Evan Daniels at Duke Practice
- Thread starter DutchDevil
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Thank you John1219 for your great post. You have each of us a little more hyped and wired now if thats possible. Its gonna be fun this season and hopefully very rewarding. I am almost giddy about Grayson, Matt and Luke being able to team up with Amile again.
Thanks, glad I could be there and post what I saw. There's a lot to be excited about and once Giles returns, this team will be that much better come conference season. Amile is a game changer, IMO, because of his leadership. He was noticeably the leader during the practice. The team will have the perfect mix of freshmen and upperclassmen.
As I type this, I wish it was November 15th already...when we face Kansas!!
Like so many already mentioned, the mix of veterans and youth we have on this team is part of what makes me so excited this season. Having guys who have been there before will be important once conference season comes around. Amile has been waiting since last season for this opportunity so I think we see even more intensity from him this season if that is even possible.
Ooo bold prediction. Not bad though. I suspect it will be frank though. Though Luke's shooting, IQ and versatility will make him a great choice.
The best part is the uncertainty. We have THAT many weapons. When it's all cut and dry and you know the exact lineup to a T before the season starts, that usually means there's a huge difference in skill-sets between our players. This season...oh my. So many weapons. I feel like Grayson will still be our star and probably our scoring leader but our most important player will pan out to be Amile. Amile has that fire, that senior leadership you long for. His voice and hustle and constant leadership is what will steer this team to victory this season. He's going to rebound big this year. My dream team is Grayson, Luke, Amile, Tatum and Bolden in at the same time. The length in the paint with Tatum, Amile and Bolden is a scorers nightmare. The 3 point shooting opportunity with Luke and Grayson out there scary as well. Luke or Frank out there is gravy for me, I think both will be great this season. And then there's Matt. He's a bit hit or miss with me. I love his defense but I think sometimes he can be a liability on the attack. He definitely has trouble penetrating the lane at times. But then again, sometimes he heats up and can be a solid game changer. I love this team. I'm like a kid in front of the candy store waiting for Saturday. If Giles can hit in 6 or 7 weeks and be healthy, somebody is going to catch hell come tourney time.
Agre with Grayson being our best player but I don't know if he will be our leading scorer.Jmo think he will spend more time setting up everyone else and not look to score as much til crunch time
I think Allen is the leading scorer and it might no be all that close. He will have his footing right away and has already established himself as a really good scorer of the ball. Many of the other guys who are candidates to be leading scorer could get off to a slow start getting used to the D-! level. Brandon Ingram, just last year, got off to a slowish start. Now he eventually was consistently around 17-24 or so points but it took a bit to get there. Which means the average is hard to bring up without exploding for 30 plus a few times.
I feel like Luke has a very Scheyer-esque feel to him. He could be a guy that "manages" and stabilizes the offense without being an elite point guard.
I think Grayson will be the team's leading scorer because he gets to the line so easily and so often. He'll also be playing more minutes than anyone else. Plus, at the end of close games when opposing teams are fouling to extend the game, it'll be Grayson and Luke getting sent to the line for a free throw shooting parade.
I look for Matt Jones to also have a very good season. I think a big problem for him last year was that he was asked to play a role that his game is not suited for. We now have the versatility of such a deep roster that he won't have to spend the majority of his time as a primary ball handler and creator. I think he'll be able to focus on the 3 and D role of this team which we saw him thrive during the championship run two seasons ago. He may not have the statistics like some other players on the team, but his impact will be felt.
I unlike some others did not see him thriving in our championship run. I saw him play sound D, and have one HUGE game vs Gonzaga (probably don't win that game without him). He actually shot the 3 much better last year than he did the championship year. I think Matt's work ethic and leadership will be huge this year off the court and at times on the court. I just think we have too much talent for him to have a consistent big impact on the court unless injuries. I know many disagree.
I agree with this. The caveat I'll add though is that with a simplified role and improved jumper, we'll see more Gonzaga type games out of him. Not every game, just more often. And frankly, that's all we should want and need.
I agree that Duke probably doesn't beat Zaga without Jones, and he can always take that to heart
I think mid 20s is pushing it because of how many other weapons he has around him this season. I do think he will be in the running for NPOY and ACC. And as efficient as he was last year I think he'll be possibly even more so this season.
Matt seems to me to be the guy that looks like he's outmatched athletically almost every night, but he finds a way to come up with a deflection here and a nice rebound there and ends up making plays right when you need one - not flashy plays, but gets that ball you gotta get. I agree that if he is asked to do less this year (and I think he will be) I think he will (quietly) have a really nice year and contribute in really meaningful ways (defense especially). The kind of year Amile will have to a lesser degree.
Matt has that old man YMCA game which I've grown to appreciate as I've aged. He's one of those guys who's box score numbers don't jump out at you, but does the intangible things as dukephysics mentioned. He's one of the first guys you choose when playing pickup ball because you know he's gonna share the ball, play defense, and do everything to stay on the court. I know others have downed his play, but I think he's got the heart of a champion and will come up big again at crucial moments during the season. Damn, that was al out as long as a Dsouther post! Sorry
I think he will have less points this year for a big reason. I expect duke to be winning big a bit more this year and not need him in the last few minutes. I expect teams won't be fouling as much the last minute as last year. He got so many points late in the games with FTs.
I think (barring injury that affects their game/minutes) Grayson, Tatum, and Luke are nearly lock to average at least 10. We all expect them to get enough minutes and touches to do that. Amile should be right there around 10 (trash) points a game. Giles, if when he comes back isn't on minutes restrictions (I believe he will be early), then he should be over 10. I don't see Bolden getting there. When the team is fully healthy, I don't see him getting enough minutes and touches to do it. I hope I am greatly underestimating him, but I just don't see it. And I think the uncertainty about how many minutes for Frank/Matt makes that hard to predict. Some people think Frank plays a lot right out of the gate, others think it'll be more Matt/Luke with Frank playing fewer minutes. I don't think Matt or Frank average 10 because neither will play enough or get touches. I think they are both around 8 or 9 for the season.
I'd say this is about right. I don't see Grayson getting to the 20 ppg mark due to the fact that we should be blowing a lot of teams out and he will be sitting out the last 4 minutes of many more games than last year.
I don't see a scenario where seven guys average 10+ per game. That seems a little out there for me.
I like how @dukephysics approached it. When looking at Grayson, Jayson and Luke it's almost impossible to envision one of those guys not averaging at least 10. I tend to agree that Matt won't, and even lean to Amile not, as well. I do think both Giles and Frank probably will, but we'll see. Bolden won't get the necessary touches.
I like how @dukephysics approached it. When looking at Grayson, Jayson and Luke it's almost impossible to envision one of those guys not averaging at least 10. I tend to agree that Matt won't, and even lean to Amile not, as well. I do think both Giles and Frank probably will, but we'll see. Bolden won't get the necessary touches.
That would be awesome, but too optimistic. If we put Matt and Frank both at 7 or 8 ppg, that is 100 points a game from just those 8 players! I sure hope it plays out that way!
Yeah, I see Bolden averaging about 6-8, same with Amile and Matt. I think duke will average about 87 PPG, and that could lead the country.
Grayson - 18
Tatum - 15
Luke - 14
Frank - 8
Giles - 8
Amile - 7
Bolden - 7
Jones - 6
Jeter - 2
That puts us at 85. If Giles doesn't play much early you could see some other players averages rise to offset his 8 ppg I have.
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Looks realistic, unlike THR who will have Pinson, Meeks, and Jackson all averaging about 30 points a game because... delusions
What's scary about this team is we have about 8 players that can score 20 on a given night. OFC
I think Grayson or even Tatum possibly might be a good pick for most 25 pt games. Luke will have some 25 point games perhaps but I see either Grayson or Jayson having more 25 pt games than Luke IMO.
I can see Luke with the most 25+ games simply because Grayson and Jayson will take up so much attention from the opposition's defense. Same would probably go for Giles when he gets back. Opens it up for guys like Kennard, Jackson, Bolden, Amile, Matt, etc.
Not listed and won't be until the week he's ready to play. If I had to guess, I'd say William and Mary.
