeye Dawkins is taking a summer corse, a class that will more than likely put him in postition to be eligible for the Fall. Mid August also gives DD enough time to finish the final course and Duke Admissions to review.

Also just wanted to add..

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/recruiting/basketball/mens/columns/story?columnist=biancardi_paul&id=4331588

Paul Biancardi had some pretty optimistic thoughts about our season if DeadeyeDawkins does come to Duke early.

[MADevil30]

Yeah, that's what I meant by "he's just mistaken." Like I said, if he's referring to the LOI, it's a non-issue (he would just enroll). If he's just mistaken in thinking that Dawkins can't commit until November, then he's just mistaken.

If he can come early, it would seem that the LOI is a non-issue. If he can't come early, then the earliest he can sign an LOI is November.

With the passion Andre has shown so far for Duke in putting in his own effort on the recruiting trail and showing up a year early, I don't expect this to be an issue, but I believe that the national letter of intent has some impact on the transfer process should a player decide to leave. I can't remember a recent case in basketball, but it is not uncommon in football to hear that the school the player is departing puts restrictions on which schools they will allow the player to transfer to (ie not within the conference or to an out of conference rival). I believe this power comes from the letter of intent. If this is the case, I could understand why the school would ask Andre to sign even if an exhibition game or two is in the books. Again, I don't think this would ever be an issue with Andre.

[jipops]

Son, way back in the old days, we used to have daily newspapers that would be on people's doorsteps early every morning. Well, we'd work all evening on stories; some would be finished before midnight, and some right up till 2:00 the next morning.

It's the Thursday, July 16 edition of that newspaper.

I get that, I used to enjoy sitting and reading a morning paper in my day and I remember life quite vividly well before MTV. Just thought it was interesting it was dated July 16 at 9:40pm on the 15th. I thought the cutoff was later.

[CDu]

http://hamptonroads.com/2009/07/dukebound-basketball-player-mulling-options

Sounds like it might be another month of knocking on wood until there's anything official...

Yeah, it's amazing how this escalated from a "what if" scenario to a "gonna happen" scenario with basically no confirmation from the Dawkins family. I'm definitely hopeful that it comes true, but there's very little evidence to suggest it is true.

The tricky part is that, unless the Dawkins family confirms it, there isn't going to be any evidence until late August, when Dawkins would enroll. Duke basketball can't comment on the matter until he signs a LOI or enrolls.

[roywhite]

Yeah, it's amazing how this escalated from a "what if" scenario to a "gonna happen" scenario with basically no confirmation from the Dawkins family. I'm definitely hopeful that it comes true, but there's very little evidence to suggest it is true.

The tricky part is that, unless the Dawkins family confirms it, there isn't going to be any evidence until late August, when Dawkins would enroll. Duke basketball can't comment on the matter until he signs a LOI or enrolls.

What you say is true, but this has gotta be 99%+ likely. Duke and the family have been sitting on this one for a while.

This would be a tough genie to put back in the bottle.

[CDu]

What you say is true, but this has gotta be 99%+ likely. Duke and the family have been sitting on this one for a while.

This would be a tough genie to put back in the bottle.

Herein lies the question. Have Duke and Dawkins REALLY been sitting on this for a while?

I certainly hope that's the case, but we have nothing but internet speculation to this point.

[jimsumner]

roywhite is correct, Dawkins does not have to sign an LOI to practice and play.

Duke had a timeline in mind for this and Goodman in mid-July wasn't part of that timeline.

[CDu]

roywhite is correct, Dawkins does not have to sign an LOI to practice and play.

Duke had a timeline in mind for this and Goodman in mid-July wasn't part of that timeline.

I don't think anyone is questioning whether Dawkins actually has to sign a letter of intent first. At least for me, I'm just questioning whether or not this has been as planned/discussed as some are now making it out to be.

It's very possible that it HAS been discussed. But the only "evidence" of that is unsubstantiated internet rumor, with no quotes from anyone of substance. And as I said, that's the tricky part. Because Duke can't say anything either way, it's impossible to know unless the Dawkins family says something. And all the Dawkins's have said is "it's a hypothetical" and "people are really jumping the gun here." That could either be literal or cover, but we can't know which until the Dawkins say so or until he enrolls.

I'm certainly hopeful that it is the case that this is happening. But the evidence to this point definitely doesn't confirm it. And I prefer to be pleasantly surprised than disappointed.

[BlueintheFace]

roywhite is correct, Dawkins does not have to sign an LOI to practice and play.

Duke had a timeline in mind for this and Goodman in mid-July wasn't part of that timeline.

Yah, I had heard whispers that this news was going to come out in August. Any idea who let the cat out of the bag?

[Oriole Way]

Yah, I had heard whispers that this news was going to come out in August. Any idea who let the cat out of the bag?

Just passing along what I've been reading on other boards, but apparently Kendall Marshall's dad was blabbering to people about it at the Peach Jam even though he was told in confidence.

All it would take is for Goodman to confirm with a trusted (but anonymous) source within/near the Duke program, which is someone I'm sure he has, and then he could run with the story.

[Duke of Nashville]

Just another reason for none of us to ever trust a tarhole with any kind of information...ever.

[airowe]

It seems to me as though the next logical step in this would be for him to complete the summer school class, no? If he can't enroll without the class, he's got to pass it first...

Anyone have any inroads on when summer school lets out at Atlantic Shores?

[sagegrouse]

Just passing along what I've been reading on other boards, but apparently Kendall Marshall's dad was blabbering to people about it at the Peach Jam even though he was told in confidence.

All it would take is for Goodman to confirm with a trusted (but anonymous) source within/near the Duke program, which is someone I'm sure he has, and then he could run with the story.

B. Franklin: "Three can keep a secret if two are dead."

The number of people that had to know about this is more than a handful. Of course, it is going to leak.

sagegrouse

[Duke of Nashville]

It seems to me as though the next logical step in this would be for him to complete the summer school class, no? If he can't enroll without the class, he's got to pass it first...

Anyone have any inroads on when summer school lets out at Atlantic Shores?

June 29 to August 7

http://www.shoreschristian.org/Events/index.htm

[AtlDuke72]

You would not believe the bellyaching over the possibility that Dawkins will graduate early that is going in the Inside Carolina Board. As you would expect, the consensus over there is that
all the usual suspects are conspiring against them and in favor of Duke.

[airowe]

You would not believe the bellyaching over the possibility that Dawkins will graduate early that is going in the Inside Carolina Board. As you would expect, the consensus over there is that
all the usual suspects are conspiring against them and in favor of Duke.

Not a surprise but what's the big deal? He has a 1400 SAT, 3.2 GPA, and is one class away from graduating. Most importantly, he is a FIFTH year High School Senior.

We finally had something break our way after more than a few bad breaks.

But, every time a Tar Hole's belly aches, an angel gets their wings. ;)

[sagegrouse]

You would not believe the bellyaching over the possibility that Dawkins will graduate early that is going in the Inside Carolina Board. As you would expect, the consensus over there is that
all the usual suspects are conspiring against them and in favor of Duke.

This is really a lot of fun, pulling a fast one on the competition. Almost as much fun as when K planned an international trip during the four-day October mini-break and, therefore, was allowed to start practicing in September rather than wait until October 15.

BTW the odds that the Carolina staff didn't know what was going on with Dawkins is less than one in ten.

sagegrouse

[Welcome2DaSlopes]

this bored has filled up faster than any other i have seen in one day or a day in a half on this forum.

But on Andre glad he is coming. Do people think he is better than E-mail?

[airowe]

Andre Dawkins was just. on 99.9 in Raleigh and CONFIRMED that as long as he passes his English class this summer and is cleared by the NCAA Clearinghouse he will be coming to Duke in the Fall!!!!

WOOOO!

Not sure if this will work on my Blackberry, but here's a link:
http://m.wral.com/w/sports-duke/story/5511741/

[rthomas]

Not a surprise but what's the big deal? He has a 1400 SAT, 3.2 GPA, and is one class away from graduating. Most importantly, he is a FIFTH year High School Senior.

We finally had something break our way after more than a few bad breaks.

But, every time a Tar Hole's belly aches, an angel gets their wings. ;)

Not quibbling too much but just to let you know, 1400 on the SAT is now really low. The SAT changed a great deal in the last several years. Now the max is 2400, 800 max on three different sections, math, critical reading, and writing. The minimum is 600.

So when Dickie V says and he will say...

[Tim1515]

this bored has filled up faster than any other i have seen in one day or a day in a half on this forum.

But on Andre glad he is coming. Do people think he is better than E-mail?

I think people saw Elliot's overwhelming potential. Elliot is a quicker and more explosive athlete then Andre. He was also a streaky shooter that i think could've gotten into a good rhythm.

Andre is more ready to play from day 1...no question. He's a better shooter and probably has a more natural feel for the game.

[FireOgilvie]

I found this part interesting:

Contrary to popular belief, the thought of the athletic perimeter player enrolling early was not first brought up by the Duke coaching staff.

"We initiated the conversation," Dawkins said. "We saw that Elliot was transferring and thought 'they're only going to have two guards, that's kind of rough.' I was going to go to Hargrave [Military Academy] for a year, but seeing the situation they were in, I just want to be able to help."

Andre is the man.

[Greg_Newton]

Andre Dawkins was just. on 99.9 in Raleigh and CONFIRMED that as long as he passes his English class this summer and is cleared by the NCAA Clearinghouse he will be coming to Duke in the Fall!!!!

WOOOO!

Not sure if this will work on my Blackberry, but here's a link:
http://m.wral.com/w/sports-duke/story/5511741/

Awesome, thanks for posting that link! Sounds like he's working hard to get to campus as soon as possible, and has the right attitude coming into a situation like this.

As for SATs, I've heard several different numbers tossed around, but it really doesn't matter either way because a Duke spokesperson was quoted in an earlier article as saying that his academic credentials would not be an issue if and when this situation were to come up.

As far as comparing Andre and Elliot, I don't know if it's really fair because they have completely different skill sets. Elliot is certainly quicker, a better on-ball defender, and probably a better rebounder, and we would obviously love to have him too. However, Andre will never be a potential offensive liability on the perimeter - Boo Williams rated him "just a notch or two below" one of his former players named JJ when it came to his 3-point stroke - and appears to be a more polished and smooth all-around offensive player at this stage. Another thing I personally like about him is his solid build - we are loaded with wiry guys, and he looks pretty powerful for his age.

[trey]

I found this part interesting:

Contrary to popular belief, the thought of the athletic perimeter player enrolling early was not first brought up by the Duke coaching staff.

"We initiated the conversation," Dawkins said. "We saw that Elliot was transferring and thought 'they're only going to have two guards, that's kind of rough.' I was going to go to Hargrave [Military Academy] for a year, but seeing the situation they were in, I just want to be able to help."

Andre is the man.

Wow. Much debate has been centered around the type of player that we recruit. You have to admit the coaching staff hit a home run with this one.

[roywhite]

I found this part interesting:

Contrary to popular belief, the thought of the athletic perimeter player enrolling early was not first brought up by the Duke coaching staff.

"We initiated the conversation," Dawkins said. "We saw that Elliot was transferring and thought 'they're only going to have two guards, that's kind of rough.' I was going to go to Hargrave [Military Academy] for a year, but seeing the situation they were in, I just want to be able to help."

Andre is the man.

He's "true Duke blue" already.

The way he has encouraged other recruits, his confidence and enthusiasm about Duke, and now his initiative in working through the eligibility issues---he seems like a natural leader and key part of the program. Welcome aboard, Andre.

[RainingThrees]

This guy is a true devil in the best sense.

[CDu]

This is awesome news. Nice to hear Dawkins himself saying he'll be here in the fall (pending passing his summer class, of course).

The outlook on the season looks a lot brighter now. I'm very very excited about this.

Now let's keep the fingers crossed that all goes well with his summer class!

I'm looking forward to a team that can take advantage of its size but also match up legitimately on the perimeter!

[airowe]

Here's a better link: http://www.wralsportsfan.com/duke/story/5590955/

There are links to audio clips there as well. One is to an interview with David Teel from the Daily Press in Hampton Roads, and the other is to A.D.'s interview.

I've got a serious man-crush on this guy.

[BlueDster]

Not quibbling too much but just to let you know, 1400 on the SAT is now really low. The SAT changed a great deal in the last several years. Now the max is 2400, 800 max on three different sections, math, critical reading, and writing. The minimum is 600.

So when Dickie V says and he will say...

While this is true, people generally still report only math and critical reading when you ask them. I was a high school senior when the new SAT was first implemented and when I tell people my score of over 1600 they don't get it, so I often omit the writing section. I'm not sure if this is Dawkins's full score or with writing omitted, just trying to clarify.

[elvis14]

This news really made my day...then got me in trouble. It made my day for obvious reasons. It got me in trouble because I was stopping by the grocery store on my way home from work to pick up something needed to finish dinner. I was listening to 99.9, The Heel, when they played the David Teel and AD interviews. I HAD to sit in my truck and listen....making me late for dinner. I'll take slightly in trouble and this happy any day. I'm already a Dawkins fan (I like that last name too!)

I've been telling people all day "Coach K pulled a Two Gaurd out of a hat"! Amazing!

Go Duke!

[NSDukeFan]

I feel better about being addicted to this board now that there was some fantastic news this summer on one of the slowest sports days of the year. Welcome Mr. Dawkins. I am very much looking forward to seeing you play for Duke this year.

[Scorp4me]

Originally Posted by AtlDuke72
You would not believe the bellyaching over the possibility that Dawkins will graduate early that is going in the Inside Carolina Board. As you would expect, the consensus over there is that
all the usual suspects are conspiring against them and in favor of Duke.


After taking a trip over to IC (hadn't visited there in well over a year) I've decided I remembered why I feel sorry for Carolina fans. It's not when they win or when they lose...it's not when they're bragging on their team or ragging on Duke...they're just sad people. Read their messages, it's the constant belief that they are entitled to always win. Always. Never lose.

Look I'm as big a Duke fan as anyone and there was a time that I thought Duke should never lose. I grew up. They apparently don't.

[RoyalBlue08]

Dawkins is already becoming one of my favorite Devils in recent memory. Gotta love this guy!



I found this part interesting:

Contrary to popular belief, the thought of the athletic perimeter player enrolling early was not first brought up by the Duke coaching staff.

"We initiated the conversation," Dawkins said. "We saw that Elliot was transferring and thought 'they're only going to have two guards, that's kind of rough.' I was going to go to Hargrave [Military Academy] for a year, but seeing the situation they were in, I just want to be able to help."

Andre is the man.

[Jackson]

If this is truly happens, what an amazing thing for Duke Basketball! I remember days ago when people on the board were talking ab out walk-ons and still trying to find a recruit for 2009. Dawkins seems almost too good to be true. What a great addition to the team this year! Although he may not be a player that can completely change a team, he is a tremendous athlete, great shooter and more than adequate defender, in short exactly what was needed!

[CDu]

If this is truly happens, what an amazing thing for Duke Basketball! I remember days ago when people on the board were talking ab out walk-ons and still trying to find a recruit for 2009. Dawkins seems almost too good to be true. What a great addition to the team this year! Although he may not be a player that can completely change a team, he is a tremendous athlete, great shooter and more than adequate defender, in short exactly what was needed!

Right. At the very least, he can give the team minutes at guard. Those are minutes that everyone else doesn't have to play way out of position, and thus minutes that the team won't be at a quickness/athleticism disadvantage. And if he is ready to contribute offensively, that's an added bonus.

He can give the team the option of versatility. We wouldn't be forced to play big all the time out of necessity. It gives the team options, and options are a good thing. Obviously it'd be nice to have four true guard types, but having three guards is a big step up from having only two.

[Greg_Newton]

Another thing Awesome Andre does is give this squad a higher potential ceiling come post-season, as he could certainly develop into a dangerous weapon by March (and give us a dynamic we didn't previously have in a strong, athletic wing).

Plus... some have touched on this, but for all of our previous panic, we really won't be all that imbalanced of a team now. I know we don't like "positions," but for analysis' sake: we'll likely have 3 guards (Jon, Nolan, Andre), 3 combo forwards (Kyle, Lance, Ryan), and 3 bigs (MP1, MP2, Z) in the rotation. Assuming we eventually figure out how to "go big" and play effectively with only 2 guards in at once, that's a pretty versatile, talented rotation with a nice mix of potential and experience.

At the very least, it should be an exciting season... more unknowns than we've had in a while, but also more potential than we've had in a while. Add in that anything over 9-7 in the ACC and the 2nd round of they tourney will kind of feel like playing with house money (IMO), and it should be fun to watch.

[soccerstud2210]

Andre Dawkins was just. on 99.9 in Raleigh and CONFIRMED that as long as he passes his English class this summer and is cleared by the NCAA Clearinghouse he will be coming to Duke in the Fall!!!!

WOOOO!

Not sure if this will work on my Blackberry, but here's a link:
http://m.wral.com/w/sports-duke/story/5511741/

get an iphone

[Bob Green]

Add in that anything over 9-7 in the ACC and the 2nd round of they tourney will kind of feel like playing with house money (IMO), and it should be fun to watch.

Your ceiling is lower than mine. I believe the team will blow by your benchmarks.

[soccerstud2210]

...but seriously... this is great news. congrats to andre for the academics. an all-around student athlete

[ACCBBallFan]

http://www.wralsportsfan.com/duke/audio/5591511/?id_related=5590955

Loved this quote from Andre, something to the effect that my coach has a team USA shirt on and your's doesn't. My coach coached Kobe and Lebron, who has your coach coached?

His sense of humor and keeping things light kind of reminds me of Lebron.

Words from Andre himself pretty well remove any doubt.

The LOI may have some impact on ability to offer a sprts scholarship, I am not sure.

[Kedsy]

The LOI may have some impact on ability to offer a sprts scholarship, I am not sure.

I'm pretty sure it doesn't.

[InSpades]

You had to believe it was true once you heard he was taking a summer class. What kid voluntarily takes a summer school class? Especially when there's so much basketball he could be out playing instead!

Good luck w/ that class Andre!

[ACCBBallFan]

Real team guy. I am pretty much a 2 guard but if they need me to play Point, I will just have to adjust and find a way.

[jesus_hurley]

This was my second favorite part (after he confirmed the rumor of course) of the article on wral:

"I'm trying to finish as soon as possible, but they have a certain limit on the number of assignments that you can turn in per week," said Dawkins. "I turn them in as quickly as I can, and as soon as I get them back I turn more in. I've gotten good grades on all of the assignments so far."

http://m.wral.com/w/sports-duke/story/5511741/

[sivartrenrag]

Man, this kid is something special. After listening to some of these interviews I think I've fallen in love. You have to love his team spirit and just his general love of Duke. It always gets me when kids say Duke was their dream school...:D

[CardinalBlue]

"We initiated the conversation," Dawkins said. "We saw that Elliot was transferring and thought 'they're only going to have two guards, that's kind of rough.' I was going to go to Hargrave [Military Academy] for a year, but seeing the situation they were in, I just want to be able to help."


team player before he even puts on the jersey... god I can't wait for the season.

[DukeCO2009]

There's just something about a big-time recruit named Dawkins coming to Duke at a crucial time for the program that has me smiling...

[DUKIE V(A)]

As a wise man (who always wore gloves) once said, "I love it when a plan comes together."

Too funny!!

[Greg_Newton]

Your ceiling is lower than mine. I believe the team will blow by your benchmarks.

Oh, I do too... now. However, given the circumstances that I thought we were going into the season under (i.e. 2 guards, no Andre), I would have expected around 9-7 ACC and 2nd round of tourney as the "line" expectation... maybe a little better or worse depending on player development and injuries. Our prospects just improved immensely with Andre, but given that I had already come to accept these tempered expectations for next year, I personally will be quite happy with anything more than that. I am guardedly hopeful that it will be much more than that, but for me, it will be an especially fun season because it was supposed to be a "down" year for the Devils (relatively, of course).

[Bob Green]

To what degree will Andre Dawkins contibute as a freshman? He is extremely athletic and reputed to be a deadly perimeter shooter whose midrange game needs further development. Looking at the freshman season numbers from previous Blue Devil guards, who will Dawkins most closely emulate?


Daniel Ewing 6.5 points, 1.3 assists, 2.2 rebounds, 18.2 minutes
Gerald Henderson 6.8 points, 1.1 assists, 2.9 rebounds, 19.3 minutes
Jeff Capel 8.6 points, 3.2 assists, 2.7 rebounds, 26.4 minutes
Trajan Langdon 11.3 points, 1.5 assists, 2.1 rebounds, 25.7 minutes
JJ Redick 15.0 points, 2.0 assists, 2.5 rebounds, 30.7 minutes
Johnny Dawkins 18.1 points, 4.8 assists, 4.1 rebounds, 35.8 minutes

I am not getting all giddy and insinuating Andre Dawkins will be the next JJ Redick or Johnny Dawkins, but I am trying to get a feel for how he will contribute as a freshman by looking at the numbers previous Blue Devil guards posted as freshmen.

A freshman season where Dawkins posted numbers in the range of Jeff Capel or Trajan Langdon would be awesome. Dawkins will primarily come off the bench in relieve of Smith and Scheyer but should see some action alongside Smith and Scheyer in Coach K's classic three guard line-up.

I'm sure Dawkins will not see 25 minutes per game due to Duke's depth (that's right - we are deep) so Langdon's 11.3 points per game average is probably on the high side. With his ability to attack the rim and knock down the 3-ball, I expect Dawkins to score more than the 6.8 points per game Gerald Henderson averaged. Henderson only made eight 3-point baskets his freshman season. I expect Dawkins will knock down a lot more than eight so defenders are going to have to respect Dawkins' perimeter shot and that will facilitate him slashing by his man for some dunks. Factor in a couple of 3-pointers and a free throw or two and I see Dawkins averaging 10 points per game.

Again, I am compelled to reiterate I am talking about the numbers Jeff Capel, Gerald Henderson, and Trajan Langdon posted their freshman season.

[UrinalCake]

You would not believe the bellyaching over the possibility that Dawkins will graduate early that is going in the Inside Carolina Board. As you would expect, the consensus over there is that
all the usual suspects are conspiring against them and in favor of Duke.

The other common topic among the Duke haters is the fact that Dawkins repeated his freshman year when he transfered between high schools (which is why he would have been a fifth-year senior this year). The haters use this as an indication that he's an idiot for "failing" a grade. Man, it must be exhausting trying so hard to rip on another school and their 18-year old players.

I agree with Bob Green that we should temper our enthusiasm somewhat with resepect to what a freshman could realistically contribute. We're in great shape, but I don't expect us to contend for a national title unless a lot of unexpected things happen. Still, it will be an awesome season and I feel much better about our chances against UNC, both head to head and for the ACC title.

[JStuart]

There's just something about a big-time recruit named Dawkins coming to Duke at a crucial time for the program that has me smiling...

Post-of-the-summer winner!!!

[NSDukeFan]

To what degree will Andre Dawkins contibute as a freshman? He is extremely athletic and reputed to be a deadly perimeter shooter whose midrange game needs further development. Looking at the freshman season numbers from previous Blue Devil guards, who will Dawkins most closely emulate?


Daniel Ewing 6.5 points, 1.3 assists, 2.2 rebounds, 18.2 minutes
Gerald Henderson 6.8 points, 1.1 assists, 2.9 rebounds, 19.3 minutes
Jeff Capel 8.6 points, 3.2 assists, 2.7 rebounds, 26.4 minutes
Trajan Langdon 11.3 points, 1.5 assists, 2.1 rebounds, 25.7 minutes
JJ Redick 15.0 points, 2.0 assists, 2.5 rebounds, 30.7 minutes
Johnny Dawkins 18.1 points, 4.8 assists, 4.1 rebounds, 35.8 minutes

I am not getting all giddy and insinuating Andre Dawkins will be the next JJ Redick or Johnny Dawkins, but I am trying to get a feel for how he will contribute as a freshman by looking at the numbers previous Blue Devil guards posted as freshmen.

A freshman season where Dawkins posted numbers in the range of Jeff Capel or Trajan Langdon would be awesome. Dawkins will primarily come off the bench in relieve of Smith and Scheyer but should see some action alongside Smith and Scheyer in Coach K's classic three guard line-up.

I'm sure Dawkins will not see 25 minutes per game due to Duke's depth (that's right - we are deep) so Langdon's 11.3 points per game average is probably on the high side. With his ability to attack the rim and knock down the 3-ball, I expect Dawkins to score more than the 6.8 points per game Gerald Henderson averaged. Henderson only made eight 3-point baskets his freshman season. I expect Dawkins will knock down a lot more than eight so defenders are going to have to respect Dawkins' perimeter shot and that will facilitate him slashing by his man for some dunks. Factor in a couple of 3-pointers and a free throw or two and I see Dawkins averaging 10 points per game.

Again, I am compelled to reiterate I am talking about the numbers Jeff Capel, Gerald Henderson, and Trajan Langdon posted their freshman season.

I don't think I am as optimistic as you about Dawkins' contributions next year, but only slightly so. I expect him to be closer to G and Ewing numbers, but if he did get up to Trajan's freshman numbers that would be fantastic.

The team would have a very high ceiling next year if that was the case. At this point, I would have to say a 9-7 ACC result would be very disappointing to me and would expect Duke to be well above that mark and is now probably the co-favorite for the conference championship. I wonder how much more of a challenge it will be having not gone to summer school like Ryan and Mason. He doesn't get that same head start that other freshmen do.

Thanks for the interesting post comparing freshmen stats.

[whereinthehellami]

This is definately great news. I think the key for Andre is going to be to let the opportunities come to him. Don't force anything. Alot of opportunities are going to come his way due to the current depth and the timing of this great news.

[NYDukie]

I'm thinking he will be similar in impact to Ewing or Gerald. Like many posters have said, he still is a freshman. That said, the true value of Dawkins being able to provide around 15-20 minutes a games of solid contributions is immeasurable for this team. I'm not going to get into what points he will score a game because stats, at times, can be misleading (Think Marbury at the pro level with all his guady stats and no impact in the W column). However, just be able to provide us a talented guard to the rotation when desperately needed should be help push the team to add a few more wins and a extra round or two in the tourney. Assuming of course, Dawkins does pass his final English class and get final clearance from the NCAA which all looks good at this time....fingers crossed.

[CardinalBlue]

very interesting thread about Dawkins chatting with Irving (and Hairston) via facebook

[geraldsneighbor]

very interesting thread about Dawkins chatting with Irving (and Hairston) via facebook

It was very interesting. He was in a sense sarcastically recruiting Irving through facebook. Hairston left him a message saying, "Hold it down till we get there."

I like this Andre Dawkins character. A lot.

[AtlDuke72]

http://www.wralsportsfan.com/duke/audio/5591511/?id_related=5590955

Loved this quote from Andre, something to the effect that my coach has a team USA shirt on and your's doesn't. My coach coached Kobe and Lebron, who has your coach coached?

His sense of humor and keeping things light kind of reminds me of Lebron.



Andre is off to the best start of any Duke recruit ever ! I hope his arriving early does not detract from his role as chief recruiter . . . the good news is that he will have an additional year of basketball at a high level when he takes over the team when Coach K decides to retire. We also have someone who will break Hansborough's ACC scoring record. Good thing the exectations are not too high for Andre!

[theAlaskanBear]

[QUOTE=ACCBBallFan;305000]http://www.wralsportsfan.com/duke/audio/5591511/?id_related=5590955

Loved this quote from Andre, something to the effect that my coach has a team USA shirt on and your's doesn't. My coach coached Kobe and Lebron, who has your coach coached?

His sense of humor and keeping things light kind of reminds me of Lebron.

QUOTE]

Andre is off to the best start of any Duke recruit ever ! I hope his arriving early does not detract from his role as chief recruiter . . . the good news is that he will have an additional year of basketball at a high level when he takes over the team when Coach K decides to retire. We also have someone who will break Hansborough's ACC scoring record. Good thing the exectations are not too high for Andre!

Once Dawkins steps on campus as a basketball player, arent there restrictions regarding contact with recruits? I have no idea...but thought there would be, right?

[CDu]

I'm thinking he will be similar in impact to Ewing or Gerald. Like many posters have said, he still is a freshman. That said, the true value of Dawkins being able to provide around 15-20 minutes a games of solid contributions is immeasurable for this team. I'm not going to get into what points he will score a game because stats, at times, can be misleading (Think Marbury at the pro level with all his guady stats and no impact in the W column). However, just be able to provide us a talented guard to the rotation when desperately needed should be help push the team to add a few more wins and a extra round or two in the tourney. Assuming of course, Dawkins does pass his final English class and get final clearance from the NCAA which all looks good at this time....fingers crossed.

Completely agreed on all counts. He at least gives us an option to back up Scheyer and Smith against guards. That's huge. And if he's ready to contribute more than that, it's a bonus. He doesn't (necessarily) need to be an impact scorer. We will hopefully get improved contributions from Scheyer, Smith, Singler, Kelly, and the Plumlees (and maybe even Thomas and Zoubek). He just gives us much-needed depth and a little more versatility.

Obviously it would be great if he could be an offensive threat as well. But that's not a necessity or an expectation. He just needs to be able to contribute minutes, and anything else is an added bonus.

[AtlDuke72]

[QUOTE=AtlDuke72;305051]

Once Dawkins steps on campus as a basketball player, arent there restrictions regarding contact with recruits? I have no idea...but thought there would be, right?

You may have taken my statement more seriously than I intended.

[chadlee989]

9-7 seems a little low to me. With or without Andre we still have this guy named Kyle. However, i am so excited about the chance of Andre coming in a year early this will only help the team. Plus he is moving up my list of my favorite duke players ever.

[Edouble]

To what degree will Andre Dawkins contibute as a freshman? He is extremely athletic and reputed to be a deadly perimeter shooter whose midrange game needs further development. Looking at the freshman season numbers from previous Blue Devil guards, who will Dawkins most closely emulate?


Daniel Ewing 6.5 points, 1.3 assists, 2.2 rebounds, 18.2 minutes
Gerald Henderson 6.8 points, 1.1 assists, 2.9 rebounds, 19.3 minutes
Jeff Capel 8.6 points, 3.2 assists, 2.7 rebounds, 26.4 minutes
Trajan Langdon 11.3 points, 1.5 assists, 2.1 rebounds, 25.7 minutes
JJ Redick 15.0 points, 2.0 assists, 2.5 rebounds, 30.7 minutes
Johnny Dawkins 18.1 points, 4.8 assists, 4.1 rebounds, 35.8 minutes

I am not getting all giddy and insinuating Andre Dawkins will be the next JJ Redick or Johnny Dawkins, but I am trying to get a feel for how he will contribute as a freshman by looking at the numbers previous Blue Devil guards posted as freshmen.

A freshman season where Dawkins posted numbers in the range of Jeff Capel or Trajan Langdon would be awesome. Dawkins will primarily come off the bench in relieve of Smith and Scheyer but should see some action alongside Smith and Scheyer in Coach K's classic three guard line-up.

I'm sure Dawkins will not see 25 minutes per game due to Duke's depth (that's right - we are deep) so Langdon's 11.3 points per game average is probably on the high side. With his ability to attack the rim and knock down the 3-ball, I expect Dawkins to score more than the 6.8 points per game Gerald Henderson averaged. Henderson only made eight 3-point baskets his freshman season. I expect Dawkins will knock down a lot more than eight so defenders are going to have to respect Dawkins' perimeter shot and that will facilitate him slashing by his man for some dunks. Factor in a couple of 3-pointers and a free throw or two and I see Dawkins averaging 10 points per game.

Again, I am compelled to reiterate I am talking about the numbers Jeff Capel, Gerald Henderson, and Trajan Langdon posted their freshman season.

Nice post.

I can actually see the guy having the Trajan-like numbers. If he can really shoot the three, Dawkins may end up being the best or second best three point shooter on the team. Will Kelly be able to contribute right away? If not, this makes Dawkins' stroke all the more valuable. If he's a real threat on the perimeter, it opens up much room on the inside for our big guys to operate, and Dawk can't be a threat if he doesn't have the green light.

[CDu]

9-7 seems a little low to me. With or without Andre we still have this guy named Kyle. However, i am so excited about the chance of Andre coming in a year early this will only help the team. Plus he is moving up my list of my favorite duke players ever.

I think 9-7 was/is a reasonable guess without Dawkins. While we'd have Singler, we'd also have Singler playing way out of position on defense for much of the game (same for Thomas/Kelly). And there'd be no margin for error, with no guard depth at all and needing around 20 quality minutes per game from each of our five relatively unproven big guys (or at least two of those unproven guys to really step up and prove themselves). We wouldn't be bad, but expecting more than 9-7 would mean expecting a LOT of things to go as well as possible in my opinion.

With Dawkins (even if he isn't ready to be a major contributor), everyone gets pushed back to their roles (or at least closer to it). And we have insurance at the guard position in case of minor injury or foul trouble. And we have more flexibility. And it puts less pressure on a very unproven frontcourt, as with Dawkins we'd only need 75-85 minutes from those guys (maybe less if Dawkins is really ready) as opposed to around 100 minutes.

Without Dawkins, I think 9-7 is a reasonable ACC record for us. With Dawkins, 11 or 12 ACC wins makes sense. That's not to say that Dawkins would be worth 2-3 wins in any scenario. It's just that on this team with only two guards, having a third ACC-quality guard happens to make a big difference in terms of matching up.

[roywhite]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q6bARIaMhCM

Probably because of recent events, but can't help thinking about this song as it relates to Andre Dawkins' surprise early enrollment.

"Whenever you need me...
I'll be there."

[Azdukefan]

You know as much as we want Harrison Barnes to make it to campus, I think this kid needs to be celebrated on a level beyond anything we have had in recent memory. We can all associate with his love for the program!

[Devilsfan]

Hope it does bring salvation back! It sure made 2009s recruitng class a heck of a lot stronger. Now staff lets strengthen 2010s recruitng class and keep the momentum going. We want a gold metal type Duke team to go with our gold metal head coach.

[CDu]

Hope it does bring salvation back! It sure made 2009s recruitng class a heck of a lot stronger. Now staff lets strengthen 2010s recruitng class and keep the momentum going. We want a gold metal type Duke team to go with our gold metal head coach.

Yeah, the addition of Dawkins not only helps this year's team, but it makes next year's team better too (with Dawkins getting an extra year of experience). And hopefully next year's class will add another key name or two, and get the ball rolling for the next several years.

[darkblue2769]

Not to spread fuel for the rumor fires, but as CardinalBlue semi-pointed out, Dawkins has been talking with Irving on Facebook a lot recently. I know this board hates unconfirmed speculations, but it looks like Andre is trying to get Irving (and Barnes, while he's at it, who seems to have talked about Duke with Irving as well) to commit to Duke soon. They joke about having Barnes and Irving do it on the same day, and Irving insists that he is serious about going through with a commitment.

People will say anything on Facebook, so I know it carries little weight, but I can't help but salivate. Andre Dawkins is the man.

[Tim1515]

Not to spread fuel for the rumor fires, but as CardinalBlue semi-pointed out, Dawkins has been talking with Irving on Facebook a lot recently. I know this board hates unconfirmed speculations, but it looks like Andre is trying to get Irving (and Barnes, while he's at it, who seems to have talked about Duke with Irving as well) to commit to Duke soon. They joke about having Barnes and Irving do it on the same day, and Irving insists that he is serious about going through with a commitment.

People will say anything on Facebook, so I know it carries little weight, but I can't help but salivate. Andre Dawkins is the man.

The impact Dawkins will have will go far beyond any numbers he puts up. If nothing else it allows Nolan and Jon to play more minutes because of a "just in case" option on the bench.

At the same time...Dawkins' main asset is his shooting ability. I don't see many assists in his freshman year but i could see a few 15 point games. In the end i think he averages around 7 points and 17-23 minutes.

[BlueinBlo]

Not to spread fuel for the rumor fires, but as CardinalBlue semi-pointed out, Dawkins has been talking with Irving on Facebook a lot recently. I know this board hates unconfirmed speculations, but it looks like Andre is trying to get Irving (and Barnes, while he's at it, who seems to have talked about Duke with Irving as well) to commit to Duke soon. They joke about having Barnes and Irving do it on the same day, and Irving insists that he is serious about going through with a commitment.

People will say anything on Facebook, so I know it carries little weight, but I can't help but salivate. Andre Dawkins is the man.

You talking about this...

http://s64.photobucket.com/albums/h166/bymorris/?action=view&current=dawkinsirving.jpg

[Welcome2DaSlopes]

You talking about this...

http://s64.photobucket.com/albums/h166/bymorris/?action=view&current=dawkinsirving.jpg

hahahahahaha I loved that whole conversation

[KatDevil]

I was a little skeptical until I read this!!!
Dre is coming!!!!

http://www.highschoolhoop.com/recruiting-news/2009/07/duke-recruits-weigh-in-on-andre-dawkins-going-to-durham-early/

[Greg_Newton]

You talking about this...

http://s64.photobucket.com/albums/h166/bymorris/?action=view&current=dawkinsirving.jpg

Hmmm... I can't decide if that's creepy or awesome? I wouldn't want people posting public screenshots of my private wall-to-walls, personally, but it is certainly great to see that Mr. Irving appears to have some serious interest in us. Sure hope Mr. Barnes stops "frontin"! :D

[ACCBBallFan]

I took a look at Bob Green's metrics and applied the swimming/diving scoring method of throwing out the high and the low and then averaging, but MPG came out 25.4 so I then applied an 80% factor to get it close to the expected 20 MPG:

Points - 8.3
Assists - 1.1
Rebounds 2,1
Minutes -20.3

The I compared it to Nolan's second seasons as I expect Andre since he is higher rated will approach:

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/player/profile?playerId=36157

Points - 8.4
Assists - 1.7
Rebounds 2,2
Minutes -21.6

The results were very similar other than assists which Paulus as freshman proved can vary based on who else is on the floor with you, more than points of rebounds would vary

[mo.st.dukie]

Hmmm... I can't decide if that's creepy or awesome? I wouldn't want people posting public screenshots of my private wall-to-walls, personally, but it is certainly great to see that Mr. Irving appears to have some serious interest in us. Sure hope Mr. Barnes stops "frontin"! :D

You have the option to block people from seeing your wall on facebook, you also have the option of sending private messages, there's also a thing called a cell phone where you can send private text messages. If they didn't want people to see their conversation they shouldn't put it on a facebook wall where other people can see it. That's the whole point of a social networking site, that other people can see what you're doing, thinking, who you are talking to, where you went on vacation, etc.

[sagegrouse]

I took a look at Bob Green's metrics and applied the swimming/diving scoring method of throwing out the high and the low and then averaging, but MPG came out 25.4 so I then applied an 80% factor to get it close to the expected 20 MPG:

Points - 8.3
Assists - 1.1
Rebounds 2,1
Minutes -20.3

The I compared it to Nolan's second seasons as I expect Andre since he is higher rated will approach:

http://sports.espn.go.com/ncb/player/profile?playerId=36157

Points - 8.4
Assists - 1.7
Rebounds 2,2
Minutes -21.6

The results were very similar other than assists which Paulus as freshman proved can vary based on who else is on the floor with you, more than points of rebounds would vary

Why don't we look at the data? Throw out JD and JJ; they arrived at Duke when the cupboard was bare. JD's freshman class was far more talented than the upperclassmen -- from day one. JJ arrived after JWill departed and the only experienced guard was Duhon.

Nolan Smith and Jon Scheyer are crackerjack veterans. If Andre averages 20+ PPG, it may be because of injuries among the starters. 15 MPG is just fine with me. And if he averages 5 PPG, it will not be a problem. Anything more will be gravy.

I expect that his minutes will be based on his defense more than his offense.:):)

sagegrouse

[Greg_Newton]

You have the option to block people from seeing your wall on facebook, you also have the option of sending private messages, there's also a thing called a cell phone where you can send private text messages. If they didn't want people to see their conversation they shouldn't put it on a facebook wall where other people can see it. That's the whole point of a social networking site, that other people can see what you're doing, thinking, who you are talking to, where you went on vacation, etc.

Excuse me for feeling slightly creepy reading a conversation between two 18year-olds that was meant only visible to Andre and Kyrie's friends before one of their friends took a screenshot of it and posted it on photobucket. Social networking sites are to keep your friends updated on your personal life, not a bunch of obsessed older folks you've never met.:rolleyes:

But like I said, encouraging words!

[airowe]

Social networking sites are to keep your friends updated on your personal life, not a bunch of obsessed older folks you've never met.:rolleyes:

But like I said, encouraging words!

I never thought I would be an obsessed older folk, but I think I kind of am. :eek:

[ACCBBallFan]

Nolan Smith and Jon Scheyer are crackerjack veterans. If Andre averages 20+ PPG, it may be because of injuries among the starters. 15 MPG is just fine with me. And if he averages 5 PPG, it will not be a problem. Anything more will be gravy.

I expect that his minutes will be based on his defense more than his offense.:):)

sagegrouseYou are right.

Interstingly Duke's biggest need for Andre is his defense

Though that may be his biggest weakness, he only has Lance as competition by default of Kelly, the plumlees and Z. So it is an even bigger weakness for Duke than for Dre.

Duke coaches and fans have to exhibit some patience with his freshman mistakes that pay dividends at end of season and future years.

Lance offers even less Offense as a SF than as a PF. So Andre's purported dead eye shooting from long range is a bonus and a quick 3 or 2 bumps up those stats pretty quickly.

At a minimum I would think Andre would get 10 MPG even if Jon/Nolan could play a total average of 70 at the combo slots.

With foul trouble, injuries and OOC blow outs, I think Andre gets 15-20 MPG, with another minimum 5 of Kyle's minutes while Andre/Jon share the SG/SF roles when Kyle is subbed out.

The alternative is Ryan can guard a 3 or Lance can play the 3 on Offense, or Olek.

Duke occasionally may also play 3 guard set with Nolan-Andre-Jon-Kyle-Mason

or a long ball squad with Nolan-Jon-Andre-Kyle-Ryan.

[SilkyJ]

You have the option to block people from seeing your wall on facebook, you also have the option of sending private messages, there's also a thing called a cell phone where you can send private text messages. If they didn't want people to see their conversation they shouldn't put it on a facebook wall where other people can see it. That's the whole point of a social networking site, that other people can see what you're doing, thinking, who you are talking to, where you went on vacation, etc.

True, but these kids are 17 yrs old. Let's cut them some slack.




The alternative is Ryan can guard a 3 or Lance can play the 3 on Offense, or Olek.

Duke occasionally may also play 3 guard set with Nolan-Andre-Jon-Kyle-Mason

or a long ball squad with Nolan-Jon-Andre-Kyle-Ryan.

I think some of you guys are going to be surprised when the season comes around as to how much Zoubs, Lance and Miles will be playing. Zoubs has finally been healthy for an extended period of time and Miles showed flashes of brilliance last year and has beefed up to handle the post in ACC play. I think Mason may end up being better than both of them, but competing with a sophmore Miles and a senior Zoubs...I just don't know how much time he'll see, particularly with that frame.

[mgtr]

Bring on all the Dawkins we can find. Our experience with players by this name has been very, very good. Any players hanging around out there named Laettner, Redick, Williams, Battier, or Henderson should hie themselves over to CIS -- do not pass GO, do not collect $200, but go directly to CIS!:D

[soccerstud2210]

Bring on all the Dawkins we can find. Our experience with players by this name has been very, very good. Any players hanging around out there named Laettner, Redick, Williams, Battier, or Henderson should hie themselves over to CIS -- do not pass GO, do not collect $200, but go directly to CIS!:D

or langdon. don't forget him. we could use another alaskan assassin

[Bay Area Duke Fan]

Is A. Dawkins good enough to beat out Nolan Smith for a starting spot by February? Remember that Elliot did it as a freshman.

[COYS]

Is A. Dawkins good enough to beat out Nolan Smith for a starting spot by February? Remember that Elliot did it as a freshman.

If for some reason this actually does become a possibility, I hope it's because the scouts were all undervaluing him and Andre Dawkins is actually a D-Wade clone who is putting up 18-20ppg and projected to be a one and done and make the leap to the NBA as a top 5 pick. Otherwise, I'd expect Nolan to improve significantly over last year now that he's more comfortable with his new role, has Scheyer to ease the pressure of playing point guard on offense, and the natural improvement that will come from his hard work. Williams replaced Smith (and, technically, he replaced Paulus) in the starting lineup because Smith and Paulus were struggling. I am confident that Nolan will never give us any reason to think Dawkins should have any business taking his starting spot because he will be having a great season.

[FireOgilvie]

Is A. Dawkins good enough to beat out Nolan Smith for a starting spot by February? Remember that Elliot did it as a freshman.

I have a feeling that Nolan will have stepped his game up immensely over the offseason (more than anyone else on the team). I think he's going to have a breakthrough much like Gerald did last year, although I don't expect Nolan to score as many points as Gerald did. Nolan has a lot of raw talent and athleticism, but things never really "clicked" for him consistently. He has shown great flashes, and I suspect he will start to put it all together this year.

Having said that, I really doubt that Dawkins starts over Nolan. But, like Kevin Garnett said, "Anything is possible!"

[SilkyJ]

Is A. Dawkins good enough to beat out Nolan Smith for a starting spot by February? Remember that Elliot did it as a freshman.

Elliot won that role for one main reason: he could SERIOUSLY guard the other team's PG.

[slower]

I think Mason may end up being better than both of them, but competing with a sophmore Miles and a senior Zoubs...I just don't know how much time he'll see, particularly with that frame.

Although I may be totally wrong about this, I'm hoping that Mason demonstrates rather quickly that he's already better than Miles or Zoubs.

I'm betting that he shows himself to be the anti-Zoubs - a fast, athletic big man who wants to dunk everything like an animal. Amen to that!

Honestly, no offense intended to Zoubs, but Mason will hopefully bring some swag to the post position and posterize some folks.

[NSDukeFan]

Elliot won that role for one main reason: he could SERIOUSLY guard the other team's PG.

I seriously doubt that Andre will start in front of Nolan at any point this year. My recollection is that when our defense was the best last year was when Nolan was at his best pressuring the other team's ball handler. I am expecting him to be able to play that role again this year and hopefully for extended minutes, though our team may not apply the same amount of perimeter pressure, as we are not as quick overall as last year.

[CDu]

I seriously doubt that Andre will start in front of Nolan at any point this year. My recollection is that when our defense was the best last year was when Nolan was at his best pressuring the other team's ball handler. I am expecting him to be able to play that role again this year and hopefully for extended minutes, though our team may not apply the same amount of perimeter pressure, as we are not as quick overall as last year.

I agree. I believe that injuries did in Smith last year (the knee and the concussion), but when he was right he was terrific defensively. Hopefully with better health and another year of development, he'll lock down that starting spot. I think Dawkins will get decent minutes (somewhat out of necessity), but I'll be surprised if he beats Smith out for the starting spot.

[Devilsfan]

Saw the documentary on Nolan and wish we could clone him. What a great representative for Duke. I hope Dawkins is great but I want to see Smith start.

[SupaDave]

I agree. I believe that injuries did in Smith last year (the knee and the concussion), but when he was right he was terrific defensively. Hopefully with better health and another year of development, he'll lock down that starting spot. I think Dawkins will get decent minutes (somewhat out of necessity), but I'll be surprised if he beats Smith out for the starting spot.

Dont forget about the bad back...

[G man]

Andre is the coolest dude ever who wants to come to Duke! Based on the that he is helping us so much with the other recruits. I have not thought so highly of any incoming player ever. I hope he is really good, and has a great college and pro career. This type of guy is what makes college sports fun. Just a big thanks for reminding us all that this is fun!

[Indoor66]

Just a big thanks for reminding us all that this is fun!

And just think, the older you get the more fun it is. Think about what you have to look forward too.... :D

[ACCBBallFan]

Although I may be totally wrong about this, I'm hoping that Mason demonstrates rather quickly that he's already better than Miles or Zoubs.

I'm betting that he shows himself to be the anti-Zoubs - a fast, athletic big man who wants to dunk everything like an animal. Amen to that!

Honestly, no offense intended to Zoubs, but Mason will hopefully bring some swag to the post position and posterize some folks.
Fine, but why not the anti-Lance, a PF who who lays PF, rebounds, hits from outside and racks up assists and has the height to back up Miles/Z inthe post.

Lance can still play a valuable Dave McClure type role after the big lineup with Kyle-Mason-Mies/Z gets Duke acomfortable lead with a quantum improvement on rebounding which was not all that bad last year.

Let the truly big men play in the big man slot for as long as they can perhaps 25-30 MPG with Mason there the other 10-15 MPG, but doing double duty as the PF starter Kyle claims he can be.

I think there is intangible benefit having the Plumlees on floor at same time rather than alternating in lieu of Z who can give Duke 10-15 solid MPG, or more now that he has been healthy all summer.

[ACCBBallFan]

Is A. Dawkins good enough to beat out Nolan Smith for a starting spot by February? Remember that Elliot did it as a freshman.
Why does that matter? Duke has 80 MPG at combo spots. With only 3 guys to play there, that is 27 MPG each.

My guess is Nolan plays about 27, Scheyer 5 or so more @ 32 and Andre 5 or so less @ 22.

And that is not counting the 5 minutes or so Jon/Dre may play SF when Kyle gets his precious few minutes of rest.

[speedevil2001]

Why don't we look at the data? Throw out JD and JJ; they arrived at Duke when the cupboard was bare. JD's freshman class was far more talented than the upperclassmen -- from day one. JJ arrived after JWill departed and the only experienced guard was Duhon.

Nolan Smith and Jon Scheyer are crackerjack veterans. If Andre averages 20+ PPG, it may be because of injuries among the starters. 15 MPG is just fine with me. And if he averages 5 PPG, it will not be a problem. Anything more will be gravy.

I expect that his minutes will be based on his defense more than his offense.:):)

sagegrouse

i would like andre to average 14 ppg 4 rpg 2 apg

[mgtr]

Why does that matter? Duke has 80 MPG at combo spots. With only 3 guys to play there, that is 27 MPG each.

My guess is Nolan plays about 27, Scheyer 5 or so more @ 32 and Andre 5 or so less @ 22.

And that is not counting the 5 minutes or so Jon/Dre may play SF when Kyle gets his precious few minutes of rest.

By my math (not Duke learned!) that equals 81 minutes.:D

[El_Diablo]

By my math (not Duke learned!) that equals 81 minutes.:D

We might go into OT at some point this season...

[sagegrouse]

By my math (not Duke learned!) that equals 81 minutes.:D

If anyone misses a game because of injury or suspension or (in Andre's case) DNP-CD, then the sum of the Minutes Per Game will exceed 200. Same for overtime.

Beware of adding numbers that are ratios! Beware! Beware! Beware! Beware! Beware! [Shuddup you dopey bird!]

sagegrouse

[Bluedevil114]

If Coach K wants to get Harrison and Irving or another top PG, then he has to let our top recruiter Andre Dawkins get the minutes. If Andre is not happy next year then we will not get the top tier recruits in the future. This is Coach K's opportunity to show if you work hard you will get the minutes and he has changed his philosophy like sitting Paulus and playing EWill. Seniority doesnt matter anymore, atheletic and hardworking does!! If we want the one and two year players then they have to be able to play right away. You cant allow a Corey Maggetti to come off the bench anymore these days if you want to get the top players to come to your school. Recruits want to have every chance to showcase their skills and have the opportunity to get to the NBA quicker.

As the NBA requirements change so must our recruiting and our playing philosophies!!

Thanks Andre for making 2009 a great year!! Go Duke!!

[RepoMan]

If Andre is not happy next year then we will not get the top tier recruits in the future.

Exaggerate much?

[jimsumner]

"If Coach K wants to get Harrison and Irving or another top PG, then he has to let our top recruiter Andre Dawkins get the minutes. If Andre is not happy next year then we will not get the top tier recruits in the future"

I think you're really, really short-changing Dawkins here. And I'm pulling my punches.

BTW, Barnes and Irving almost certainly will have made their decisions before the beginning of the season, making AD's PT irrelevant in any case.

[jgehtland]

This is Coach K's opportunity to show if you work hard you will get the minutes and he has changed his philosophy like sitting Paulus and playing EWill. Seniority doesnt matter anymore, atheletic and hardworking does!! If we want the one and two year players then they have to be able to play right away. You cant allow a Corey Maggetti to come off the bench anymore these days if you want to get the top players to come to your school.

You are ignoring the facts that:

* Grant Hill played extensive minutes his freshman season when there were a lot of upperclassmen coming off the bench
* Deng played incredible minutes during his only season
* in 2001, K sat *NATE JAMES, OUR CURRENT ASSISTANT COACH* and put Duhon in the starting lineup to finish the year
* etc.

The sentence "Seniority doesn't matter anymore, athletic [sic] and hardworking does!!" ignores reality. There is no philosophy to change; K plays the players that lead to winning. Period. And he always has.

I think this whole "he doesn't play freshman" thing is a product of Trajan's final drive in the '99 championship game. And you know what? If he gave the ball to Maggette, and HE missed it, there would be a similar "K doesn't place trust in his seniors" myth cascading down through the years.

[Bluedevil114]

Coach K will play the best 5-7 players but the days are gone of sitting a kid on the bench until he matures and completely learns the system. These top tier recruits do not want to ride the pine and learn from the juniors and seniors. They want their opportunity to play right away. Maggetti was sixth man of the year, he would have started for anyone else. Loul Deng took us to the final four in his Freshman year and if it were not for some mysterious calls against Williams, Randolph and Horvath versus UCONN in the last five minutes we would have four national championship banners hanging in Cameron.

I am in no way saying Dawkins should start but he does need to get the minutes this year.

[El_Diablo]

he does need to get the minutes this year.

He will. But not for the reasons you profess.

[COYS]

I am in no way saying Dawkins should start but he does need to get the minutes this year.

You say this one year after K replaced a senior point guard with a sophomore in the starting lineup to begin the year only to replace that sophomore with a freshman by the end of the year. Any recruit who actually does his homework and is not so predisposed to believing the lies about K that the anti-Duke network loves to spread will recognize that K will play his best players, period. The only thing seniority means is that the player will have had more time to learn the defensive and offensive systems and therefore will be more likely to prove the more effective player on the court, assuming that the skill/talent level is the same as a younger player.

That being said, I think it's clear that Dawkins will play this coming year if for no other reason than necessity. If his minutes really are very low, then it is simply because he's not ready.

[jimsumner]

Mike Krzyzewski has always had a meritocracy. Many freshmen have played immediately. Johnny Dawkins. Mark Alarie. David Henderson. Jay Bilas. Tommy Amaker. Danny Ferry. Christian Laettner. Bobby Hurley. Grant Hill. Jeff Capel. Trajan Langdon. Chris Carrawell. Elton Brand. Shane Battier. Chris Duhon. J.J. Redick. Shelden Williams. Luol Deng. et. al.

In almost every case these guys as frosh played ahead of more experienced, less-talented players. Several moved ahead of incumbent starters.

This isn't to say that these players didn't grow, evolve, develop, improve. This isn't to disregard the Kevin Strickland-Brian Davis-Thomas Hill-Nate James types who did wait their turns and become outstanding players.

But I don't see any evidence that K has changed his attitude towards PT. If you're good enough to play, you will. If you aren't, you won't. And, I'm pretty sure Andre Dawkins not only knows this but embraces this.

The idea that Dawkins is going to demand/expect PT as a precursor to saying nice things about Duke to prospective Duke players is as insulting to Dawkins as the idea that Krzyzewski will allocate PT on this basis.

[roywhite]

Coach K will play the best 5-7 players but the days are gone of sitting a kid on the bench until he matures and completely learns the system. These top tier recruits do not want to ride the pine and learn from the juniors and seniors. They want their opportunity to play right away. Maggetti was sixth man of the year, he would have started for anyone else. Loul Deng took us to the final four in his Freshman year and if it were not for some mysterious calls against Williams, Randolph and Horvath versus UCONN in the last five minutes we would have four national championship banners hanging in Cameron.

I am in no way saying Dawkins should start but he does need to get the minutes this year.

Has this been an issue at Duke? I'm hard pressed to think of a legitimate example of a talented freshman being short-changed for minutes. Even Maggette in 1999---did he deserve time ahead of Carrawell or Battier or Langdon?

As noted, just last year senior Greg Paulus lost his starting spot to Nolan Smith. Elliot Williams had a learning curve, but obviously earned his time in the late season.

Andre Dawkins' early enrollment is clearly good news, and he's likely to have a great opportunity for playing time, which could be 10 minutes, or could be 25 minutes per game.

I doubt Coach K would be moved by your "warning".

[Bluedevil114]

As the NBA requirements change so must our recruiting and our playing philosophies!!

Let me go back to my previous statement. Everyone wants to go back to the times when we were in the final fours every year and that is my point. Since the NBA requires one year of College Basketball, Duke must change their philosophy also.

Recruits are looking for where they can play right away. Many of you want to bring up Greg Paulus and how Nolan Smith started this past year. That is because of injuries and do not forget Nolan Smith was considering transferring also. EWill got in not over Paulus but after a concussion and he too was speaking of transferring out of Duke. Paulus was done after his second year.

What I am saying.........Duke has had trouble recruiting the last few years since the one and done rule was established. I have rooted for Duke for 30 years now and just believe that we need to continue to recruit the Pattersons, Monroes, Marvin Williams, Walls, Knights and Harrisons.........then let them play right away. Think about it.......Memphis was in the Championship two years ago.......Syracuse won with Anthony and Oden took his team to the Championship game. One and done recruiting has never favored Duke. But times have changed. I believe if the rules had never changed we would have four National Championships because the "Calipari" type coaches would not be able to cheat and reload every year.......

[JBDuke]

As the NBA requirements change so must our recruiting and our playing philosophies!!

Let me go back to my previous statement. Everyone wants to go back to the times when we were in the final fours every year and that is my point. Since the NBA requires one year of College Basketball, Duke must change their philosophy also.

Recruits are looking for where they can play right away. Many of you want to bring up Greg Paulus and how Nolan Smith started this past year. That is because of injuries and do not forget Nolan Smith was considering transferring also. EWill got in not over Paulus but after a concussion and he too was speaking of transferring out of Duke. Paulus was done after his second year.

What I am saying.........Duke has had trouble recruiting the last few years since the one and done rule was established. I have rooted for Duke for 30 years now and just believe that we need to continue to recruit the Pattersons, Monroes, Marvin Williams, Walls, Knights and Harrisons.........then let them play right away. Think about it.......Memphis was in the Championship two years ago.......Syracuse won with Anthony and Oden took his team to the Championship game. One and done recruiting has never favored Duke. But times have changed. I believe if the rules had never changed we would have four National Championships because the "Calipari" type coaches would not be able to cheat and reload every year.......

You may have been watching Duke basketball for 30 years, but your post doesn't show that you've been paying much attention recently. The point you seem to be trying to make is that Coach K needs to use his freshmen more if he wants to be able to get the "one and done" type of recruits. Well, here is a list of key freshmen on recent teams:

08-09: Williams
07-08: Singler and Smith
06-07: Scheyer, Henderson, and Thomas
05-06: McRoberts and Paulus
04-05: Nelson
03-04: Deng
02-03: Redick and Williams

So, it's safe to say that if a freshman comes in to Duke and shows he can contribute right away, he'll play. Every year in the recent past, Duke has had freshman in the starting lineup or playing key roles. No one has sat the bench due to youth. Even reaching all the way back to the 98-99 team to use Maggette as an example shows that K was willing to use a freshman in a key role.

[ACCBBallFan]

By my math (not Duke learned!) that equals 81 minutes.:D
My posts are too long already without going to 26.66666667 minutes on average with Nolan playing 26.6666667 or so, John 31.66666667 os ro and Andre 21.66666667 or so MPG.

Or you can just call it cumulative rounding error if you want.

[jimsumner]

I suspect that Scheyer, Smith, and Dawkins will average more than 80 mpg even without OTs or injuries. Because all three will play together at times, especially end-of-game situations.

[Bluedevil114]

You may have been watching Duke basketball for 30 years, but your post doesn't show that you've been paying much attention recently. The point you seem to be trying to make is that Coach K needs to use his freshmen more if he wants to be able to get the "one and done" type of recruits. Well, here is a list of key freshmen on recent teams:

08-09: Williams
07-08: Singler and Smith
06-07: Scheyer, Henderson, and Thomas
05-06: McRoberts and Paulus
04-05: Nelson
03-04: Deng
02-03: Redick and Williams

You continue to make my point for me. Deng was the only ligitimate one and done player on this list. The rest of these guys were all three/four year players or will be and McRoberts should have been. With the NBA rule change we have got to recruit a different player to win a National Championship.

[jimsumner]

I thought your point was that Mike Krzyzewski won't play freshmen. Or was it that he had to play nicey-nicey with Andre Dawkins or lose the next generation?

FWIW, Shavlik Randolph and Josh McRoberts both flirted with going directly to the NBA out of high school and both started their first game at Duke.

I'm curious. Which likely one-and-dones spurned Duke because they thought they wouldn't see the court?

[CDu]

I thought your point was that Mike Krzyzewski won't play freshmen. Or was it that he had to play nicey-nicey with Andre Dawkins or lose the next generation?

I agree with you. It seemed to me that Bluedevil114's point was that Coach K needed to start playing freshmen more. That's a non-issue, since Coach K has always been willing to play the freshmen if they can play. It's the ones that aren't ready that don't play.

Further, if his/her point is that Coach K needs to go for one-and-dones, then what's the point of linking that point to Dawkins' minutes? Dawkins isn't a one-and-done candidate.


FWIW, Shavlik Randolph and Josh McRoberts both flirted with going directly to the NBA out of high school and both started their first game at Duke.

I'm curious. Which likely one-and-dones spurned Duke because they thought they wouldn't see the court?

The only one-and-done guy that spurned Duke specifically for minutes was Kris Humphries. Other than that, as you note, minutes have not prevented us from getting any other potential one-and-dones.

[RepoMan]

While we are at it, which of the following NCAA champions since 2000 won because of the presence of a "one and done" player?

2000 Michigan St. (32-7)
2001 Duke (35-4)
2002 Maryland (32-4)
2003 Syracuse (30-5)
2004 Connecticut (33-6)
2005 North Carolina (33-4)
2006 Florida (33-6)
2007 Florida (35-5)
2008 Kansas (37-3)
2009 North Carolina (34-4)

Syracuse is one such team, but the rest of the teams seem to have benefitted substantially from experience.

[Bluedevil114]

I agree with you. It seemed to me that Bluedevil114's point was that Coach K needed to start playing freshmen more. That's a non-issue, since Coach K has always been willing to play the freshmen if they can play. It's the ones that aren't ready that don't play.

Further, if his/her point is that Coach K needs to go for one-and-dones, then what's the point of linking that point to Dawkins' minutes? Dawkins isn't a one-and-done candidate.



The only one-and-done guy that spurned Duke specifically for minutes was Kris Humphries. Other than that, as you note, minutes have not prevented us from getting any other potential one-and-dones.



My point is you give a guy like Dawkins minutes with the connections he has to Barnes and Irving then the word spreads. You get a good athletic recruiting class in here and then we have players that never thought they would succeed at Duke to come. Coach K's net has been so small the last six years because he usually recruits a player and then he gets that player to enroll. Its not the players like Humphries and Livingston that spurned us or the Monroe, Pattersons and Boyntons that chose elsewhere. I never once said anything about Dawkins starting.

Bottomline, I like the current recruiting philosophies of Coach K and hopefully it is from the success off of Olympic Gold or the connections of Nate James.

I love Duke!! I am just so passionate for a 4th Title!! GO DUKE!!

[jimsumner]

Kris Humphries is an object lesson in why coaches need to be very careful going after guys more interested in a quick trip to the NBA than blending in with a team.

[ricks68]

Jim and others,

Why don't you guys just refer the new poster, longtime Duke fan, to Throaty's sticky and be done with it. I read the boards to stay up to date with everything that is going on with anything even remotely related to Duke bball. This latest back-and-forth is more than frustrating, and taking up too much of my usual amount of allocated hours of wasted time. :rolleyes:

ricks

[roywhite]

While we are at it, which of the following NCAA champions since 2000 won because of the presence of a "one and done" player?

2000 Michigan St. (32-7)
2001 Duke (35-4)
2002 Maryland (32-4)
2003 Syracuse (30-5)
2004 Connecticut (33-6)
2005 North Carolina (33-4)
2006 Florida (33-6)
2007 Florida (35-5)
2008 Kansas (37-3)
2009 North Carolina (34-4)

Syracuse is one such team, but the rest of the teams seem to have benefitted substantially from experience.

2005 UNC benefited from the play of Marvin Williams. He averaged over 11 pts and 6 rebs in his first and only college season, and hit a key basket against Illinois in the tournament final. Actually, though he played significant minutes, Williams was not generally a starter.

Your point is still strong.

[jimsumner]

"I read the boards to stay up to date with everything that is going on with anything even remotely related to Duke bball"

But Ricks, I'm sure this is remotely related to Duke basketball. :)

[ricks68]

Jim,

Very, very well said. Could be the post of the day!:D

ricks

[El_Diablo]

The only thing that could make this better would be if it were three weeks ago and there were still time for Andre to get to campus and take a class or two in the second summer session.

From one of the articles I read, it looks like Dre has some AP credits (Stats and Chemistry?)...so two of those could count towards his general graduation requirements and thus ease his class schedules during the fall and spring semesters. So, even though he can't take summer courses at Duke this year, it's kind of a wash if those AP credits transfer.

Plus, it's great to see that he has been challenging himself in the classroom in high school. Many people in his position could simply coast through the easiest classes and get the minumum qualifying grades and test scores, but he's going beyond that. It speaks to his maturity and work ethic, providing yet another reason to love the guy.

[chrisheery]

Is Andre officially enrolled for next year yet? Haven't heard anything about this for over a week, and it seems to be of vital importance to next years team.

Any news? Anyone? Why is he still playing AAU if he might be at Duke in a month?

[Newton_14]

Is Andre officially enrolled for next year yet? Haven't heard anything about this for over a week, and it seems to be of vital importance to next years team.

Any news? Anyone? Why is he still playing AAU if he might be at Duke in a month?

I believe August 8th? is the date or close to it. Duke cannot comment on him at all until he actually enrolls since he did not sign a LOI in the Spring. So we are about 10 days or so away from knowing for sure..

[airowe]

An Andre interview to steer us back on the right course:
http://www.highschoolhoop.com/recruiting-news/2009/07/andre-dawkins-breaks-down-his-early-move-to-duke/

[airowe]

Is Andre officially enrolled for next year yet? Haven't heard anything about this for over a week, and it seems to be of vital importance to next years team.

Any news? Anyone? Why is he still playing AAU if he might be at Duke in a month?

A few answers from an interview with Andre:

http://www.highschoolhoop.com/recruiting-news/2009/07/andre-dawkins-breaks-down-his-early-move-to-duke/


HSH: So when will you be done with your English course?
AD: Soon. It should be within the next two or three weeks.

HSH: And when you’re done there do you get a diploma?
AD: I think they’re just gonna retroactively graduate me.

HSH: And you’re headed to Durham after that?
AD: Yes. I’m not sure of exactly when, but I will be coming down there shortly after that.



HSH: Has the staff given you things to work on now that you’re going to be joining the team earlier then anticipated?
AD: No, they said they were gonna put me on a program when I get down there. They know that I’m in the gym everyday. I’m really working hard.

HSH: Have you talked to any of your new teammates since all of this has come out?
AD: I haven’t, but I assume that they already knew. I’m sure I’ll be talking with them soon.

Andre is the man. :D

[dukeblue225]

What's the latest on Andre Dawkins? Is he for sure coming and has he passed his English class he was taking this summer.

[roywhite]

What's the latest on Andre Dawkins? Is he for sure coming and has he passed his English class he was taking this summer.

The post directly above yours has the most recent information and link that I've seen.

Process appears to be on track.

[ACCBBallFan]

As I recall the last date on the senior Englsih class is still a week away August 7 or so.

[miramar]

It looks like Duke is not the only school getting creative about aquiring last-minute help at the guard spot. Billy Donovan is close to signing Nimrod Tishman, an Israeli point guard:

http://www.miamiherald.com/news/breaking-news/story/1166703.html

I hope someone has told him that at least in the U.S., Nimrod has a completely different connotation from the Biblical original.

[yancem]

While I didn't attend Duke (I went to a little place out west you probably haven't heard of, about on a par with Duke, it s called Stanford), we had a few similar easy courses -- science for non science majors, "theater practices", where you moved sets around between acts, easy A if you were reliable about showing up. But, my point is, that we didn't call them "crip" courses, we called them "crib" courses. I have no idea of the etymology of either word. Maybe just an eat coats - west coast deal. Maybe a pronunciation issue.
Still, nice to have those courses to fall back on.

I would enter my 2 cents on the crip vs crib course debate but this is a basketball message board and a thread dedicated to Andre Dawkins. Not only is the subject of majors and easy courses off subject for the message board in general, it is focused more Miles Plumlee's major which has nothing to do with Dawkins.

If people really want to continue discussing the subject, can you please move it to a new/relevant thread? I keep clicking on this thread thinking that there is new news about Dawkins' status for next year only see more stuff about Miles, Pratt or crib courses (crib because they are so easy a baby can pass them, ok I had to say it) and it is really annoying.

Rant over, you can now return to your regularly scheduled program.

[Newton_14]

was a great read! The article gave an overview on each of the 09 recruits coming in and had the following to say about Dawkins:

"This move will not only give Duke another guard on roster, but also will give Duke a big scoring threat, much like Gerald Henderson on last year's team.
On a recent article of mine, Justin McTeer made the following comment about Dawkins: "Dawkins is not only the most athletic guard Duke will have in the backcourt next year, but he is BY FAR the purest shooter Duke has had since JJ Redick. Think of him as a JJ/Henderson hybrid""

That is high praise. I look forward to seeing him in action. He will no doubt go through the normal freshman growing pains but if he can play decent defense and average anywhere between say 8 to 11 ppg, he will help this team tremendously.

Here is the article link again: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/228547-2009-2010-acc-basketball-preview-duke-unc-remain-the-head-of-the-class

[FireOgilvie]

was a great read! The article gave an overview on each of the 09 recruits coming in and had the following to say about Dawkins:

"This move will not only give Duke another guard on roster, but also will give Duke a big scoring threat, much like Gerald Henderson on last year's team.
On a recent article of mine, Justin McTeer made the following comment about Dawkins: "Dawkins is not only the most athletic guard Duke will have in the backcourt next year, but he is BY FAR the purest shooter Duke has had since JJ Redick. Think of him as a JJ/Henderson hybrid""

That is high praise. I look forward to seeing him in action. He will no doubt go through the normal freshman growing pains but if he can play decent defense and average anywhere between say 8 to 11 ppg, he will help this team tremendously.

Here is the article link again: http://bleacherreport.com/articles/228547-2009-2010-acc-basketball-preview-duke-unc-remain-the-head-of-the-class

Wow, I hope he's right. That's a pretty bold statement. I'm guessing Taylor King has Dawkins beat though.

[Greg_Newton]

Wow, I hope he's right. That's a pretty bold statement. I'm guessing Taylor King has Dawkins beat though.

Nice to see, but IMO you can't really put much into anything you read on bleacher report. That quote appears to just be from another amateur bleacher report sportswriter who I doubt knows anything we don't about Andre.

That said, I DO remember another article (forget which) where Boo Williams himself said Andre's 3-point stroke was only a "notch or two below" JJ's at the same stage, which IS quite exciting.

[Azdukefan]

Wow, I hope he's right. That's a pretty bold statement. I'm guessing Taylor King has Dawkins beat though.

I am going to have to disagree. If we are talking distance, Taylor had as much if not more than anyone (including JJ) but if we are talking pure stroke ala Redick, Ellington, etc., King is not even in the ball game (he did a horrible job at getting his feet facing the rim). Just my thought!

[Fish80]

Taylor King's 3 point percentage his freshman year was 37.7%. Admittedly only one year, but not a great stat. Based on that data, it's hard to include him as one of the great shooters. Let's see how he does as a wildcat.

[DevilCastDownfromDurham]

Taylor King's 3 point percentage his freshman year was 37.7%. Admittedly only one year, but not a great stat. Based on that data, it's hard to include him as one of the great shooters. Let's see how he does as a wildcat.

As a freshman (http://goduke.statsgeek.com/basketball-m/players/statlines.php?playerid=299) JJ shot about 2% better and last season (http://www.nba.com/playerfile/jj_redick/index.html) (in the NBA but generally very wide open) he actually shot a slightly worse %. Time will tell on King, but I think his issue (other than D and cigarettes) was shot selection, not ability.

We saw a similar issue when McCants shot a better percentage and some UNC fans started arguing that he was a "better" shooter than JJ. Loot made a similar argument for Salim Stoudamire, IIRC. If Dawkins can keep defenders honest with his shot and make it a serious weapon as a frosh I'll be very happy. As the 3rd/4th option I expect he'll be in position to take, and make, some very good shots.

[airowe]

Saw this over at crazie-talk.com:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W8z_H5i7Qx0&eurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.crazie-talk.com%2F&feature=player_embedded

[Greg_Newton]

As I recall the last date on the senior Englsih class is still a week away August 7 or so.

August 11... still no news on this front? I seem to remember August 7-8th as the date also.

[Azdukefan]

I check the roster five to ten times a day in hopes that I see the name Andre Dawkins. Someone tell me I did not get my hopes up for nothing.

[SupaDave]

I check the roster five to ten times a day in hopes that I see the name Andre Dawkins. Someone tell me I did not get my hopes up for nothing.

Wow. Relax...

[FireOgilvie]

He said during an interview that he had 2-3 weeks left of class, and I believe that was about 2 weeks ago. I wouldn't be surprised if we heard something in the next week or two where he confirms finishing his class. From everything he has mentioned, it seems like it is a "done deal."

[CDu]

He said during an interview that he had 2-3 weeks left of class, and I believe that was about 2 weeks ago. I wouldn't be surprised if we heard something in the next week or two where he confirms finishing his class. From everything he has mentioned, it seems like it is a "done deal."

Well, the Fall semester begins in two weeks, and freshman orientation is in one week. So 1-2 weeks would seem like the worst-case scenario for when we'd find out one way or the other. If he's enrolled in classes, he's probably playing. If he's not enrolled, he's probably not playing. :)