Can this team be a contender?

[DukeMan1986]

Duke has an arsenal of offensive weapons this season, it’s not a team that solely relies on 2 scorers.

Proctor, Roach, McCain, Mitchell, Flip, Foster (if healthy), and Power (given extended minutes)
are all capable of putting together offensive onslaughts on the opposition.

I love how many weapons we have and we aren’t reliant on someone to score 20+ every night. What worries me is our defense, especially when we play a big physical team.

There was a 3 or 4 possession stretch during the Wake game where Carr (4th or 5th option for Wake) backed down Mitchell and scored every time. I love Mitchell as a defender, but guarding post players isn’t his strength, pius we have no rim protection behind him. Granted, Mitchell did stop Carr late to give us a chance to tie/win…but had we gotten some stops when we were trading baskets we come out of Winston Salem with a W and a 2 seed projection.

 

[bullcity gamer]

86, you’ve mentioned it before this Duke team is not a team which forces a lot of turnovers; but they do force some and more often than not the opposition is not going to get more than one opportunity to score on a single possession.

Imo Duke is still very much in play for a 2 seed, if they win out their remaining regular season games and win the ACC Tournament, especially if along the way they defeat any combination of Virginia (twice), Unc (twice), Clemson and/or Wake Forest, all 4 of these teams are NCAA Tournament teams along with Duke. Also, dependent on what Arizona does to finish the season, a 1 seed for Duke isn’t out of the question.

 

[sheyduke]

Don’t see what purpose bringing up the transfer portal or Unc guys like Cormac Ryan and Harrison Ingram serves.

I rather have Duke’s players than either of those guys. Duke has played way better than Unc has since their matchup with one another on February 3rd.

Scheyer has done a very good job constructing his two rosters.

Then why is Flip struggling at center at 6’10” if Scheyer has done such a great job at construction of the roster?
I can’t agree Duke has played way better than UNC since their matchup because UNC is still in the lead of the league with only one more game until they play Duke and now Foster is out .
You bring up the transfer portal because with out the two you named UNC doesn’t beat Duke the first game .

 

[bullcity gamer]

Then why is Flip struggling at center at 6’10” if Scheyer has done such a great job at construction of the roster?
I can’t agree Duke has played way better than UNC since their matchup because UNC is still in the lead of the league with only one more game until they play Duke and now Foster is out .
You bring up the transfer portal because with out the two you named UNC doesn’t beat Duke the first game .

Shey, Flip is not a natural 5, his natural spot is the 4, the same way how AD struggles in the nba defending against 5s as opposed to defending against 4s. AD has made comments in the past how he prefers to play the 4.

Since their matchup, based on the eye test:

Duke has only lost 1 game. They have been getting some comfortable wins and look improved on both ends.

Unc has lost to Clemson and Syracuse. They barely squeaked by an undermanned Miami team in Chapel Hill, the same Miami team Duke ran off the court a week earlier. Teams have been forcing Cadea to shoot 3s (which he is horrid at).

I don’t know how anyone can objectively look at both Duke and Unc since their matchup and come to the conclusion that Unc is playing better than Duke since their meeting 4 weeks ago.

 

[christophero]

I guess we'll find out next week. Should be a good game.

 

[Mac9192]

Shey, Flip is not a natural 5, his natural spot is the 4, the same way how AD struggles in the nba defending against 5s as opposed to defending against 4s. AD has made comments in the past how he prefers to play the 4.

Since their matchup, based on the eye test:

Duke has only lost 1 game. They have been getting some comfortable wins and look improved on both ends.

Unc has lost to Clemson and Syracuse. They barely squeaked by an undermanned Miami team in Chapel Hill, the same Miami team Duke ran off the court a week earlier. Teams have been forcing Cadea to shoot 3s (which he is horrid at).

I don’t know how anyone can objectively look at both Duke and Unc since their matchup and come to the conclusion that Unc is playing better than Duke since their meeting 4 weeks ago.

I agree that Duke has looked better since the first game. The sad reality though is it’s 1-0 in favor of the holes.

 

[sheyduke]

Shey, Flip is not a natural 5, his natural spot is the 4, the same way how AD struggles in the nba defending against 5s as opposed to defending against 4s. AD has made comments in the past how he prefers to play the 4.

Since their matchup, based on the eye test:

Duke has only lost 1 game. They have been getting some comfortable wins and look improved on both ends.

Unc has lost to Clemson and Syracuse. They barely squeaked by an undermanned Miami team in Chapel Hill, the same Miami team Duke ran off the court a week earlier. Teams have been forcing Cadea to shoot 3s (which he is horrid at).

I don’t know how anyone can objectively look at both Duke and Unc since their matchup and come to the conclusion that Unc is playing better than Duke since their meeting 4 weeks ago.

Everyone in the world knows at this point that Flip isn’t and never has been a center. That said you can not compare him and Davis . Davis can play in the post and defend.
Flip will have to play there to see time in the league or his career will be short lived .
I really don’t see Duke playing better. They’ve cleaned up some mistakes and finally went back to moving the ball more but they also just finished turning the ball over ten times in the first half against probably the worst team in the ACC.
We will see next Saturday have they learned from the first game .

 

[bullcity gamer]

Shey I was not saying Flip and Davis are anything close to the same player the only comparison I was making is they are both natural 4s who at times have to play the 5.

I do not expect Flip to be an all star in the nba, no realistic Duke fan should. I do expect him to play in the league the similar way guys like Kelly Olynk, Dario Saric, Meyers Leonard were able to find playing time in the NBA.

I agree Duke has to clean up the careless turnovers, those drive me crazy.

Duke has a plethora of offensive weapons (they don’t solely rely on 1 or 2 guys), they play pretty good defense (holding every opponent with the exception of 3 to their season low in points scored), they rebound well, and are still in the running to win the ACC Regular Season Championship, Scheyer has done a pretty good job of making in game adjustments for the most part this season. Their effort is there each game too. We all have different standards for them, Duke is one of the few teams, maybe the only one who hasn’t sustained a blow out loss this season amongst the top 10 teams.

 

[bullcity gamer]

Duke’s Updated Ken Pom #s:

Adjusted Offensive Efficiency: 8

Adjusted Defensive Efficiency: 20

Keep Improving Blue Devils!

 

[Mac9192]

We’ve got the biggest two games of the season coming up this week. State should be primed and ready for Duke tomorrow. They laid an egg in the 2nd half yesterday. Nothing will help them feel better than beating Duke in Raleigh. And we all know what Saturday is.

If Duke wins both of these games, I’ll be about 90% certain we are contenders, and the rest of the country will go “oh s^%#, here they come.”

 

[bullcity gamer]

Duke cannot allow NC State’s guards to go off from 3 point land tomorrow night, primarily Horne. I would like to see Flip make Burns come out of the paint to guard him, cardio wise Burns cannot keep up with Flip.

 

[christophero]

We should win Monday, but should doesn't always happen at NC State. I think we will win. Win our next 2 and I think we are a 3 seed at worst. Win out and win the ACC tournament and we are a 2 seed. If this team can win the next two that will really speak to our toughness. If we lose 2 more we are likely a 4/5 seed. Some are probably waiting to see if we win the rematch Saturday to see if we are legit. The committee clearly does not value the ACC; it is what it is.

 

[sheyduke]

Shey I was not saying Flip and Davis are anything close to the same player the only comparison I was making is they are both natural 4s who at times have to play the 5.

I do not expect Flip to be an all star in the nba, no realistic Duke fan should. I do expect him to play in the league the similar way guys like Kelly Olynk, Dario Saric, Meyers Leonard were able to find playing time in the NBA.

I agree Duke has to clean up the careless turnovers, those drive me crazy.

Duke has a plethora of offensive weapons (they don’t solely rely on 1 or 2 guys), they play pretty good defense (holding every opponent with the exception of 3 to their season low in points scored), they rebound well, and are still in the running to win the ACC Regular Season Championship, Scheyer has done a pretty good job of making in game adjustments for the most part this season. Their effort is there each game too. We all have different standards for them, Duke is one of the few teams, maybe the only one who hasn’t sustained a blow out loss this season amongst the top 10 teams.

I think IF Flip plays like he did against Virginia. Staying in the post and leaking outside for wide open shots is more his style.

 

[Mac9192]

I’m saying no now. The shortcomings have not been fixed. There’s no leadership. Jon is smart, but he hasn’t figured out the mental part of the game yet. Flip plays like a whiny girl for part of a game, then will look great the second half. Mitchell has regressed. The kid is 6-9, 220, athletic and a lefty. Plays soft as charmin though, and hard to believe but his shot is getting even worse.

It’s been said a lot, but we just aren’t a tough team.

 

[LetsGoDuke83]

I’m saying no now. The shortcomings have not been fixed. There’s no leadership. Jon is smart, but he hasn’t figured out the mental part of the game yet. Flip plays like a whiny girl for part of a game, then will look great the second half. Mitchell has regressed. The kid is 6-9, 220, athletic and a lefty. Plays soft as charmin though, and hard to believe but his shot is getting even worse.

It’s been said a lot, but we just aren’t a tough team.

I’d rather have Power in than MM at this point. Defense will suck but with mark its 5 on 4.
Big games for duke this year
Arizona-L
Unc -2 L’s
Arkansas-L
Baylor- w

That’s awful

 

[sheyduke]

I’m still saying NO!

I think they can make it to the sweet 16 but physical teams are the Achilles heel of this group.

 

[The_Only_Blue]

What's everyone's definition of contender? If it's final four or further then I say no. I agree with Sheyduke. Sweet 16 and with hot shooting elite 8 but it also wouldn't surprise me if we don't get past the first weekend

 

[Friction.]

I’d rather have Power in than MM at this point. Defense will suck but with mark its 5 on 4.
Big games for duke this year
Arizona-L
Unc -2 L’s
Arkansas-L
Baylor- w

That’s awful

Power in over MM? and potentially guarding Harrison Ingram last night? Note that Ingram only scored 2 points when MM was in the game and was pretty much neutralized. The rest of Ingram’s points came against guards in the first few mins and Flip in the last few mins.

MM will have games where he is very efficient offensively. Ingram has equal (or greater) strength than Mark so they essentially neutralized each other where Mark couldn’t slash or get offensive rebs…Ingram is a great player.

We are 7th in KP on offense and 23rd on D. Duke nation would have been furious if Ingram went off again against Duke and you’d probably be calling TJ out if MM didn’t play the amount he did. Power will not be taking MM’s minutes.

 

[K-oach Q]

I actually think we could make a run simply because we could shoot lights out at anytime.

The better question to me is can we defend? Especially a team with solid inside presence.

And everyone is right….what do we do when someone put physicals us?

But it’s March madness….a lot worse teams than us have made runs with great shooters.

 

[pisgah101]

we can make a final four if we get a draw with no physical teams.. if we play a physical team we lose second round

 

[bullcity gamer]

I HATE when Duke loses to unc, but now that I’ve had time to cool off. I will say Duke for the most part did a very good job on defending Davis and Bacot last night, but of course instead of Ingram going off on Duke, Ryan did.

The careless turnovers made by Duke and the missed free throws NEED TO STOP!!!!

Duke can get beat in the 2nd round or make it to the National Championship this year with how up and down this season is. I still like the offensive firepower of this team when they are moving the ball and playing unselfish. They need to take their defense up a significant notch.

Hate to say this, but Unc is a terrible matchup for Duke. Bacot and Davis were held in check for the most part in both games, but Ingram and Ryan stepped up for them.

Hope the guys can right the ship, I have hope because I remember a 7 seed UConn led by Shabazz Napier & Ryan Boatright in 2014 lead the huskies to the national title. That same UConn team got blitzed by Louisville 3xs that season. Louisville was a bad matchup for them that year.

Let’s Go Duke!

 

[christophero]

Maybe
But final four unlikely
Sweet 16
Maybe elite eight.

 

[sheyduke]

I HATE when Duke loses to unc, but now that I’ve had time to cool off. I will say Duke for the most part did a very good job on defending Davis and Bacot last night, but of course instead of Ingram going off on Duke, Ryan did.

The careless turnovers made by Duke and the missed free throws NEED TO STOP!!!!

Duke can get beat in the 2nd round or make it to the National Championship this year with how up and down this season is. I still like the offensive firepower of this team when they are moving the ball and playing unselfish. They need to take their defense up a significant notch.

Hate to say this, but Unc is a terrible matchup for Duke. Bacot and Davis were held in check for the most part in both games, but Ingram and Ryan stepped up for them.

Hope the guys can right the ship, I have hope because I remember a 7 seed UConn led by Shabazz Napier & Ryan Boatright in 2014 lead the huskies to the national title. That same UConn team got blitzed by Louisville 3xs that season. Louisville was a bad matchup for them that year.

Let’s Go Duke!

It’s not that no one doubts the players ability but it is the TEAM as a whole .

Notice I capitalized team due to the fact I still have yet to see this team put a complete game together . Do I think UNC is the better team ? No and I stand by that . Do I think Duke should have beat them , sure do . The issue with these guys are they have yet ( maybe once or twice ) played an entire forty minutes as a fist a unit . If all five players on the floor play at their top level this team is unstoppable but every game one to two players are off .

It’s a new season now so we will see if they grow from last night or did UNC just show every team how to beat Duke which is to stun them , play us physical and Duke can not handle it .

 

[pinecreek]

Looks like a round of 32 exit again, but you never know. Things can happen.

 

[bullcity gamer]

Looks like a round of 32 exit again, but you never know. Things can happen.

Kentucky fans know something about missing the tournament lately or getting bounced by Saint Peter’s or Kansas State isn’t that right *****creek?

 

[pinecreek]

Kentucky fans know something about missing the tournament lately or getting bounced by Saint Peter’s or Kansas State isn’t that right *****creek?

Yes, Kentucky has like 7 NBA players on their roster and when shots are falling they can win. Hopefully some team can knock them off with good coaching . It’s not necessarily negative to point out that Duke may not have the pieces this year. Probably great guys, NBA pros mixed in. Just missing a guy or 2 ora player like MM not playing quite up to par. A few extra turnovers, missed shots and the game is lost when you can’t overwhelm with talent.

 

[bullcity gamer]

Piney you’re a terrible troll go back to the rupp’s idiots board

 

[Mac9192]

Sadly, it's a big fat NO.

 

[christophero]

Maybe
But final four unlikely
Sweet 16
Maybe elite eight.

This man is wise.

 

[sheyduke]

Hey I gave them round of 32 and anything after was just great . So they made me eat crow ! Glad for them

 

[christophero]

I always consider a winning record in the tourney a success.

 

[sheyduke]

I’m going to be honest they did way better then I thought they would and yes I gave some players flack . As a fan you come to know these guys and if you love Duke basketball like me you always want them to do well and show their absolute full potential. I didn’t mean to degrade them ( Bleed sorry if you felt any of my post did because you are a die hard like me ) it just gets to us when you know there is so much game to the players you didn’t get to see.

 

[christophero]

And the fact that we only get a lot of players for 1-2 years magnifies that.

 

[hart2chesson]

And the fact that we only get a lot of players for 1-2 years magnifies that.

Chris, agree so much. I don't know how many times I have thought or said,"It's ashame so and so (insert early exiting Duke stud here, Derek Lively for example), is leaving early."

Good point....

OFC

 

[timritterus]

Most teams only get players for a year or two now, it's just the portal instead of the nba like a lot of ours.

 

[hart2chesson]

Most teams only get players for a year or two now, it's just the portal instead of the nba like a lot of ours.

Tim, you're right.