Patrick Baldwin to commit tomorrow
- Thread starter WNCFan1989
- Start date
I understand why he did it. How often does one get an opportunity to play for his dad. Years from now he will say I'm glad I did it instead of I wish I had. OFC
Griffin, Paolo, Moore, Roach , Keels, Blake, and Baker can all shoot decent from three. With the way Paolo and Griffin attack the basket with Williams down low, there should be way more open 3’s. I would actually like to see more ball movement and free throw attempts. I think the three ball will be there.
Agreed, I’m more worried about playing pressure D on the perimeter and having tight ball handlers against pressure D as well. One injury to Roach or Moore and it’ll hurt.
I think Trevor Keels value (and PT) as an outside shooter just shot up!
OFC
OFC
Worked out well for Doug McDermott. I think his dad only punched him once on the sideline lol
This is what we should’ve all expected. Don’t blame the kid one bit. Wish him the best of luck. Let’s make the best with what we have.
I think Dukes length will help their D and I’m not saying Blake will get a tone of minutes but his defense and wing span will help .
I am sure we will be good. But every year we say freshman x is a good shooter and defender, and every year we watch them struggle. I just pencil in inconsistency for freshman. Banchero should be an exception. We could really use big jumps from Moore and Roach. I think Baker could really improve as well, but I'm not as sure about him.
Should we offer Bagley now? The staff wanted Baldwin so they probably wanted another shooter. Last year we went in with 11 guys, 9 seems a little thin, as it seems like we frequently end the season with less guys.
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Would you rather have Bagley or Nolan Hickman? Hickman would give us another ball handler, but you could also play Hickman at SG. Would allow us to play small ball when needed, and be able to keep up with teams who like to run all game.
Of course, would need to get buy in from Roach, Keels and Wendell before doing anything.
Hickman if he can shoot and doesn't drive Roach away. Those 2 would be a nasty pg combo. If Keels is a top 10 type stud we won't need him, but I'm not sure if he is. Steward was similarly ranked and was up and down, and he exceeded expectations. If we don't add another shooter I think the Steward loss will hurt.
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With you on this. While I think Paolo will be great I can’t set the bar too high for the rest of our freshman. Griffin and Keels are not top 5/top 10 kids where they’re automatic difference makers. They’re big and strong with room to grow. If they were freakishly skilled to go along with their potential they’d be top 10 recruits. Just have to assumed they’ll have great games and bad games. Hopefully they get to where they need to be by March. Roach is the key for me. As point guard play goes, so does Coach’s offense.
Duke doesn’t need anymore players. One more isn’t going to make a difference. This team is built to run, score and defend. Baldwin would have been a nice get but it’s not the end of the world. A lot are selling returning players short. Shooting doesn’t matter if you can’t space the floor and attack from driving lanes. The three point shot will be there. I’d rather see this team make it to the free throw line more and keep teams guessing. When they leave players open I think more 3’s will go on then last season. Baker will step up when given the chance and Moore with Roach. If no one don’t get minutes it’s because they showed they didn’t work for them.
Duke was light on the perimeter in 2010 and we won it all. And, that team only had one non guard who could do anything on offense from the perimeter-Kyle. This team has Paolo and AJ who can handle the ball, attack the basket from the perimeter, and shoot. Lance, Zoubs, Mason, and Myles gave us zero of that. And, Mark and Paolo provide much more of an interior threat that has to be guarded, if not doubled, which makes the guards job easier.
Also, if Roach steps up, which is more likely than not, we are not light on the perimeter. If Blakes can handle 5-10 minutes a game with a college ready body and rep for D, we are not light on the perimeter. We also have Keels and Wendell on the perimeter. And, if things click for Joey, we have a sharpshooter as an 8th/9th man. Heck, if Joey can hit consistently, he is a legit 6th/7th man.
Sure, we have questions. Who doesn't. But, we also have some pretty damn good potential answers.
Also, if Roach steps up, which is more likely than not, we are not light on the perimeter. If Blakes can handle 5-10 minutes a game with a college ready body and rep for D, we are not light on the perimeter. We also have Keels and Wendell on the perimeter. And, if things click for Joey, we have a sharpshooter as an 8th/9th man. Heck, if Joey can hit consistently, he is a legit 6th/7th man.
Sure, we have questions. Who doesn't. But, we also have some pretty damn good potential answers.
Those are a lot of ifs. People just seem to be assuming a lot. Like last year when everyone said we didn't need a true point guard because of Johnson. I admit I am snake bitten, but a lot of folk are assuming a lot of things, perhaps because we are desperate for a bounce back year. And in 2010 we were one guard injury away from disaster. I'd put us as a sweet 16 team, maybe more if Keels and Roach and Moore play consistently good.
In this day and age, is there ever a guarantee of a Final Four? Those days are gone. Even with Zion/RJ/Cam, obviously there was no guarantee.
I'll say this, at present time, there is no other team in the country I'd rather have than ours. Even Gonzaga, which looks to be loaded.
I'll say this, at present time, there is no other team in the country I'd rather have than ours. Even Gonzaga, which looks to be loaded.
Roach really needs to improve or Keels needs to demonstrate that he can play point in the league for Duke to make a big splash next year.
Having NBA level guard play is absolutely essential these days for deep NCAA runs. Paolo playing point forward is not gonna cut it unless he really plays like freaken LeBron.
Having NBA level guard play is absolutely essential these days for deep NCAA runs. Paolo playing point forward is not gonna cut it unless he really plays like freaken LeBron.
Oh, I agree that we have questionmarks. Who doesnt. My point is, we have 5 potential answers for 2 positions. That's not bad considering our front court, which has 2 players with a track record and a close to a given as you can get with Paolo and another with a ton of upside in AJ.
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UCLA doesn't have many questions. They have everyone back from a final four team except Juzang, plus 2 top recruits. And a top transfer big man. I know they were first 4 in, but they are battle tested. We lost half our team from a barely 500 team. We have some top recruits, but we need to pump the brakes a bit.
Hickman is pretty scary. He was by many accounts the best guard at the Iverson classic. He legit could be the #2 guard after Hardy. The 2021 class is very guard thin, 3 guards in top 15.
Loaded! Will be a great matchup in November. Looking like there will be at least 7 first rounders starting that game.
It will definitely be a good test for us. I'd have to think this puts Gonzaga at preseason number one, them or UCLA. The Zags also added the Iowa State transfer combo guard who averaged 15 as a sophomore. I'm not sure how much Baylor lost.
Duke needs one more quality reserve. The team only has nine recruited scholarships players. There will be at least one game when the team is without two of the nine due to illness or injury. Probably more. It's nice to have bench players like Savarino, Jones, Worthington et.al. to conduct a proper practice. But nine scholarship players is cutting it too thin. The first seven are terrific. Baker can go either way, and Blakes was a critical addition. A wing transfer from a mid-major would be ideal.
Just don’t get why we didn’t make a hard push for him, and before people say that there wasn’t any space for him keep in mind that Gonzaga now has Nembhard and two incoming 5* PGs.
Hickman is from Seattle originally, so he wanted to be closer to home. Washington is a hot mess right now, so he picked Gonzaga. He will probably come off the bench for them.
I agree with you. I was disappointed we didn’t seem to make an effort to sign Grady from Davidson.
Another transfer guard would have been perfect. A shooter. Were we confident in landing Baldwin? Are there any transfers left worth getting? The staff must be very confident in Roach and Keels.
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Jaxson Robinson from Tx AM and Rocket Watts from Michigan State are available but you still have the problem of is there enough PT ?
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