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cakerace
11-25-2010, 05:56 AM
In my continuing euphoria over the last game, I suggest a place where one can post over-the-top, meaningless statistics and opinions without bringing down the wrath of those folks who advise caution and restraint this early in the year, and are not quite ready to crown this “the greatest team of all time.” Here’s one I enjoyed double checking: (Man, are these guys fun to watch or what???)

The latest Duke has trailed in each game this season:
Princeton: Never trailed
Miami (OH): 0-1, 17:51 remaining in first half
Colgate: Never
Marquette: Never
Kansas State: 12-13, 12:32 remaining in first half

dukeimac
11-25-2010, 06:28 AM
Jinx...

The chance to repeat just went out the window...

Duke: A Dynasty
11-25-2010, 10:16 AM
Jinx...

The chance to repeat just went out the window...

Lol, but seriously I think this could be one of the best maybe (just maybe) the best team Duke has ever had. Crazy enough the only thing that could make this team not as good is Kyrie..... I know sounds crazy right? But a freshmen Kyrie is not better than sr Hurley and Jr Williams. He might be a better freshmen but he would have trouble against the other 2.

OldPhiKap
11-25-2010, 10:19 AM
Lol, but seriously I think this could be one of the best maybe (just maybe) the best team Duke has ever had. Crazy enough the only thing that could make this team not as good is Kyrie..... I know sounds crazy right? But a freshmen Kyrie is not better than sr Hurley and Jr Williams. He might be a better freshmen but he would have trouble against the other 2.

That's why I'm glad we have Nolan.

_Gary
11-25-2010, 10:25 AM
In my 30 years of following Duke basketball I still believe the best, most dominant team we ever fielded was the '99 team. That team only lost two games (and in both those games they were one shot away from winning) and they really did dominate in most of the games they won. It was a stellar year against the Heels. I still remember a Maggette crossover that broke the ankles of a UNC defender as Corey soared for a major dunk in Chapel Hill. It was hilarious and very appropriate as Duke destroyed them. And with all that said - Duke lost in the Finals! That loss taught me to never, ever, ever again to be overconfident about a Duke championship. Anything can happen - and more often than not it does!

Trust me on this one. It's way too early to be talking about this current Blue Devil team being the best of all time, or even one of the best. Way too early!

diesel
11-25-2010, 10:29 AM
That dominant 1999 team broke my heart too. Can't be beat? Lesson learned.

mgtr
11-25-2010, 10:40 AM
I agree that the team looks mighty good for November. However, when you look at each player there is much room for improvement. Now if each player continues to improve during the season, then overconfidence today will be justified. But, some players may not improve much, or (perish the thought) there could be injuries.
So I am pleased to take one game at a time, not gloat, and be happy with what I am seeing.

MarkD83
11-25-2010, 10:56 AM
I agree that the team looks mighty good for November. However, when you look at each player there is much room for improvement. Now if each player continues to improve during the season, then overconfidence today will be justified. But, some players may not improve much, or (perish the thought) there could be injuries.
So I am pleased to take one game at a time, not gloat, and be happy with what I am seeing.

I agree with your improvement statement. The exciting part is that each player's role looks like it is already being defined on the team. The improvement is to their skill sets within that role. This is something that is easy for players and assistant coaches to work through as the season goes by.

killerleft
11-25-2010, 11:52 AM
Overconfidence breeds it's own sad rewards.

As for the team getting too big for it's britches, I think Coach K has an "app" for that.

gam7
11-25-2010, 01:09 PM
In my 30 years of following Duke basketball I still believe the best, most dominant team we ever fielded was the '99 team. That team only lost two games (and in both those games they were one shot away from winning) and they really did dominate in most of the games they won. It was a stellar year against the Heels. I still remember a Maggette crossover that broke the ankles of a UNC defender as Corey soared for a major dunk in Chapel Hill. It was hilarious and very appropriate as Duke destroyed them. And with all that said - Duke lost in the Finals! That loss taught me to never, ever, ever again to be overconfident about a Duke championship. Anything can happen - and more often than not it does!

Trust me on this one. It's way too early to be talking about this current Blue Devil team being the best of all time, or even one of the best. Way too early!

The ’99 team played at an extremely high level for the entire season. Before diving in to some turkey, just a few facts about the ’99 team (and how the 2011 team compares). But keep in mind that the ’99 team did this for an entire season and, of course, still did not win a championship. The ‘11 team has played great so far, but they’ll need to sustain it over a long season and peak at the right time in order to be considered as one of the great Duke teams. It certainly has potential though.

1. On the '99 team 4 players average in double figures (Brand, Langdon, Avery, Maggette) and 2 more averaged more than 9 points per game (Carrawell, Battier). Two more averaged at least 5 points per game (Burgess, James). By comparison, the 2011 team currently has 6 players averaging in double figures and one more averaging over 5 ppg.

2. The ’99 team’s FG% for the entire season was 51.4%, which is astounding. The team’s effective eFG% was 57.4%. The 2011 version has a FG% of 49.8% and an eFG% of 57.2%.

3. The ’99 team won 15 games by 30 or more, 9 additional games by 20 or more and 9 games by 10 or more. That is, 33 of the team’s 37 wins were by double figures. So far, the 2011 team has won by double figures in 4 out of 5 games with 3 30+ point wins and 1 additional 10+ point win.

J4Kop99
11-25-2010, 01:12 PM
Can anyone tell me what happened to Duke back in 2004? What about Redick's senior year back in '06? Those are just two recent years where we had incredible teams but could not win the whole thing.

-I understand we are all excited, and this is a thread to show that excitement, but at the same time... we can't judge Duke by the first 5 games.(Even though one of those games was against a top 4 team in the country.)

Are they good? Absolutely. Are they better than last year? They have a long, long way to go.

I am as big a Duke fan as the next guy, but college basketball is as hard as any sport to judge.