When The Day Comes

Are we to the point that when Coach K retires that the next head coach should be hired with the understanding that he only recruit players who expect to be at Duke four years? We can't chain the players to Duke. If they blow up beyond what anyone expected and are able to go to the NBA early, great, we won't guilt-trip them, but we don't want players coming in with the expectation of leaving early because that's not the kind of program we want. The program would definitely take at least a step back and maybe more but is this one and done track sustainable for Duke? I'm talking about student and fan support. I'm talking about the image that Duke wants to project to the world.

no idea how you do that...

I would argue the opposite. I say this new transfer rule makes the multiyear development guys riskier to take on for the program.

I would say keep on your roster,

6-7 one n done or guys that can potentially to go one and done,
4+ multiyear guys that are primarily in it for the education, or ranked so low they'll maybe contribute heavy minutes as a junior / senior.
+ transfers

What we don't want going forward is having 7 or more guys ranked in the top 100 on the roster at one time.

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Originally Posted by hallcity

We can't chain the players to Duke.

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Who talks like this? To "chain the players" was never an option. Sometimes I really don't identify with most of Duke fandom. Let's just say I was born immune to the fantasy ownership approach. Duke is my team because it's my point of reference and my point of preference. But it's not MY team in the possessive sense.

Credit, I guess, for combining yet another What It All Means thread with yet another Succession thread. Let me know when all you fantasy owners come to an agreement about the future of Duke basketball.

Simple answer: No. Simple reason: Money.

I don't know how much our NBA players donate to Duke, but as a subset they have much greater potential to do so than any other Duke group per capita. By far. Unless a whole bunch of big money people say "We don't like how one-and-done reflects on the university", it's never gonna happen.

Money. It's why after spending 2 semesters at Duke you get to call yourself an alumnus.

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Originally Posted by proelitedota

I would argue the opposite. I say this new transfer rule makes the multiyear development guys riskier to take on for the program.

I would say keep on your roster,

6-7 one n done or guys that can potentially to go one and done,
4+ multiyear guys that are primarily in it for the education, or ranked so low they'll maybe contribute heavy minutes as a junior / senior.
+ transfers

What we don't want going forward is having 7 or more guys ranked in the top 100 on the roster at one time.

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These are my thoughts exactly. I think it is smart. Target top one and done recruits or smart, solid players who can be developed and will stay and be leaders. I think you retain the talent you normally recruit and you have your best years when a top player unexpectedly returns or was injured the prior year and returns, and your solid players are upper class-men. And your bad years may be like last year where your solid returners are still young and your top talent actually gets hurt or doesn't develop like you hope. Especially with how things are changing legally and the G league, I think more and more players are starting to see college as just a temporary stop before they can make tons of money. Either get top recruits or people you know will stay and not much in between (rather than just targeting top available).

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Originally Posted by hallcity

Are we to the point that when Coach K retires that the next head coach should be hired with the understanding that he only recruit players who expect to be at Duke four years? We can't chain the players to Duke. If they blow up beyond what anyone expected and are able to go to the NBA early, great, we won't guilt-trip them, but we don't want players coming in with the expectation of leaving early because that's not the kind of program we want. The program would definitely take at least a step back and maybe more but is this one and done track sustainable for Duke? I'm talking about student and fan support. I'm talking about the image that Duke wants to project to the world.

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Agree with the bolded above--this is a strategy to regularly missing the tournament. Whether you feel more interested or connected to such a team is up to you, but I prefer adapting to the changing landscape in an attempt to maintain the high-level of success for a program of this caliber.

Let's not forget that the attention Coach K and Duke basketball have drawn has helped improve the overall image of the school. It's often one of the first things people think of when they hear "Duke," and it's not a bad idea for an excellent, consistently winning team to be what folks think of. And ask schools like George Mason, VCU, Wichita St, Loyola, and even Gonzaga how much sports success can boost a school's profile in other areas.

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Originally Posted by thedukeman

These are my thoughts exactly. I think it is smart. Target top one and done recruits or smart, solid players who can be developed and will stay and be leaders. I think you retain the talent you normally recruit and you have your best years when a top player unexpectedly returns or was injured the prior year and returns, and your solid players are upper class-men. And your bad years may be like last year where your solid returners are still young and your top talent actually gets hurt or doesn't develop like you hope. Especially with how things are changing legally and the G league, I think more and more players are starting to see college as just a temporary stop before they can make tons of money. Either get top recruits or people you know will stay and not much in between (rather than just targeting top available).

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Assuming Coach stays a few more years (big if, I know), then he'll adapt. He adjusted to OAD, and I think he will with transfers. The transfer market is the new OAD (2AD if you're lucky). The OAD recruits are going to be harder to get and harder to succeed with because of the G-League Elite draw; the counter-balance to that might be NIL, but that might not bear fruit until next year.

Also, different sport, but Nick Saban said that the transfer market with fewer restrictions will favor the P5 schools, and the rich will get richer. If you look at the transfer rankings on ESPN, the top committed recruits have nearly all "upgraded" from mid-majors to P5 schools. That says a lot.

In keeping with this thread, if Coach doesn't choose to adapt, his successor will have to.