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Patrick Tape

I don’t know what happened in the tourney last year. They should have lost to C Florida, played like shit in round 1, not sharp against VT and I didn’t think they played well against MSU. I kept thinking they’d wake up and start playing like they had for most of the year and during the ACC Tourney. Maybe that was going to be in the final 4.

I thought the turning point against MSU was when Zion picked up his second foul. Duke had started to smother them on D, got up 8 I believe and Zion was open for an easy dunk underneath and RJ threw the inbound pass short and then Zion got a stupid reach in foul . Felt like Duke was about to blow it open if they scored there and instead Zion goes out with 2 and MSU evens it up at the half.
 
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For those that follow the NBA, Cam has really started to blossom during the second half of the season. I thought something similar was going to happen during his season at Duke. He showed flashes of his talent during his season here, but he just couldn’t tie it all together consistently. If Cam was able to reach his potential last season, we’re winning the whole thing.
 
We can micro manage all the finer details as to why that team lost. But at the end of the day we had a major flaw, we couldn’t consistently shoot a lick. The games we were hot (UK, @Virgina) no one was going to beat us. We had 2 generational scorers of the basketball. But we couldn’t shoot a lick and teams started clogging the lane like nothing I have ever seen before. If we had 1-2 consistent 3 point shooters we would have dominated the tournament. I honestly believe that.
 
I remember when Marshall Faulk was at San Diego State. He was a freshman and running for 200 yards a game. Teams were putting most of their guys in the box and still couldn't stop him. Reminds me of the defenses against us late last year.
 
We can micro manage all the finer details as to why that team lost. But at the end of the day we had a major flaw, we couldn’t consistently shoot a lick. The games we were hot (UK, @Virgina) no one was going to beat us. We had 2 generational scorers of the basketball. But we couldn’t shoot a lick and teams started clogging the lane like nothing I have ever seen before. If we had 1-2 consistent 3 point shooters we would have dominated the tournament. I honestly believe that.

It seems like a simplification, but that is absolutely the reality. Two guys as good at attacking the basket as Duke has literally ever had, and it was made incredibly difficult because zero consistent floor spacers.
 
To be honest, that team was two separate teams. One team that was healthy and had a Cam playing at or near his potential. That team was virtually unbeatable. That is the team that DESTROYED Kentucky. The other team was missing key players due to injury and or had a Cam that wasnt a star. Wasnt playing anywhere near the level he was capable of. Tha team did have to rely on 2 guys.
Exactly. Look that team was really good no matter what but when Cam, Tre, and Jack were on we were unbeatable. But that second half of the season we just weren’t THAT good. We were good but you could tell we were missing something that we had earlier in the season. The idea that we were the far and away favorite to win it all was just a little crazy by the time we got to march. I mean we only had two players consistently show up every game. That’s not how it should be for a championship team.
My point is it’s really annoying when i hear people say stuff like “K couldn’t even win it with Zion, Rj, and Cam”. That team outside of Zion and Rj wasn’t that good. We had a bunch of players capable but they were all inconsistent.
 
I absolutely enjoyed every second of the UK beatdown from a few rows behind one of the baskets. However...a strong case can be made that was the worst possible outcome for Duke's March hopes. We peaked way too early, and then the Zion UNC injury just completely threw off our rhythm.

IMO a few reasons the team never got to it's full potential:
-Shooting: we needed Cam and Alex to be knockdown shooters, neither were, Alex had a massive dip in his 3 point % from his freshman year.
-Speaking of Cam...let's not beat around the bush, when he was bad, he murdered us. He just never was able to realize his full potential, it sucks because when Cam could give us 15+ we were unbeatable.
-Jack's shooting fell off a cliff. Remember the first 2 months of that season when Jack was AWESOME???
-Tre really struggled near the end of the year. He shot 26% from 3 for the year, that is terrible for a guard. He came up HUGE in that VT Sweet 16 game, but teams didn't guard him and that made life much tougher on Zion/RJ.
 
It seems like we have always been a streaky scoring team. When we hit 3's we seem to be unbeatable. But when those 3s stop falling the offense can grind to a halt.
 
I absolutely enjoyed every second of the UK beatdown from a few rows behind one of the baskets. However...a strong case can be made that was the worst possible outcome for Duke's March hopes. We peaked way too early, and then the Zion UNC injury just completely threw off our rhythm.

IMO a few reasons the team never got to it's full potential:
-Shooting: we needed Cam and Alex to be knockdown shooters, neither were, Alex had a massive dip in his 3 point % from his freshman year.
-Speaking of Cam...let's not beat around the bush, when he was bad, he murdered us. He just never was able to realize his full potential, it sucks because when Cam could give us 15+ we were unbeatable.
-Jack's shooting fell off a cliff. Remember the first 2 months of that season when Jack was AWESOME???
-Tre really struggled near the end of the year. He shot 26% from 3 for the year, that is terrible for a guard. He came up HUGE in that VT Sweet 16 game, but teams didn't guard him and that made life much tougher on Zion/RJ.

Nailed it.
 
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Cam’s 3 ball hasn’t been any better in the NBA (33%).. is it possible for a great high school 3pt shooter to just not be able to do it at the NCAA or NBA level?
 
Cam’s 3 ball hasn’t been any better in the NBA (33%).. is it possible for a great high school 3pt shooter to just not be able to do it at the NCAA or NBA level?
Well that’s the thing that confuses me the most. All the analysts said he was great from deep. Well if you look at his last year of EYBL he only shot 29% from deep. So I’m not sure why they all made him out to be some knockdown shooter. Yeah he was capable but not great at all.
 
Cam’s 3 ball hasn’t been any better in the NBA (33%).. is it possible for a great high school 3pt shooter to just not be able to do it at the NCAA or NBA level?
And to be fair to cam the last 3 months he shot 41% in the nba
 
Cam’s 3 ball hasn’t been any better in the NBA (33%).. is it possible for a great high school 3pt shooter to just not be able to do it at the NCAA or NBA level?

I could be wrong but I’m not sure he was ever a lethal shooter. For some reason we all assumed he was a consistent shooter, maybe someone can go back to his high school and AAU days. I think he was more of an attacker than a shooter. However his biggest weakness when driving was control over his body. He couldn’t avoid contact if his life depended on it. Once teams figured that out he was a charge waiting to happen. I have a feeling once he got frustrated with that it had a detrimental effect on other parts of his game, namely shooting. He started shooting more and again I don’t think that was ever his strength.
 
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Jwill made some great points. That year was a multitude of bad breaks from injuries to inexplicable drop offs/poor performances from multiple players.
Injuries aside, who could have predicted Cam shooting as s poorly as he did from 3 AMD being so consistently unpredictable, AMD Tre shooting not so so to bad, but horribly from 3, AND Alex' 3 % decreasing like it did AND Jack' 3 % to completely plummet while his overall steady hame disappeared as well! That's s lot of unexpected developments all braking the wrong way.
 
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I could be wrong but I’m not sure he was ever a lethal shooter. For some reason we all assumed he was a consistent shooter, maybe someone can go back to his high school and AAU days. I think he was more of an attacker than a shooter. However his biggest weakness when driving was control over his body. He couldn’t avoid contact if his life depended on it. Once teams figured that out he was a charge waiting to happen. I have a feeling once he got frustrated with that it had a detrimental effect on other parts of his game, namely shooting. He started shooting more and again I don’t think that was ever his strength.
Yeah this was a big time misnomer. He was never, to my knowledge, if someone wants to look it up please do, known as a great outside threat. Rather that was going to be his role with how the team was structured. He was always a guy who handled the ball and was that long playmaker in hs.
 
Yeah this was a big time misnomer. He was never, to my knowledge, if someone wants to look it up please do, known as a great outside threat. Rather that was going to be his role with how the team was structured. He was always a guy who handled the ball and was that long playmaker in hs.
Shot 29% from 3 his last year of AAU
 
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As for Tape, next years team needs to be the opposite. We need 8 really solid contributors, with at least 2 consistent deep threats. Then we need 1 or 2 guys who play more sparingly that can be dependable. Tape could be a huge part of that. If he can be steady and dependable, that goes a long way to solving the 5 spot. Look at 2 years ago. We had 2 guys that had all or most of the physical attributes to more than handle the 5 considering we had Zion and RJ. In the end, we never knew what we were going to get from Javin and Bolden.
Tape might have less potential than either, but wind up providing a whole lot more.
 
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See we do have some mixed reviews on him. Personally I'm happy to get him. Sure he played in the Ivy League but his does have experience and put up decent numbers. From his videos which of course is highlights he seems to be a heady player. No doubt in my mind is he knows what his role at Duke will be. Who knows he may even be a big asset for us. That's what I'm hoping for. My biggest concern is if he doesn't contribute to the point we expect then this board is going to eat him up. Hoping we constrain ourselves somewhat. OFC
 
See we do have some mixed reviews on him. Personally I'm happy to get him. Sure he played in the Ivy League but his does have experience and put up decent numbers. From his videos which of course is highlights he seems to be a heady player. No doubt in my mind is he knows what his role at Duke will be. Who knows he may even be a big asset for us. That's what I'm hoping for. My biggest concern is if he doesn't contribute to the point we expect then this board is going to eat him up. Hoping we constrain ourselves somewhat. OFC

If he can give us 5 points and 5 rebounds, that would be nice.
 
With Hurt now back in the fold, along with Tape, we should have 1 scholarship left.

Kuminga is starting to show as the projected #1 or #2 pick in the 2021 draft, meaning a lot of people (in college basketball and the NBA) expect him to reclassify. Seems like he has cooled off on Duke though. Sounds like LSU could be the leader? Though I don’t think anyone truly knows.
What is blatantly obvious....when LSU is getting involved, you know a large bag of cash is involved. That’s just the way they do business, watch “The Scheme” on HBO.

No idea who else we could bring in, if anyone. Would be nice to have another shooter off the bench, basically the role Alex could have provided.
 
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With Hurt now back in the fold, along with Tape, we should have 1 scholarship left.

Kuminga is starting to show as the projected #1 or #2 pick in the 2021 draft, meaning a lot of people (in college basketball and the NBA) expect him to reclassify. Seems like he has cooled off on Duke though. Sounds like LSU could be the leader? Though I don’t think anyone truly knows.
What is blatantly obvious....when LSU is getting involved, you know a large bag of cash is involved. That’s just the way they do business, watch “The Scheme” on HBO.

No idea who else we could bring in, if anyone. Would be nice to have another shooter off the bench, basically the role Alex could have provided.

If we could get Kumninga then this team becomes a whole other level of good next year. So glad to see Stanley's comments on Hurt, Moore, and the incoming freshmen. Very excited to see what everyone brings next season. Tape being a senior will help out tremendously.
 
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I've watched more film of Tape. The fella has a great little hook shot, seems to have a good motor, and I love his attacking on the boards. I think we see him start at the beginning of the year with Williams possibly growing into a starter as the year moves along. I'm excited about Hurt coming back though. That was the big one for me personally. He can take off next season.
 
If Tape’ can just give us what Javin did on his good days (and avoid having Javin “bad day” games) then I will be very happy.
 
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If Tape’ can just give us what Javin did on his good days (and avoid having Javin “bad day” games) then I will be very happy.

Michigan State Javin was a beast though. I love Javin and I will miss him next season, as much as he could frustrate me at times. I hate it for Javin, Jack, and J Rob. Those guys didn't have the option of returning and didn't get a chance for one more tourney run. Hate it for all the guys, especially Tre. But my heart hurts a little bit more for the seniors.
 
If he can give us 5 points and 5 rebounds, that would be nice.

Absolutely, we do not need him asking for immediate touches. If he can give Duke good rebounding, put - backs, picks and relieve Williams, Duke will be great.
 
For those that follow the NBA, Cam has really started to blossom during the second half of the season. I thought something similar was going to happen during his season at Duke. He showed flashes of his talent during his season here, but he just couldn’t tie it all together consistently. If Cam was able to reach his potential last season, we’re winning the whole thing.


Without question. I'm not blaming last year on Cam but if he is more consistently productive, with better efficiency, that team is a damn juggernaut.
 
I may be in the minority here but I think there’s a solid change K starts Tapé early on in the season.

Small sample size obviously but the dude put him some pretty impressing numbers against some good comp-BC/Penn Stans others

Gotta think while Mark definitely has the higher ceiling...the 21 year old 5th year guy has to of somewhat of an advance. Williams did play against some really good HS comp. but at the end of the day-you can’t nest college experience and going against biggger/stronger dudes. Should only help both of them battling in practice everyday.

I love the Tapé get....I think he could be just as if not more valuable than a Javin last season. While very different players I think Tapé may have a better overall feel for the game with better hands-dude can also make a FT and has some touch out to 10-12 feet. He and Mark should be awesome
Holding down the 5 spot with Coleman sprinkled in as well. 11 deep people!!
 
Well that’s the thing that confuses me the most. All the analysts said he was great from deep. Well if you look at his last year of EYBL he only shot 29% from deep. So I’m not sure why they all made him out to be some knockdown shooter. Yeah he was capable but not great at all.

Sometime “scouts” get caught up in how the shot looks(and the player shooting it-lanky 6’9) as opposed to the results. If Cam were say Stanley’s size they might’ve said different things about Cam coming out of HS.

Cam has really came on each month he’s been in the NBA...dude must just take some time getting adjusted to new levels. He was all kinds of inconsistent at Duke yet he was still taken as a high pick for good reason. We tend to forget they are just kids-some even teens still. Excited to see how Cam/Zion/Rj and many other young studs do in the league moving forward. Will only help build that Brotherhood brand seeing dudes ball out in the league!
 
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I may be in the minority here but I think there’s a solid change K starts Tapé early on in the season.

Small sample size obviously but the dude put him some pretty impressing numbers against some good comp-BC/Penn Stans others

Gotta think while Mark definitely has the higher ceiling...the 21 year old 5th year guy has to of somewhat of an advance. Williams did play against some really good HS comp. but at the end of the day-you can’t nest college experience and going against biggger/stronger dudes. Should only help both of them battling in practice everyday.

I love the Tapé get....I think he could be just as if not more valuable than a Javin last season. While very different players I think Tapé may have a better overall feel for the game with better hands-dude can also make a FT and has some touch out to 10-12 feet. He and Mark should be awesome
Holding down the 5 spot with Coleman sprinkled in as well. 11 deep people!!


Pat starts at day one... older, mature, first game...
 
Unless we go small ball I think Tape starts. Williams is good but is very skinny and may struggle at first, even all season. He still may be one and done, esp. if he figures it out in year one. Williams may end up starting, but he may be more comfortable coming off the bench.
 
I won’t be surprised to see something like

Roach
Moore
Baker
Johnson
Hurt
That is an insane offensive lineup.. I do think we will see that 5 on the court together some, but I don’t think it will start.. I see K at least starting with a more traditional lineup with a true 5..

Roach
Moore
Johnson
Hurt
Tape’/Williams


I do think during crunch time of games, we will see Hurt move to the 5.. and will probably see a lot of offense/defense subbing like K did this year with Carey & Javin late in games.
 
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I do like that lineup with Baker and Moore and the 3 and 2. Not great defensively, but could score in bunches. Lot of size 2-5.
 
The starting lineup I predict will start the most games together.
Roach
Moore
Johnson
Hurt
Williams

Our “lineup of death”
Roach
Steward/Goldwire
Moore
Johnson
Hurt
 
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what about a super small lineup of Roach, Goldwire, Steward, Moore and Hurt/Johnson? Not all game but in spurts.
 
I won’t be surprised to see something like

Roach
Moore
Baker
Johnson
Hurt

With this lineup, where is the rebounding? Also, teams might attack and attempt to bully us on offense. This lineup is affective on defense if we play 90ft to 90ft.

It's unfair to put that pressure on Hurt.
 
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