Duke: The Restructured ACC’s Early Favorites

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The ACC has always been home to premier basketball with established teams like Duke, North Carolina, Maryland, and Miami, but now with the legacy growing, Duke is still on top. Not even the arrivals of Syracuse, Pittsburgh, and Notre Dame to the ACC could stop Mike Krzyzewski’s squad from returning to the top of college basketball, as they are listed as number one in the preseason ACC power rankings.

Since the Big East has deteriorated almost overnight, the ACC is arguably the toughest conference in the country, but nonetheless Duke remains the early favorites.

Part of the reason for Duke’s early edge on their conference mates is the enrollment of standout yet underrated freshman Jabari Parker. A product of Simeon Career Academy, the home of Derrick Rose, Parker is ESPN’s second ranked recruit and small forward for 2013 behind hyped Kansas freshman Andrew Wiggins.

At 6’9’’, Parker still has exceptional athleticism to complement his size advantage over other small forwards. In addition to his physical outlook, Parker already has one of college basketball’s highest basketball IQs which will develop even more after playing in Durham for Coach K. To get an idea of how good Parker is, he was the only freshman to ever play varsity at Simeon, Rose included.

Krzyzewski will also surround Parker with the nation’s seventh best recruiting class, which includes two other ESPN top 100 recruits, shooting guard Matt Jones and small forward Semi Ojeleye from Kansas’s Ottawa High School. Out of Desoto High School in Texas, Jones, a McDonald’s All-American is listed as 2013’s sixth best shooting guard. Ojeleye is ranked as the tenth best small forward.

With additions, come subtractions.

The biggest losses for Duke this season will be the graduation of their two leading scorers from last season, Mason Plumlee and Seth Curry. Plumlee, Duke’s most efficient shooter, and Curry, the younger brother of Warriors point guard Steph Curry, combined to score over 44% of the Blue Devils’ points last season.

Despite losing the biggest components to their Elite 8 appearance, Duke will be returning key players from last season who should have matured to the level of full time Blue Devil caliber players like upperclassmen guards Quinn Cook and Tyler Thornton and sophomores Amile Jefferson and Rasheed Sulaimon.

Cook led the team in steals with 51 while averaging almost twelve points per game. Jefferson and Thornton both averaged around four points per game and will look to become regulars in Krzyzewski’s lineup this season. After a breakout freshman season where he saw action in all 36 games and averaged over twelve points, Sulaimon will become a dual threat with Parker in Duke’s offense this season.

Another addition for Duke will be the activation of guard Rodney Hood. Hood was ineligible from playing last season after transferring from Mississippi State. While in high school, Hood was named the Mississippi Gatorade Player of the Year, twice.

Beyond the returning players from Duke’s Elite 8 loss to Louisville, the highlight of the Blue Devils this season will be the freshman, Parker. Due to Krzyzewski’s balanced and distributed philosophy, Parker will not have the college stats Andrew Wiggins will accumulate at Lawrence almost as a one man team. However on the court, Parker’s athleticism and raw instincts will be hard to ignore.

Heading into the season, Duke is not armed with too many players proven at the collegiate level as superstars. Duke does however have players with potential playing for one of the greatest coaches of all time in any sport. Just like the New England Patriots can never be counted out for the NFL Playoffs with Bill Belichick coaching, no matter how slim the odds are, Duke can never be doubted for March with Krzyzewski on the sidelines.

Could Stevens Have Become the Next Coach K?

The basketball world has had 36 hours now to digest the surprise of former Butler Bulldogs coach Brad Stevens becoming the Boston Celtics head coach, and I am left still in shock and disappointment for his departure. I am not only surprised, but have also began pondering what could have been in Indianapolis.

Could Stevens have become the next Coach K?

Brad Stevens had one of the best starts to a coaching career, going 166-49 through his first six seasons at Butler and as a head coach for a .772 winning percentage.  Stevens went to four NCAA Tournaments, two Final Fours, and two national championships but without a title.

Through his first six seasons at Duke, Coach K had a 122-68 record with a .642 winning percentage. Krzyzewski had three tournament appearances, one NIT, and went to one Final Four and title game in 1986 where his 37-3 team was the runner-up to Louisville. Unlike Stevens, Coach K had prior coaching experience for two seasons at his alma mater, Army.

Through his career, Coach K has 29 NCAA Tournaments, eleven Final Fours, and four national championships, including a 62-59 rout of Stevens’ Cinderella story Bulldogs in 2010. Coach K has a career record of 884-238 and winning percentage of .788.

Duke and Butler both had made seven tournament appearances each before Krzyzewski and Stevens took over as head coach. Coach K and Stevens also started as a coach with their teams returning from a Tournament appearance.

Stevens ultimately turned around his entire program, making Butler a legitimate threat in March. Krzyzewski made a good team great, as the Blue Devils had been to four Final Fours and two National Championships prior to his arrival.

Aside from the their statistical comparison, Krzyzewski and Stevens have similar coaching styles. Unlike the coaches using as much energy as the players from jumping up and down in their designated coaching boxes, arguing calls with refs, and yelling at players, Coach K and Stevens are calm on the sidelines. Both coaches believe in the John Wooden philosophy coaching is done in practice, and in the game it is up to the players.

Speaking of John Wooden, he is one of the few coaches who has been able to match Stevens’ early career success. Ironically, Wooden has the same record and winning percentage through his first six seasons at UCLA of 166-49 and .772 as Stevens.

Like Stevens, Wooden did not win a championship early on. Wooden only made two NCAA Tournament appearances in his first six seasons with a 0-4 record.

By the end of his career, Wooden had an .804 winning percentage with ten national championships.

With Stevens becoming an NBA coach, it makes me wonder, what could have happened at Butler. Stevens had a record better than Krzyzewski and a better tournament history than the immortal Wooden through their first six seasons.

Whether it was their similar coaching philosophies as a “good” coach or his early success, I always envisioned Stevens to stay at Butler forever and lead them to multiple national championships and am left wondering, “Could Stevens have become the next or better than Coach K? Could Stevens have passed John Wooden?”

Of course, Stevens could join other great coaches who went between college and the NBA like Rick Pitino of Louisville and Kentucky’s John Calipari. However, Stevens does not have Pitino’s in game intensity and rage, nor will he never be the villain of college basketball like Calipari.

Where Will Andrew Wiggins Land?

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With the May 15^th deadline approaching, college basketball still does not know where the nation’s top recruit, Andrew Wiggins, will play next year. Wiggins has been named the number one player in his class, as well as being titled as the best high school hoops star since Lebron James tore apart Ohio basketball with St. Vincent-St. Mary at the turn of the century.

Wiggins is from Canada, but attends the prodigious Huntington Prep of West Virginia. At 6’7’’, Wiggins is known for his versatility and athleticism, not to mention his unmatched dunking ability. Wearing #22, Wiggins has become popular on YouTube for his jaw dropping highlights and slams. One of Wiggins’s most well known slams came in the McDonald’s All-American Dunk Contest when he did a between the legs reverse 360 dunk.

As of now, Wiggins has narrowed his list down to four schools, Kansas, UNC, Florida State, and Kentucky. Wiggins is the type of player who could enter any program and take them through the season and into the Final Four.

RantSports.com names Kentucky as the long shot in landing Wiggins, but enrolling in Lexington would give him the best chance at winning a national title. With their stellar recruiting class already with six McDonald’s All Americans, Kentucky has already formed one of the best recruiting classes of all time. The addition of Wiggins would end all discussion, as the Wildcats could complete the first undefeated season since Indiana in 1975-1976.

Both of Wiggins’s parents were star athletes at Florida State and this connection may be the only reason the Seminoles are still a possibility. Wiggins could revitalize the whole program, bringing a new power to the ACC. The best part of Wiggins going to Florida State would be that if he was to win, he would have done it on his own, increasing his draft stock if that is even possible.

 The negative of this would be that if FSU experiences another mediocre season, teams looking to draft him in the top 5 of the NBA Draft might question is leadership and overall effectiveness. If Wiggins was to stay in college for all four years, Florida State would be the best destination, because he could help build a program.

UNC and Kansas may be the favorites for Wiggins, mostly because they provide the best of both worlds. Like Kentucky, both programs have a strong class coming in to back up Wiggins. It would not be all up to Wiggins to win games. However, Wiggins would be the star and in the spotlight as the leader like at Florida State. To win a championship, it takes a team, not just a standout player that comes once every few years. But also to win a championship, there needs to be court chemistry and established roles, as Kentucky might flop like other super teams.

Personally, I would love to see Wiggins play in Chapel Hill. By joining the Tar Heels, the Duke/UNC rivalry would reach a new level from the Wiggins/Jabari Parker matchup. Wiggins had passed Parker as ESPN’s top 2013 players this past summer when he announced his reclassification, skipping his junior year of high school. Parker is right up there with Wiggins and in the NBA, these two players will develop a rivalry similar to Larry Bird and Magic Johnson. Just an example of how good Parker is, he became the only freshman in his high school’s history to play varsity and Derrick Rose attended that school.

The End of a Dynasty?

Last night's Duke win vs fellow ACC school, Boston College, may count as one in the standings, but it was not in any way a true win. The Blue Devils are leaving Boston with many setbacks, though that may not be completely apparent at the moment.  The unranked Golden Eagles kept up with the 4th ranked Blue Devils, and had a chance to win on the last shot, after Mason Plumlee could only convert on one of two foul shots. The main takeaway from last night's game is that Duke didn't win the game, Boston College lost. This isn't the season's first time Duke has failed to live up to their standards, including 2 road losses in 11 days to rivals, NC State and Miami. Though Duke is still a top 5 team, this leads me to wonder, what is going on in Cameron? How/why is Coach K's system all of a sudden not being as consistent as usual? Duke is still blowing out teams like Maryland by 20, but why can't they get it done within their conference? I no longer am viewing Duke as the safe bet for my March Madness bracket, with their seemingly instability at the moment. Duke is basically muscling the lesser teams, but are struggling versus more faceted teams or when they can't get on those 10-2 runs. This allows the Dukies to bluff their way into the Elite 8 or even Final Four. However, I am not at all confident that they can beat a complete team such as Indiana when the season is on the line.

Duke's decline began with last year's upset against Lehigh in the the first round of the NCAA tournament, and for now at least, I do not see them as the dominant force as they always have been. There is no question Coach K is up with John Wooden, as the top college coaches of all time, but is there something missing? I understand teams can't win every game, every year, but this is not characteristic of a program trademarked by excellence in college basketball, sometimes to a point where some players cannot succeed in the NBA. Though Duke has only lost 2 games this year, Duke has shown signs of the end of a dynasty.  When the opponent's schedule  read vs. Blue Devils, a chill would run down most team's spines. Though that same chill is still there, I do not think Duke is what it used to be, and these minor issues will eventually accumulate to form much bigger problems. I am not saying Duke is done, or Coach K's reign as the king of college basketball has ended, but basketball in Cameron is not what it used to be. I never thought I would ever have to say this, but Duke may have to rethink their system.