Let's talk about great duke seniors

[crazyduke3]

When you post in this topic, I'd like if you'd comment on a great duke senior and your thoughts about them. It will either be in 1 day or if God is good (And he always is) 3 days, we'll see the last game from yet another great senior. It just brings back for me memories of the greats that we've had...



this isn't a old senior but.... Seth Curry man, what a season he had. It's disappointing to think how much better he actually would have been, had he not had that huge leg injury. Yet he played through it and was still a stinking beast all season. His game was really diverse that year, he could make a lot of intermediate and close range shots. I still have that image of him pump faking Nerlens Noel in the air then coming underneath with a nice layup. That was before Noel had his massive injury and was the shot blocking force that would have overtaken Anthony Davis.

He had a weird thing where if he played too soon after a game, you'd get nothing from him next time (see Louisville round 2). But the best part of Seth's senior season? He freaking swept UNC. Forever and always, Seth Curry saves duke.

What about you?

 

[CRAZIE4LIFE]

There are so many to choose from. One of my favorites was Trajon Langdon. That was a heck of a senior year and a heck of a team. I remember senior day against carolina and he got poked in the eye and had to be taken to the locker room and was thought to miss the rest of the game but came out and destroyed UNC.

 

[DukeSky85]

Nolan Smith. He grew a TON while at Duke, and his Senior year he was such a proven leader. Had the ability to take a game over and was a true senior. I miss his personality. I think he really took Duke Blue Planet to a new level too. Ill never forget when he took over the UNC game at home. He could not be stopped that night.

 

[OldasdirtDevil]

So many great ones, but I especially love Zoubek's senior season. Yeah, he isn't an all time great at Duke, but considering what he went through, and how much crap he received from some of the Duke fans...that was some great senior ride he took us on. There would be no 4th banner hanging in Cameron without his incredible rebounding and defense down the stretch in his senior season. Zoubs!!!

OFC

 

[DukeDenver]

Shout out to Sean Dockery's senior year half court buzzer beater.

 

[Willcampbell]

I was going with Zoubs as well, but another OF beat me to it. Well done, Dirt.
OFC

 

[Willcampbell]

And if I can't have Zoubek all to myself, I claim Quinn!! (no, not Snyder).
OFC

 

[OldasdirtDevil]

Originally posted by Willcampbell:
I was going with Zoubs as well, but another OF beat me to it. Well done, Dirt.
OFC

Great 'old' minds think alike, Will.

But seriously, choosing Quinn is as good as any senior you could possibly pick. He's been incredible during his senior season. We certainly wouldn't be in the Final Four without him. He's grown as a player, as a person, and his maturity has skyrocketed. Just a pleasure watching his growth into such a special player, and person.

OFC

 

[Alaskan_Assassin_21]

Chris Carrawell

"Carrawell was recruited by Duke University's Mike Krzyzewski as the third most-prized piece of the impressive Class of 2000"
"He was 2000 ACC Player of the Year with Associated Press and First Team All-American honors"


"Carrawell was also a two-time All-ACC selection in his career with the Blue Devils. He is tied for 27th on the all-time scoring list at Duke with 1,455 career points and also ranks 14th in school history with 0.8 blocks per game and tied for sixth with 116 overall wins. Carrawell helped the Blue Devils dominate the ACC during his tenure finishing his career with 66 conference victories, second most all-time by a Duke player. Along with teammate Nate James, he is one of only two players in ACC history to play on teams that won four straight ACC regular-season championships. He was the only player to play in each of Duke's ACC-record 30 straight league wins. During Carrawell's collegiate career, the Blue Devils compiled a record of 133-24, including a 58-6 mark in ACC play"

 

[dukiejay]

A few of my favorite senior years....

Chris Duhon. He was the ACC's preseason player of the year in 2003 and really struggled as the team's leader his junior season without Dunleavy, Boozer, and JayWill. But his senior year is another story in 2004. He's one of the best leaders any Duke team has ever had. And I'll never forget his senior speech when he talked about what Coach K meant to him as a person. It was the most genuine senior speech I've ever heard.

J.J. Redick. His senior year he was absolutely incredible. And, of course, it sucks it didn't end with at least a Final Four. But those who remember that 2006 season saw something so special. He was an assassin....pure and simple. There were a number of times that year he had 20 points by halftime. Specifically....who remembers the preseason game against Texas at MSG and the ACC home tilt against UVA? My goodness was he good those nights.

Jon Scheyer. Jon was so unsung his whole career at Duke. I remember people talking the whole time he was here, specifically his junior and senior years, how if we got so and so recruit Scheyer would find himself on the bench. And then Jim Sumner put a couple of them in place at how ridiculous they sounded. Plus, when Scheyer was asked at his senior dinner with the coaches and his family --- remember, the senior dinner is right after the regular season --- what his greatest Duke memory was, he came up the greatest answer ever. "It hasn't happened yet," said Jon. I get chills every time I think about it. And he was right.

 

[Tim1515]

Jon is a great answer. Heck the whole 2010 season a group of Duke fans were talking on here about our need for a true PG while Scheyer was having a magical year. Not many people thought he could improve as much as he did from a junior...although the position change was a perfect fit for him.

Langdon kills me to think about. I still remember him going coast to coast one the final possesion. I still believe K should had him coming off screens instead

 

[aah555]

In terms of favorite senior years, I'd say Hill 1993-94, Battier 00-01, and Redick 05-06.

However, I would say that Cook has probably had the most pleasantly surprising senior year that I can remember. Even though Cook was a good player for much of his career, he had always been a somewhat erratic player and I frankly thought he was heading towards a Paulus-type sr. year, where his role and minutes were marginalized by the addition of Tyus Jones and the (anticipated) growth of Sheed and Matt Jones. Cook completely flipped that on its head. IMO, this is very different from a Mason Plumlee, Jon Scheyer, Nolan Smith type-senior year, where these guys were all clearly expected to be top 2-3 players on the team entering the season. It's good to see a kid max-out his talent -- and I think that's exactly what he's done this year. He should be proud of what he's achieved.

This post was edited on 4/3 3:30 PM by aah555

 

[skysdad]

Love those seniors. So valuable to our success. Could use a couple of them every year. OFC

 

[dbav]

Lots of guys to love here. Battier, Hurley, Redick, Scheyer, Langdon, Ewing, McLeod, Curry, Nolan, Singler, Mason, and others jump to mind.

I really want to give a big thank you to DeMarcus Nelson. I always thought he was an underrated member of the family (like Ewing). Played far beyond his size and always provided toughness and consistency.
This post was edited on 4/3 9:08 PM by dbav

 

[bleediteveryday30]

So many to name just one favorite. I would say that Battier & James, Christian and Thomas Hill, Wojo, Capel, Grant Hill, Langdon, Dawkins, Danny Ferry, J.J and Sheldon, Jon, Z, and Lance, Kyle & Nolan, and Cook are some that really stick out. Also, watching Chris Duhon lead his team to a final four was amazing. Still, I cannot get over '04 and the loss to Uconn. That one hits me harder than any of them.