Quote Originally Posted by SouthernDukie View Post
And the kind of sad thing is that, excluding Jeremy, the freshmen that should be leaving based on performance (not potential) from this season are Flip, Proctor, Mitchell... and then Whitehead (injuries, but was rounding into form) and Lively.

But because of 'potential' Lively and Whitehead are 100% gone, and the guys that *might* have stayed another year have done so well they will probably go too. And once again, the bottom line is that it leaves the cup pretty bare for Duke. Oh sure, we'll have new stud freshmen to fill in, but the consistency that most of us miss in this OAD era will once again be out the door. It's great for the players, but I'd argue it's not so great for the long-term progress of the different Duke teams. And it's certainly frustrating for many of us as we often lose in the tournament to teams with more cohesion and also don't form bonds with upperclassmen like we used to.

To put it straight - I LOATHE the OAD era. Yes, I have greatly enjoyed some of the players that have come thru (Zion, cough-cough). But the overall phenomenon I have not liked in the least. And it especially sucks that the team down the road continually seems to keep their guys and build stronger teams. It just stinks.
Mark Mitchell should leave based on his performance? Sorry I can't agree with that at all. He's a pretty good defensive player -- not great, but pretty good -- but he doesn't have the athleticism, ballhandling, or the shooting ability at his size to be an NBA player. His moves to the basket with the dribble are slow and predictable. He can't beat anyone off the dribble. He doesn't create. He's a below the rim player at 6'8", and his shot mechanics aren't very good. He's a guy who absolutely needs to work on multiple aspects of his game to have a real shot in the NBA in my opinion. I'd love to see him back in a Duke uniform to do that work because he can be a real impact player next year, but who knows what his vision of himself is?