Duke will once again be one of the top teams in the nation. Quite frankly, that hasn't been enough the past few seasons for Duke though. Postseason success has eluded the Blue Devils recently with 2 of the last 3 seasons ending in NCAA tournament first round losses. Mike Krzyzewski will have plenty of talent on the roster to try to turn things around though. The key will be how well he blends less talented, more experienced veterans with less experienced, more talented freshmen.
Backcourt
The backcourt has to start with Quinn Cook who is the Blue Devils leading scorer among returning players. Cook averaged 11.6 points per game and 4.4 assists per game last season. Cook's junior year was a bumpy ride though and ended in him losing his starting role to Tyler Thornton late in the season. Cook's offense has never been the problem, but the defensive side of the ball is another story. Tyus Jones will provide competition at the point guard spot for Cook. Jones was rated the 7th best player (#1 PG) in the 2014 RSCI rankings and was just selected preseason 3rd team All-American by CBS. Jones best comparison is a guy that just left the ACC, Tyler Ennis. If Duke is going to succeed both Jones and Cook need to play well, and will likely need to play together. For this to happen look for Cook to defer PG duties to Jones when the frosh is in the game.
On the wing, Rasheed Sulaimon is also back after averaging 9.9 points per game in his sophomore season. Sulaimon struggled with shooting the ball early in the season, but continued to be a solid defensive presence for the Blue Devils. Justise Winslow (#13 RSCI) is another freshman who will battle for time at the small forward position. Winslow is a do everything type of player that Coach K will fall in love with. Winslow rebounds, defends multiple positions, can handle the ball, and knock down the open shot. Matt Jones struggled with his shot last season after coming to Duke with a reputation of a sharp-shooter. Jones managed to find a role as a defensive specialist though in his freshman season. Grayson Allen (#24 RSCI) is another freshman which will be looking for minutes on the wing. Allen is a streaky shooter, a nice athlete, but it remains to be seen how he acclimates defensively at Duke.
Expect to see the bulk of the minutes in the backcourt to be split between Cook, Jones, Sulaimon, and Winslow.
Frontcourt
The frontcourt discussion has to start with 6'11" center Jahlil Okafor (#1 RSCI). Okafor was the top player in his class and has already been named preseason POY by CBS. Okafor combines a physical presence in the paint with the ability to finish with either hand at the rim. Okafor has a low center of gravity which makes him tough to move out of the paint. He'll do well in Duke's '4 around 1' or '3 around 2' offensive philosophies as he is content to kick the ball to the perimeter when double-teamed. When he does decide to go to the basket, he has a powerful drop-step that is his go-to move. Amile Jefferson, a co-captain with Cook, will anchor the defense at power forward with his ability to talk and draw charges. The Duke staff has given him high praise comparing him to Shane Battier in the way that he communicates on the floor. Marshall Plumlee will provide depth in frontcourt for Duke. Plumlee finally was healthy last season and had some impressive stretches of basketball for Duke last season. He is an uber-athletic big man that likes to run and block shots. The best way to describe Plumlee is that he has "puppy energy" in a 6'11" body. If a 4th player needs to rotate, look for Justise Winslow to play the 4 and Duke to go small. Semi Ojeleye could slide into the power forward position some as well. Ojeleye is an athletic player that is still looking for his role at Duke.
| Projected Starters |
|---|
| Tyus Jones |
| Quinn Cook |
| Rasheed Sulaimon |
| Amile Jefferson |
| Jahlil Okafor |
Schedule
Duke's schedule will have them challenged early and often. The Blue Devils face Michigan State in mid-November and then a week later play Temple and either UNLV or Stanford in the Coaches vs Cancer Classic. Duke gets a rare true road non-conference game at Wisconsin in the ACC/B1G Challenge the first week of December. Two weeks later the Duke takes on the defending national champion Connecticut Huskies in the Meadowlands.
In the conference slate, Duke will play UNC and Syracuse twice as well as Wake Forest and Notre Dame. Among teams they play once, they'll travel to NC State, Virginia, FSU, and Louisville.
Prediction
It's Duke, they'll be good. Last season the problem was they were sort of a one-trick pony. They had to outscore you to beat you. The nice thing about this team is they'll be able to beat you in a lot of different ways. Jones, Winslow, and Okafor will make them a better defensive team right way. Okafor's presence down low on both ends will provide more consistency. Expect Duke to make it to at least the sweet 16 with this squad, but the ceiling for this team is a national championship.
by Jon Pence @scacchoops
Fantasy Player to Watch
Look for Jahlil Okafor to be one of the top fantasy players in the ACC. Okafor should put up numbers approaching 16 points and 10 rebounds per night.
Projected Statistics (Returning Players Only)
Explanation of Statistic Projections
| Name | Pts | Asts | Rbds | Stls | Blks | TOs | % Correct |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rasheed Sulaimon | 14.2 | 2.5 | 3.3 | 1.2 | 0.3 | 1.9 | 81 |
| Quinn Cook | 12.4 | 3.7 | 2.9 | 1.4 | 0.2 | 2.0 | 74 |
| Amile Jefferson | 8.5 | 1.0 | 5.5 | 0.7 | 0.7 | 1.4 | 77 |
| Matt Jones | 4.4 | 0.9 | 2.3 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.6 | 94 |
| Semi Ojeleye | 4.3 | 0.7 | 2.4 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 0.9 | 97 |
| Nick Pagliuca | 3.6 | 0.8 | 0.7 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.6 | 99 |
| Marshall Plumlee | 2.8 | 0.5 | 2.5 | 0.4 | 0.9 | 0.8 | 91 |
Last Year's Player Statistics
| Duke | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | GP | Mins | Pts | Asts | Rbds | Stls | Blks | TOs | FG% | 3P% | FT% | |
| Jabari Parker | 35 | 30.7 | 19.1 | 1.2 | 8.7 | 1.1 | 1.2 | 2.3 | 47.1 | 35.8 | 74.8 | |
| Rodney Hood | 35 | 32.9 | 16.1 | 2.1 | 3.9 | 0.7 | 0.3 | 1.5 | 46.4 | 42.0 | 80.1 | |
| Quinn Cook | 35 | 29.8 | 11.6 | 4.4 | 2.2 | 1.3 | 0.0 | 1.6 | 43.5 | 37.1 | 83.8 | |
| Rasheed Sulaimon | 34 | 25.6 | 9.9 | 2.4 | 2.4 | 0.8 | 0.0 | 1.1 | 40.2 | 41.0 | 76.8 | |
| Andre Dawkins | 33 | 13.7 | 7.9 | 0.4 | 1.3 | 0.5 | 0.2 | 0.5 | 44.4 | 42.1 | 81.1 | |
| Amile Jefferson | 35 | 22.7 | 6.5 | 1.0 | 6.9 | 0.7 | 0.6 | 0.7 | 64.4 | 0.0 | 49.4 | |
| Tyler Thornton | 35 | 21.3 | 3.1 | 2.4 | 1.8 | 1.3 | 0.0 | 0.7 | 42.7 | 45.0 | 85.7 | |
| Matt Jones | 32 | 7.3 | 1.8 | 0.2 | 0.8 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 29.4 | 14.3 | 56.1 | |
| Marshall Plumlee | 30 | 8.4 | 1.3 | 0.3 | 2.2 | 0.2 | 0.6 | 0.3 | 55.2 | 0.0 | 35.3 | |
| Josh Hairston | 30 | 9.5 | 1.4 | 0.4 | 1.3 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.3 | 48.6 | 0.0 | 64.3 | |
| Semi Ojeleye | 17 | 4.7 | 1.6 | 0.1 | 0.9 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.3 | 50.0 | 57.1 | 90.9 | |
| Alex Murphy | 5 | 6.6 | 1.0 | 0.4 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.2 | 16.7 | 20.0 | 50.0 | |
| Todd Zafirovski | 3 | 1.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | |
| Nick Pagliuca | 3 | 1.7 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.7 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 50.0 | |
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