Zoubek's Return

[mddukefan]

I have been a fan of this site for the past 4-5 years and have always read your posts with interest. I finally decided to join and add my 2 cents, so this is my first post. I was just curious if there was any update's on Brian's health? I'm assuming he won't be used against VA Tech this week, with Jeff Allen being sidelined with a suspension.

After seeing Maryland beat UNC I wouldn't mind having him back for that game. Living in Maryland i have seen their fans talk trash about their own team all season and now after 1 win, they have all kinds of things to say to me about this upcoming weekend. I'm confident but i wouldn't mind having Zoubek in the rotation against Gist and Osby.

That said i'm looking forward to being a part of the posts!! Thanks!!

[Devilsfan]

Obviously you haven't seen him play against talented opposition. We all want him well, however.

[mddukefan]

I'll give you that. But i would like to have 5 more fouls to use on their bigs and a few minutes of rest for Kyle...

[4decadedukie]

Welcome, we're glad you're aboard. Duke's current "small" lineup -- starters and rotation -- is crystallizing nicely and can potentially defeat a "big post" approach with athleticism, speed, defense, and outside shooting. This leads me to wonder if Zoubek will not be medically red shirted for this entire year?

[Jumbo]

Welcome, we're glad you're aboard. Duke's current "small" lineup -- starters and rotation -- is crystallizing nicely and can potentially defeat a "big post" approach with athleticism, speed, defense, and outside shooting. This leads me to wonder if Zoubek will not be medically red shirted for this entire year?

Zoubek cannot be medically redshirted this year -- he has played too many games to qualify. He'll be back this season, and hopefully soon.

[dukegirlinsc]

Obviously you haven't seen him play against talented opposition. We all want him well, however.

amen to that.

[4decadedukie]

Zoubek cannot be medically redshirted this year -- he has played too many games to qualify. He'll be back this season, and hopefully soon.

You're right: Twelve games > (.2)(30).

[DukieInBrasil]

My conception of this team has changed dramatically since ACC play started. Previously I thought that this team needed at least nominal offense from McClure, LT and Z. When Z went down again (maybe for the year?), I was concerned that an already depleted frontcourt would become so thin that it would be too easily exploited. Since then LT and Dave have combined for nearly no production on O, and yet Duke has run off 3 double digit wins and shown an impressive amount of verve. To be fair, LT and Dave provide a valuable presence in certain situations, most notably on half-court pressure D, which is where a lot of Duke's O starts.

Our depth and versatility on the wings is impressive and has been extremely effective of late. We've got 3 guys (DN, GH and NS) whose MO is getting into the lane or to the rim, and they've been more than a handful lately. Only DN is a strong threat from 3 lately. Singler is not a "slasher" necessarily but his ability to shoot 3s definitely makes his inside game more effective. So we've got 4 guys who are getting a major portion of their scoring from inside/around the lane. Paulus, though slumping badly in the last 2 games, has shot well from 3 this year and seems to have a knack for getting key layups in clutch situations. Paulus won't be confused with a "slashing" guard but he scores in the lane too. Scheyer has been seriously effective as a 6th man and can come into any game and be an inside/outside threat depending on what the D is giving. So our guards + Singler have given Duke an inside presence, with only Paulus and Smith not really forces on the boards. It is an inside presence based on getting there, not necessarily about starting there.

We beat Clemson, who has a strong and deep frontcourt and who also gave UNC fits, even though they destroyed us on the boards. The box score shows that they beat us in the frontcourt, but Nelson, Henderson, Scheyer and Smith were on fire inside. Singler nailed 3 3pointers but he also shot well from 2. So the box score doesn't reflect where we were scoring from.

I want to see how Duke responds to UNCs depth in the frontcourt before this idea becomes deeply rooted, but if he still has eligibility to do so, why not red-shirt Z? If we show that we can consistently play at an elevated level with our personnel now, why force Z to lose a year of eligibility when his ability to contribute has been very compromised by injuries? One of the main elements of Z's recruitment was that he was going to be a project player, so why not let him recover more thoroughly and let him work on fundamental skills for being a C? He could then have 3 years remaining at Duke to develop from project to serious presence. However, if in the next 6 games we show that we are not able to maintain an elevated level of play without more interior presence, we may need Z back more than I imagine. However, this all becomes moot if he has played in too many games to redshirt this year, so, anybody got word on Z's eligibility for getting redshirt status?

[Dukefan4Life]

Living in maryland i get bashed all the time for loving duke too. I hope Z can come back soon, we need him big time! we need his size and presence in the middle! i think we are one bigman away from winning it all!

[natedog4ever]

Don't know if anybody heard the interview with Brian on the pregame radio show, but it did not sound promising. Sounds like he had another x-ray lately and he is back to doing only strength-type stuff and watching practice. I think if you are counting on him to make a big impact this season, you are probably going to be dissapointed. I feel bad for him - one of the ways he described the injury was "sad".

[Uncle Drew]

I have been a fan of this site for the past 4-5 years and have always read your posts with interest. I finally decided to join and add my 2 cents, so this is my first post. I was just curious if there was any update's on Brian's health? I'm assuming he won't be used against VA Tech this week, with Jeff Allen being sidelined with a suspension.

After seeing Maryland beat UNC I wouldn't mind having him back for that game. Living in Maryland i have seen their fans talk trash about their own team all season and now after 1 win, they have all kinds of things to say to me about this upcoming weekend. I'm confident but i wouldn't mind having Zoubek in the rotation against Gist and Osby.

That said i'm looking forward to being a part of the posts!! Thanks!!

Welcome to the board, I too think Duke will need Brian more than a lot of people would like to admit after Duke's last two games. I hope he is pain free and at least practicing again ASAP.

As for being in Maryland my condolences. It has nothing to do with the state, university or anything other than my ex-wife who was born in Towson and spent her formative years in Owings Mills. Just the sheer mention of those towns sends chills down my spine and makes me divide up half my belongings to have her cart them away. (Poor cat didn't even know what hit her!)


I don't think Brian can red shirt at this point can he?

[Saratoga2]

The report on Brian on January 8th was that he broke his foot and would be back in 1 to 3 weeks. That would mean around the end of this month. We are nearly at 3 week time frame and no word seems to be coming out about him. Clearly when he comes back he will need to work to get into game shape, he has probably been on the bicycle in the interim so his cardio should be pretty good but there may be a couple of weeks for him to get ready for ACC play.

Does anyone have any details on his progress. We could use a big player Sunday, but that obviously that will be too early. I would love to see him back for UNC where he has given Hansbrough some trouble in the past.

[jjasper0729]

in the radio pre-game, they did an on-court interview with Zoubek. He said that a couple of days earlier, they did another x-ray and it didn't look like they thought it would by this point so he's back to trying to stay off of it and just doing his cardio and other lifting exercises to stay in shape rather than get back on the practice floor.

that's the last I've heard

[wilson]

I don't think Brian can red shirt at this point can he?

No. He's already played in too many games. I think the formula is that you can only redshirt after playing in less than 20% of your team's games.

[OZZIE4DUKE]

No. He's already played in too many games. I think the formula is that you can only redshirt after playing in less than 20% of your team's games.

They modified the rule to less than 30% of a team's games. Saw this on TV this past week, I think on the Duke - VT telecast.

[Lavabe]

They modified the rule to less than 30% of a team's games. Saw this on TV this past week, I think on the Duke - VT telecast.

You believe everything you hear on TV ... from the mouths of Patrick and Elmore?

Cheers,
Lavabe

[SeattleIrish]

Obviously you haven't seen him play against talented opposition. We all want him well, however.

Should have gone with the smiley/winkie there, Devilsfan. Brian certainly isn't much of an offensive force, but he can alter shots - even those of talented opposition.

Not sure how he would fit in with the current rotation, but another physical game like VT (please, god, lets not have another one!) might mean a big body that can alter shots would be sorely needed. I, for one, was really looking forward to having him D-up on Hans.

s.i.

p.s. - welcome to the boards, MDdukefan!

[jjasper0729]

Blog Update

On the ACCNow regarding Zoubek's status

[Madrasdukie]

Blog Update

On the ACCNow regarding Zoubek's status

Definetly encouraging.

[DevilCastDownfromDurham]

Anybody else think Z will dramatically return just in time for the Carolina game?