Who Stays and Who Goes?

[dukelifer]

Our dude has size, strength and toughness -- and is only 19. I wouldn't be surprised if he has more of all three in a few years. Also, he was mobile enough to win the U18 3-on-3 world championship.

There are a lot of pros with size, strength and toughness. We shall see how he develops. I would be very happy to be wrong about his prospects as an NBA player.

[gam7]

Wonder if we'll hear another announcement tomorrow, or if the Duke media team wishes to space them out a bit more to capitalize and media attention?

Based on a sample size of exactly 2, it appears that Scheyer is a bit more comfortable with his guys conveying the message of their decision however they would like to, rather than putting out a press release or otherwise controlling the messaging to some extent, which seemed like Coach K's preference. Of course, once all the decisions are in, I wouldn't be surprised to see a press release from DBB expressing excitement about the guys coming back collectively and wishing the departing guys well. But, I don't get the feeling that Scheyer/"Duke Media" is micromanaging this.

[DavidBenAkiva]

Based on a sample size of exactly 2, it appears that Scheyer is a bit more comfortable with his guys conveying the message of their decision however they would like to, rather than putting out a press release or otherwise controlling the messaging to some extent, which seemed like Coach K's preference. Of course, once all the decisions are in, I wouldn't be surprised to see a press release from DBB expressing excitement about the guys coming back collectively and wishing the departing guys well. But, I don't get the feeling that Scheyer/"Duke Media" is micromanaging this.

In case you missed it, the Duke social media accounts put out a statement/video jointly with Dariq. Such is the way at Duke. The player gets to make the announcement but they do it with the blessing of the program. It's very intentional and professional.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CqYCz05OSjl/

[bshrader]

Based on a sample size of exactly 2, it appears that Scheyer is a bit more comfortable with his guys conveying the message of their decision however they would like to, rather than putting out a press release or otherwise controlling the messaging to some extent, which seemed like Coach K's preference. Of course, once all the decisions are in, I wouldn't be surprised to see a press release from DBB expressing excitement about the guys coming back collectively and wishing the departing guys well. But, I don't get the feeling that Scheyer/"Duke Media" is micromanaging this.

I shouldnt be impatient, and have no right to be. As was mentioned earlier, some of these guys may not have genuinely reached a final decision yet on what they want to do. And they should be offered all the time they need to make a decision, given the magnitude.

I just need something to fill the void so I dont feel so empty after season's end! Lol.

[Southgate0809]

At least for the guys returning, I would like to see them make that announcement together. I guess you could make the argument that leaving for the NBA is about your individual career and success, but even then I would like to see that done as a team.

[wilko]

I'm not going to be mad if Flip leaves.
I am however going to be highly disappointed if he leaves and doesn't take a shot at the ACC for allowing overly physical play and crappy officiating where he was victimized on at least 2 separate occasions as being contributing factors.

I were him, I don't know that I could restrain myself from telling them what for on the way out the door.

[gam7]

I'm not going to be mad if Flip leaves.
I am however going to be highly disappointed if he leaves and doesn't take a shot at the ACC for allowing overly physical play and crappy officiating where he was victimized on at least 2 separate occasions as being contributing factors.

I were him, I don't know that I could restrain myself from telling them what for on the way out the door.

Separated at birth: Flip's throat and Nick Horvath's nose.

[MarkD83]

Just a reminder as we look at the roster for next year...with Dariq going pro that means Duke has 14 players with scholarships and can only give out 13.

At least one person still needs to leave and two if there is a transfer in.

[bshrader]

Just a reminder as we look at the roster for next year...with Dariq going pro that means Duke has 14 players with scholarships and can only give out 13.

At least one person still needs to leave and two if there is a transfer in.

With the anticipated departures of Lively and Roach, this is not an issue.

[Crisker]

In case you missed it, the Duke social media accounts put out a statement/video jointly with Dariq. Such is the way at Duke. The player gets to make the announcement but they do it with the blessing of the program. It's very intentional and professional.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CqYCz05OSjl/

All such statements are consistent with the Iron/Beskar Mandalorian Way.

[ClemmonsDevil]

All such statements are consistent with the Iron/Beskar Mandalorian Way.

It is the way.

[DukeGrad]

With NIL money, how much do scholarships even matter anymore? There must be plenty of donors who would pay tuition and other school-related costs.

[aivroadstr]

With NIL money, how much do scholarships even matter anymore? There must be plenty of donors who would pay tuition and other school-related costs.

Wow. Good point. I never considered this before. I mean that genuinely.

[SkyBrickey]

I'm certainly not dancing on their grave, as I expect they will bounce back at some point, but I think something that is getting lost in translation here is the exact facet that Jon mentioned he wants to bring to our program, and that is continuity. To me, having a mass exodus (and I would consider 6 players into the portal a mass exodus) indicates one of two things, or both things:

1) There's a lack of communication in the program in regards to transparency. Because there has to have been a breakdown in communication in what was projected for these players and what really materialized.

2) There's a lack of understanding in the culture in the program in whatever Hubert is building, or attempting to build.

It isnt simply that theyre losing mediocre players that were bench depth that they may have had a chance to develop into some meaningful players (i.e Nickel, Puff, mayybbe Styles). It's what this mass exodus may indicate for Carolina, both in continuity and culture. Neither indicate a strong culture and neither indicate there is continuity within the program.

Yeah, they’re a hot mess.

[JetpackJesus]

All such statements are consistent with the Iron/Beskar Mandalorian Way.

Only one guy remained unmasked most of the year.

[JetpackJesus]

Real question: Is Kyle an NBA four? He's seemingly made it clear in college that he sees himself at the four, and that's where he's played almost exclusively. But when you look at his skill set, he doesn't have NBA-level handles, and he doesn't have a great outside shot (yet). Would an NBA team humor his desire to play the four, or would he get shunted to the five whether he likes it or not? "You ain't a star, kid, and you're under contract. You'll play where we want you to play."

I just wonder if Kyle might legitimately be in a rare situation where his developmental prospects are more in tune with his interests in college than they would be in the pros.

It is also quite possible I'm just rationalizing because I want him to stay.

Your real question is why he's a borderline 1R/2R pick right now. If he's going to have a real role in the NBA, it will likely be as a stretch-4. He hasn't shown the stretch part yet. He's checked all the other boxes. It's the reason coming back realistically makes sense for Flip. His FT% is projectible to being a good 3PT shooter. If he can show a good 3PT% next year, he goes from fringe 1R to a 1R lock and probable lottery pick.

No NBA team, I suspect, views him as a potential 5. His wingspan is short (I believe) relative to his height, and he's not a rim protector or rim runner, despite how awesome that manly dunk through uNC's entire team was.

[jv001]

Your real question is why he's a borderline 1R/2R pick right now. If he's going to have a real role in the NBA, it will likely be as a stretch-4. He hasn't shown the stretch part yet. He's checked all the other boxes. It's the reason coming back realistically makes sense for Flip. His FT% is projectible to being a good 3PT shooter. If he can show a good 3PT% next year, he goes from fringe 1R to a 1R lock and probable lottery pick.

No NBA team, I suspect, views him as a potential 5. His wingspan is short (I believe) relative to his height, and he's not a rim protector or rim runner, despite how awesome that manly dunk through uNC's entire team was.

I'm in agreement with this ^. From his play this season, I saw a few things he needs to improve. 1) His outside shot. 2) His handle in traffic. 3) Get stronger finishing at the basket. 3) His perimeter defense (at the 3 & 4 positions). I certainly don't question his toughness and off the ball defense. I would love to see Flip return to Duke for one more season.

GoDuke!

[scottdude8]

Your real question is why he's a borderline 1R/2R pick right now. If he's going to have a real role in the NBA, it will likely be as a stretch-4. He hasn't shown the stretch part yet. He's checked all the other boxes. It's the reason coming back realistically makes sense for Flip. His FT% is projectible to being a good 3PT shooter. If he can show a good 3PT% next year, he goes from fringe 1R to a 1R lock and probable lottery pick.

No NBA team, I suspect, views him as a potential 5. His wingspan is short (I believe) relative to his height, and he's not a rim protector or rim runner, despite how awesome that manly dunk through uNC's entire team was.

I recognize I'm in the minority on this, but I think that Kyle could have value as an NBA 5, albeit perhaps not in a starting role. Kyle has shown the ability to be a plus rebounder, something that will likely improve as his strength improves. While he isn't a plus rim protector, he isn't a floor-bound Ryan Young big... he got up for some blocks this year. I think that deficiency could be offset by the plus-plus mismatches on the offensive end he could provide if his 3 point shot does get to the 35% range or so that it could after a potential Year 2.

As Coach K often said, very few NBA players are superstars... most are role players. I think Kyle could carve out a really solid niche for himself as a backup big that can play the 4 AND the 5 and provide a lot of situational floor spacing. I think his value to NBA teams goes up if he shows he can play the 5, which is part of why I thought (prior to all the rumors about a potential incoming transfer big) that part of the pitch for him to return would be to showcase his ability to play the 5.

That said, I acknowledge fully that I'm in the minority on this, and likely flat out wrong on what the recruiting pitch for his return is given that all signs point towards the staff wanting Kyle to remain the starting 4 next year.

[CDu]

I recognize I'm in the minority on this, but I think that Kyle could have value as an NBA 5, albeit perhaps not in a starting role. Kyle has shown the ability to be a plus rebounder, something that will likely improve as his strength improves. While he isn't a plus rim protector, he isn't a floor-bound Ryan Young big... he got up for some blocks this year. I think that deficiency could be offset by the plus-plus mismatches on the offensive end he could provide if his 3 point shot does get to the 35% range or so that it could after a potential Year 2.

As Coach K often said, very few NBA players are superstars... most are role players. I think Kyle could carve out a really solid niche for himself as a backup big that can play the 4 AND the 5 and provide a lot of situational floor spacing. I think his value to NBA teams goes up if he shows he can play the 5, which is part of why I thought (prior to all the rumors about a potential incoming transfer big) that part of the pitch for him to return would be to showcase his ability to play the 5.

That said, I acknowledge fully that I'm in the minority on this, and likely flat out wrong on what the recruiting pitch for his return is given that all signs point towards the staff wanting Kyle to remain the starting 4 next year.

You may or may not be in the minority on this, but I agree with you that Flip has NBA value as a center. In fact, I'd go a step further and argue that he's MORE valuable to the NBA as a C than as a PF. No, he isn't a rim-running, shot-blocking center. But that isn't the only type of center that NBA teams use. Nikola Jokic is a center. Nikola Vucevic is a center. Al Horford is a center. Brook Lopez is a center. None of those guys are shot-blocking, rim-running centers. There are others I'm forgetting, but those guys immediately come to mind.

I'd also argue that he'd be a better college player at C than at PF, because he's plenty strong enough to defend centers but his skill level and athleticism and ability to play away from the basket would have more value at C than at PF (not that he isn't valuable at PF, just that his offense would play up even more at C).

Are there things he can work on to improve? Yes. Lower body strength (which would allow him to play "lower" on the dribble and to be more explosive and power in the air) and his outside shot are the two biggest. But neither of those things NEED to happen in college, and can arguably be improved more away from college than in college. So it's not like he NEEDS to return. I'm not saying he should definitely go pro. It's obviously up to whatever he wants at this point in his life. But I'm saying he definitely doesn't NEED to come back to improve on those things before going to the NBA.

Hopefully he wants to return. If he does, he'll be an awesome player for us and he'll make a huge positive impact on our season.

[jv001]

I recognize I'm in the minority on this, but I think that Kyle could have value as an NBA 5, albeit perhaps not in a starting role. Kyle has shown the ability to be a plus rebounder, something that will likely improve as his strength improves. While he isn't a plus rim protector, he isn't a floor-bound Ryan Young big... he got up for some blocks this year. I think that deficiency could be offset by the plus-plus mismatches on the offensive end he could provide if his 3 point shot does get to the 35% range or so that it could after a potential Year 2.

As Coach K often said, very few NBA players are superstars... most are role players. I think Kyle could carve out a really solid niche for himself as a backup big that can play the 4 AND the 5 and provide a lot of situational floor spacing. I think his value to NBA teams goes up if he shows he can play the 5, which is part of why I thought (prior to all the rumors about a potential incoming transfer big) that part of the pitch for him to return would be to showcase his ability to play the 5.

That said, I acknowledge fully that I'm in the minority on this, and likely flat out wrong on what the recruiting pitch for his return is given that all signs point towards the staff wanting Kyle to remain the starting 4 next year.

Scott, you may not be in the wrong about this, because it's just guess work on our part at this point. At some point, Kyle will get stronger and might play the 5. That may be at Duke, or it might be when he reaches the NBA. But I don't think it's guess work, he will need to get stronger. He had so many plays this season where he couldn't finish because of contact. Some of the contact was really hard contact, but some of the contact wasn't that hard.

GoDuke!