Toughest coaching job yet for K?

[Duke3517]

With now the departure of Sheed, is this one of the toughest teams K has had? Not suggesting at all that Duke stops recruiting potential one and done talent's. But does the big shift in the lineup compared to last year have any effect? Does Coach K changing his defensive style to help suit the current players on the team? Just a thought.

I still think in the end Duke will find answers and make it deep into March. Way to talented not too.

[CrazyNotCrazie]

Not to minimize Rasheed's importance, but we have lost Bobby Hurley, Carlos Boozer and Ryan Kelly to injury mid-season (and I'm sure there are many others I am forgetting). Next play.

[Wahoo2000]

With now the departure of Sheed, is this one of the toughest teams K has had? Not suggesting at all that Duke stops recruiting potential one and done talent's. But does the big shift in the lineup compared to last year have any effect? Does Coach K changing his defensive style to help suit the current players on the team? Just a thought.

I still think in the end Duke will find answers and make it deep into March. Way to talented not too.

K is just such a GREAT x's and o's guy, as well as a developer of talent. Maybe I'm biased because I've seen the results Bennett gets from recruiting guys who will be there for at least 3-4 years, but I think K would field a much stronger Duke TEAM if he stayed away from the top 5, 1-and-done players.

If K recruited exclusively in the top 15-40 range of player, and kept and developed all those guys for 3-4 years so they know his system perfectly, you'd be almost unbeatable.

[AIRFORCEDUKIE]

Well if anything we aren't favorites to win it all now and may not be in the conversation when the experts talk about it.

Which means we can play the role of underdogs, at least in our minds. I know Duke is never considered an underdog amd everyone gives us their best shot.

[arnie]

K is just such a GREAT x's and o's guy, as well as a developer of talent. Maybe I'm biased because I've seen the results Bennett gets from recruiting guys who will be there for at least 3-4 years, but I think K would field a much stronger Duke TEAM if he stayed away from the top 5, 1-and-done players.

If K recruited exclusively in the top 15-40 range of player, and kept and developed all those guys for 3-4 years so they know his system perfectly, you'd be almost unbeatable.

My feelings exactly. For the reasons you state as well as the rent a player for a year is something I've never felt good about. Let Calipari and others rent players and deal with all the drama.

[Wander]

If K recruited exclusively in the top 15-40 range of player, and kept and developed all those guys for 3-4 years so they know his system perfectly, you'd be almost unbeatable.

I'm a little more open to this than some people here, but Rasheed was in the (upper part) of the 15-40 range of player.

[CDu]

Not even close. Not to be crass about a sensitive issue, but we are talking about a backup playing at our deepest position. just means more PT for our other high-school All-Americans. Coach K has had much tougher jobs than this one.

[throatybeard]

Toughest coaching job yet for K?

Yeah, um, no. No.

If pressed, I'll say 1981-82.

[MarkD83]

If K recruited exclusively in the top 15-40 range of player, and kept and developed all those guys for 3-4 years so they know his system perfectly, you'd be almost unbeatable.

Duke and Coach K are in a bit of a pickle with this. If the top players show an interest in coming to Duke it is hard to say no thanks since it is always good to take the best talent you can get.

The other issue is Duke does get those players ranked 15-40 to come to Duke but then a few transfers and the roster gets shrunk. Instead of 8 scholarship players Duke would have 11 if not for Alex, Michael and Semi transferring.

This is of course a debate that we have had on this board many times, so I am sure there is a code for it that I forget.

[sagegrouse]

Way back at the end of the summer, some frequent poster (hmmmm....) floated the meme that this year's rotation would be different. Coming out a hugely successful FIBA championship and staring at the debris from the 2014 season at Duke, K would be energized and would make changes to the program, broadening the rotation and using all the talent at hand in a more up-tempo game.

Well, we probably will use "all the talent at hand," but only because we are down to eight recruited players.

I look forward to seeing Grayson on the court and believe that his play will improve as he gets more time on the court.

K as coach -- there is none better. K as putative GM, managing a roster, hmmmm....?

[Mtn.Devil.91.92.01.10.15]

Here's to hoping that K can make something special with the players remaining on the roster. We have plenty of talent to win a lot more games this season. Knowing K's "Next Play" rallying cry, maybe we can make a good run.

Everyone thought the Seahawks were insane for trading Percy Harvin for some magic beans when they got off to a rough start. Let's see how that's working out for them.

[nmduke2001]

Not even close. Not to be crass about a sensitive issue, but we are talking about a backup playing at our deepest position. just means more PT for our other high-school All-Americans. Coach K has had much tougher jobs than this one.

I'm with you. There are about 320 NCAA division I coaches that wish that they had this tough coaching task.

[MChambers]

Way back at the end of the summer, some frequent poster (hmmmm....) floated the meme that this year's rotation would be different. Coming out a hugely successful FIBA championship and staring at the debris from the 2014 season at Duke, K would be energized and would make changes to the program, broadening the rotation and using all the talent at hand in a more up-tempo game.

Well, we probably will use "all the talent at hand," but only because we are down to eight recruited players.

I look forward to seeing Grayson on the court and believe that his play will improve as he gets more time on the court.

K as coach -- there is none better. K as putative GM, managing a roster, hmmmm....?
You have finally capitulated! Down to the usual 7.5 player rotation, just not in the way many expected.

[DevilWearsPrada]

K is just such a GREAT x's and o's guy, as well as a developer of talent. Maybe I'm biased because I've seen the results Bennett gets from recruiting guys who will be there for at least 3-4 years, but I think K would field a much stronger Duke TEAM if he stayed away from the top 5, 1-and-done players.

If K recruited exclusively in the top 15-40 range of player, and kept and developed all those guys for 3-4 years so they know his system perfectly, you'd be almost unbeatable.

Coach Bennett has done a great job at UVA, and developing his players over the 3/4 years. I would like to see Duke return to those days of glory with players like Shane, JJ, Sheldon, J Williams, Boozer, Grant Hill, Christian, Hurley, Nolan Smith, Jon Scheyer, Zoubek, Lance Thomas, Ryan Kelly, Miles & Mason Plumlee, Kyle Singler, Johnny Dawkins, Chris Duhon, and many many more.

Maybe just 1 player each year, that is a One year player. It's hard for them to learn a program in one year, knowing they are headed to big money with the NBA. And they need to play guarded with their bodies, and not get injured.

Like Coach K said, in Blue Devil Club, if a kid is gifted and talented enough, they need to go from High School to the Pros !!!!!

[Kedsy]

Maybe just 1 player each year, that is a One year player.

That's a lot harder done than said. This is the first year we've potentially had more than one one-and-done, but (a) Jahlil and Tyus were a "package deal"; and (2) when he was recruited, I don't think anyone thought Justise was a potential one-and-done. Probably not Tyus, either, for that matter. My guess is when he was recruiting last year, Coach K he thought he was bringing in "just 1 player... that [was] a One year player." It just may not work out that way.

[mo.st.dukie]

K is just such a GREAT x's and o's guy, as well as a developer of talent. Maybe I'm biased because I've seen the results Bennett gets from recruiting guys who will be there for at least 3-4 years, but I think K would field a much stronger Duke TEAM if he stayed away from the top 5, 1-and-done players.

If K recruited exclusively in the top 15-40 range of player, and kept and developed all those guys for 3-4 years so they know his system perfectly, you'd be almost unbeatable.

I don't think any coach in America would pass on the opportunity to get Okafor, Parker, Rivers, or Irving and that includes Bennett. I don't think it's necessarily the one and dones that have hurt but rather the overall strategy of focusing on so many players that are highly skilled offensively but lack the height, strength, speed, athleticism, etc.

And K hasn't been recruiting every position the way he should. I think he's gotten caught up in this positionless stuff which has led to us playing undersized players either on the wing or in the post. There should be a better intent on getting guys that physically fit each position, looking for the 6'6-6'8 wing every year, the 6'8-6'10 stretch 4 every year, looking for the 6'10-7'0+ center every year and even picking some of those guys who may be raw offensively but have the physical tools to be great defenders.

You don't know who's going to leave early and who isn't. You can stay away from the top 5 guys but we've seen guys ranked much lower who leave after a year or two. Everybody always likes the idea of coaches getting low ranked guys who develop into good players but the reality is, that's not the norm. You're not going to build a consistently great program year in and year out by constantly relying on low ranked 4 stars and 3 star players. You might get fortunate in a year or stretch of years where a player or two turn out significantly better than anyone expected but chances are not good that you will have that every year.

[DukieInKansas]

I think making this decision probably was one of the hardest things he has had to do as a Coach.

[CDu]

That's a lot harder done than said. This is the first year we've potentially had more than one one-and-done, but (a) Jahlil and Tyus were a "package deal"; and (2) when he was recruited, I don't think anyone thought Justise was a potential one-and-done. Probably not Tyus, either, for that matter. My guess is when he was recruiting last year, Coach K he thought he was bringing in "just 1 player... that [was] a One year player." It just may not work out that way.

I think that if you're recruiting a top-20 prospect, you almost have to assume there is a good chance he'll be a one-and-done. And if you are recruiting a top-10 prospect, that is even more true.

[Kedsy]

I think that if you're recruiting a top-20 prospect, you almost have to assume there is a good chance he'll be a one-and-done. And if you are recruiting a top-10 prospect, that is even more true.

Which is why the idea of not recruiting one-and-dones, or recruiting just one a year, is not realistic at a program like Duke. It would be crazy to limit Coach K to only recruiting prospects outside the top 20.

[Duvall]

Which is why the idea of not recruiting one-and-dones, or recruiting just one a year, is not realistic at a program like Duke. It would be crazy to limit Coach K to only recruiting prospects outside the top 20.

And that doesn't account for the Tyler Ennis problem, in which a recruit just outside the top 20 turns out to be better than expected and leaves after one year.

[CDu]

Which is why the idea of not recruiting one-and-dones, or recruiting just one a year, is not realistic at a program like Duke. It would be crazy to limit Coach K to only recruiting prospects outside the top 20.

Oh, I completely agree. You have to go after the top talent. And you have to hope that you get enough second-tier talent to stick around and develop (and occasionally get a top-tier guy to stick around).

Part of the "problem" has been that a lot of our second/third-tier guys (Gbinije, Murphy, and Ojeleye most recently) have not been interested in sticking around, and some of the ones that did (Hairston, Sulaimon, and Plumlee, for example) haven't/didn't really develop enough over their time here.

Hopefully guys like Matt Jones and Grayson Allen can change that trend. Of course, if have no PG on the roster next year, that's a completely different issue.

I think the other thing you need to do is to expand your search pool. The transfer market (and the grad transfer market) are things that Duke has rarely considered; in this new era of college basketball, I think that will probably need to change. Given the recruitment of Tarik Black before last season and the addition of Obi this past summer, I think we're starting to see that come to fruition.

[duke79]

I think we need to be careful when we describe Coach K's job as "tough" or the "toughest coaching job yet." On a relative scale of "tough jobs", I would put coaching Duke basketball towards the bottom of the list. Military leaders who formulate war plans when they know hundreds or thousands of young men and women will be killed or seriously maimed by their decisions. THAT is a tough job. CEO's of companies who have to lay off hundreds of employees to make a company survive, knowing that many of those laid off will be financially destroyed by that decision. THAT is a tough job. Doctors that perform delicate surgery on kids. THAT is a tough job. The list of "tough jobs" could go on and on. Coaching a college basketball team, especially when you are being paid (supposedly) $8 million per year with a huge support staff paid for by the university. I think it's ridiculous misnomer to call a job like that "tough."

[CDu]

I think we need to be careful when we describe Coach K's job as "tough" or the "toughest coaching job yet." On a relative scale of "tough jobs", I would put coaching Duke basketball towards the bottom of the list. Military leaders who formulate war plans when they know hundreds or thousands of young men and women will be killed or seriously maimed by their decisions. THAT is a tough job. CEO's of companies who have to lay off hundreds of employees to make a company survive, knowing that many of those laid off will be financially destroyed by that decision. THAT is a tough job. Doctors that perform delicate surgery on kids. THAT is a tough job. The list of "tough jobs" could go on and on. Coaching a college basketball team, especially when you are being paid (supposedly) $8 million per year with a huge support staff paid for by the university. I think it's ridiculous misnomer to call a job like that "tough."

The thread is talking anout HIS toughest job. I think everyone realizes that it pales in toughness to many, many other jobs. This discussion is all relative to the world of bball.

[Bluegrassdevil1]

I do not have an answer to the question, but I do think this season (and last year) may be one of the more interesting chapters in Coach K's pretend biography of his career, season by season.

1. 1992 - would have been tough because the expectations were nothing short of winning every game (almost happened).

2. 1996 - would have been tough because he was attempting to bring the program "back" and avoid further "slippage", while missing Langdon.

3. 1999 - similar to 1992, but balancing solid upperclassmen with hyper talented youth.

4. 2000 - remaining on top after the mass exodus of Langdon, Domzalski, Burgess, Brand, Avery, and Maggette (for my money, his best coaching job).

5. 2007 - a very young team facing a very tough schedule.

6. 2011 - similar to 1992, but the added addition-subtraction-addition of a dynamic player like Irving.

7. 2014 and current - dynamic scorers, profound struggles on the defensive end.

[left_hook_lacey]

Is the OP reverse trolling?

We still have 8 McDonald's AA's, and arguably the best big man in the game this year. Without a doubt, the best freshman in the class.

If this is Coach K's "Toughest coaching job yet", then there are about 100 D1 coaches that would love to have his "problems" right now.

Please.

[subzero02]

Coach Bennett has done a great job at UVA, and developing his players over the 3/4 years. I would like to see Duke return to those days of glory with players like Shane, JJ, Sheldon , J Williams, Boozer, Grant Hill, Christian, Hurley, Nolan Smith, Jon Scheyer, Zoubek, Lance Thomas, Ryan Kelly, Miles & Mason Plumlee, Kyle Singler, Johnny Dawkins, Chris Duhon, and many many more.

Maybe just 1 player each year, that is a One year player. It's hard for them to learn a program in one year, knowing they are headed to big money with the NBA. And they need to play guarded with their bodies, and not get injured.

Like Coach K said, in Blue Devil Club, if a kid is gifted and talented enough, they need to go from High School to the Pros !!!!!

Shelden shouldn't be included in that list...

[Kedsy]

If this is Coach K's "Toughest coaching job yet", then there are about 100 D1 coaches that would love to have his "problems" right now.

Probably closer to 345.

[CDu]

Shelden shouldn't be included in that list...

Why shouldn't Shelden Williams be on the list of guys who developed over 3/4 years at Duke?

[grad_devil]

Shelden shouldn't be included in that list...


Why shouldn't Shelden Williams be on the list of guys who developed over 3/4 years at Duke?

I think it's fairly obvious, CDu.

While the others on that list have multiple accolades that prove their development, Shelden is only the Duke career leader in blocks, rebounds, 2006 All-American, 2x National Defensive Player of the Year, and has his jersey retired.

Wait...why shouldn't he be on the list?

[wavedukefan70s]

Personally, I believe when boozer went down with the broken foot.that was not only one of coaches toughest jobs.i believe it to be one of his most brilliant jobs as well.adversity seems to be a catalyst for him making brilliant changes.