Playing Time
- Thread starter What Would Jesus Do?
- Start date
If Mal can give us anything close to Lively, I will be happy.
"Kon Knupel: I was REALLY impressed. He does not have the NBA upside of Isiah but man that guy can ball. Made the right play everytime, did not force anything. He did not seem like a freshman at all. He shot the ball extremely well, did not force anything, did not shot much off the dribble, but everytime he had a bit of a window from catch and shoot he shot it and it went in very often. He also really impressed me when driving the ball, he uses his body very well, driving hard and then slowing down in his layup steps to create space and often scored. He does not WOW you with athleticism or crazy skills, but he is big and uses his body incredibly well - this guy maximises his touches. I get the sense that he will fit perfectly into his role on offense. It will be VERY VERY hard to keep him off the floor."
Thanks @GSquiz!!! I think keeping Kon out of the rotation would be a mistake.
OFC
Thanks @GSquiz!!! I think keeping Kon out of the rotation would be a mistake.
OFC
Foster looked 100% which is huge. Right now we seem stacked 1-4. The ceiling of this team will depend on how much our freshman big men can help us. Brown looks solid but more of a Lance Thomas type role player. Based on what I've seen Sion looks pretty far ahead of Gillis. Sion and Foster and Kon were aggressive attacking the basket, which was a weakness last year. Sion is a high motor guy and had some vicious blocks. Kon clearly has high basketball IQ; I liked his pump fake when Evans flew past him and he sank a 3. Evans has a nice pull up jumper. Overall we seem better than last year on paper; deeper and more balanced. We just have to see how all the new pieces fit. Mal is very long, so I can see why NBA scouts like him. I did notice big Pat is a good passer. Cooper is as good as advertised; he went around Mal a few times with ease.
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Just trying to flesh out a little more from the scrimmages thus far:Of the FRESHMEN,
after Cooper,who is likely our next most IMPACTFUL freshman?
(Obviously,this is quite fluid). Thanks.
OFC
after Cooper,who is likely our next most IMPACTFUL freshman?
(Obviously,this is quite fluid). Thanks.
OFC
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Kon right now. Probably Mal as the season goes on. Evans tends to shoot off balance/fadeaway jumpers, which is nice if he makes it, but may get him pulled from games if he misses. Pat will get there he looks like a multiyear player. Jury still out on Harris. If I were to guess Brown and Mal will split time at the 5, with Pat helping occasionally. Cooper at the 4; backed up by Brown/Gillis. We are deep at the 3 with Kon, Sion and Evans, possibly Gillis. The starting lineups will vary as we have options.
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Nice summary Chris. I am already prepared to bring the Coors. Get ready to fire up the grill for hot dogs!!
OFC
There's always a player or two that is ready, one or so that takes a little time, and at least one that looks a little lost. And for the one or so that looks lost, there's always been debate as to whether they are ready or the coach is holding them back. So as fun as it is to say who's going to contribute, we won't know who it is until roughly late December/early January.
Other than Flagg and maybe Proctor, as of June 24, I don't know who's going to see the court the most.
Other than Flagg and maybe Proctor, as of June 24, I don't know who's going to see the court the most.
Mac, I agree with your whole post. I think Foster (as long as he returns healthy) is going to see a lot of time on the court. He is a Poised Guard. He was playing very well and then the season ending injury happened.
I will go with Mal. I don’t see Knup starting over Foster or Sion at this point . I hope everyone isn’t hyping up Sion so far because if he don’t get at least one block in an actual game I’m going to be let down due to all the hyping of him blocking an alternating shots in scrimmages against under classmen .
It won't just be "all day." It will be all year, I promise you.
OFC
That's part of the fun of a message board. This place would not be very exciting if everyone just said "it's too soon to tell. Wait for the season." As for Sion he's that tough hard-nosed vet we have been lacking, and 20 minutes a game of that will really help us.
I agree. I guess what I meant is we are going to be really good. And if Maluach is great next year (he’s definitely gonna be great in 5 years) than I think we have the ingredients to win a title.
I love Sion and think he will start at the 3 as we play a 3 guard lineup.
Proctor can coast at times so its good to have Sion to push him.
I'm only going off how aggressive Jon has been in building the team. It's all around Flagg, who I think is the only one safe. That is unless he's nowhere near as good as every expert in the country has said he is. I believe everybody else is competing for time. It's possible we have different starting lineups. Especially if quite a few guys are impressive.
I'm wait and see with freshman but Cooper was by far our best player. He reminded me of Banchero. Smooth.
Banchero benefited from Mark and Theo. If they are not present, he would've had a Flip season, or probably not committed.
I just want to make sure Cooper is not doing too much. Flip's soph season gave me PTSD.
Team weights.
Kon 6-7 217
Sion, Brown and Gillis all around 220. Brown 6-9.
2 centers both 250
Harris 203
Cooper 205
Evans 175
Proctor 183
Foster 202
Have we ever had a team with only 2 guys under 200 pounds?
Kon 6-7 217
Sion, Brown and Gillis all around 220. Brown 6-9.
2 centers both 250
Harris 203
Cooper 205
Evans 175
Proctor 183
Foster 202
Have we ever had a team with only 2 guys under 200 pounds?
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Adding the last two guys I saw - sorry it took me longer to come back to this than I had planned to:
Maliq Brown: I was stunned at how effective this guy was in defense. Non-flashy things, no big block and big lock-down all energetic. He played a bit like the old vets that know exactly when to put effort, how to position themselves, when to reach for the ball, when to go behind the shoulder to block, and knows all the tricks. It was especially apparent when he guarded Khaman one on one. He just.. poked the ball 3-4 times in one scrimmage going 1-1 with a 7'2 guy with a crazy wingspan that had established position. I'm someone who prides himself with very active and quick hands on defense.. and I couldn't really understand how he was always putting his hand on the ball at the right time. I think he can switch on almost anyone - maybe not the uber fast point guard (Jeremy Roach type) but other than that he can guard everyone. On offense he will be a Lance Thomas type of guy - understand that the offesne doesn't run through him, but if left alone can knock a jumper, and other than that be in the right spot to finish a play. When he got the ball, he made the right pass right away. So not sexy on offense, but given the rest of the team can shoot it from 3 (including Khaman) I think he won't be a liability on offense. If we had mutiple guy like him on the floor at hte same time then spacing might be an issue.
I think he ends up with more minutes than Khaman - depending on match-ups. He brings an amazing versatility to this team because you can say let's go defense all out and play something like Tyrese, Sion, Cooper, Maliq, Khaman... I don't know how you score on that team.
Mason Gillis: I was also impressed by him. Played very much within himself, and just.. knocked shots the moment he had some light. Big, mature body on defense. I think he can play the 2-3-4 (I felt he had a good enough ball handling and was mobile enough to play the two, especially with a guy like Cooper on the team who adds ballhandling skills). There might not be much difference on this team between 2-3-4 at times... I could absolutely see this guy starting... quite frankly you put him in a corner and let Cooper run a pick and roll, or one of the guard create with Cooper... you just can't help off of him. He'll be in the right spots, won't amke mistakes, can crash the board... and on defense he would hold his own and rebound well too. Just a very efficient, well rounded player who can play his role extremely well. I also saw him drive a bit and he can absolutely do that.
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From what I saw, what is my bet for the starting 5 on day 1 (with minutes next to their name)
1. Tyrese Proctor (26 mpg), Caleb Foster (26 mpg)
2. Sion James (26 mpg)
3. Mason Gillis (22 mpg), Kon Knupel (14 mpg), Isaiah Evans (12 mpg)
4. Cooper Flagg (32 mpg)
5. Khaman Maluach (18 mpg), Maliq Brown (20 mpg), Patrick (2 mpg)
I think the competition is between:
- Tyrese, Sion and Caleb. I think the 3 end up playing and taking the 1-2 spots. Tyrese playing the 1 primarily and the other 2 being more combo guards. I think they will go all out, playing very hardnosed defense, because there is a guy waiting on the bench ready to jump in when you get tired.
- Khaman vs. himself. Essentially can this guy produce on offense reliably, and does he get lost or confused on defense. He will play for sure, but if he breaks out he could play 26-28 minutes at the end of the year... but my bet is that Maliq just is too reliable and makes too many small winning plays on defense to not have Maliq at least 20 minutes on the floor. If Khaman is too lost # not efficient I could see his minutes shrinking to 15. He is long and mobile enough to still be an incredible asset even if lost # not efficient!
- Kon vs. Isaiah. In my mind, totaly uninformed opinion, but I think this is the big battle for playing time. If Isaiah plays smart and efficient, he becomes an amazing spark plug off the bench who can create - and the guy subbing for Cooper. But my money is on him lacking maturity, Cooper being just too good to sit down much. And Kon being just too solid- and ultimately having Kon with more minutes.
- To those who say - Cooper is a SF.. I say OK. I don't think there is much difference on offense between 3 & 4 with these guys... It's defense matchups where it gets interesting (do you have Cooper guarding a PG? or the 4 on the other side? Who's the best player on the other team.. do you want Sion on that guy to let Cooper breathe and produce offensively.. etc..
And here is my predicted line-up when march comes around:
PG - Tyrese Proctor (26 mpg), Caleb Foster (26 mpg)
SG - Sion James (26 mpg)
SF - Mason Gillis (22 mpg), Kon Knupel (18 mpg)
PF - Cooper Flagg (34 mpg), Isaiah Evans (6mpg)
C - Khaman Muluach (18mpg), Maliq Brown (20 mpg), Patrick (2mpg)
and yes.. too soon - but this is fun.
Great write up GS. Seems we have a lot of options this year, particularly with the tranfers being a bit better than we are used to. I am interested in seeing more Gillis. Is he just a role guy, or could he step up with a bigger role? His Purdue teammates did not seem to look for him much in the footage I watched. Seems a little passive at times. Certainly compared to Sion, who seems like a man on a mission.
I think Kon could be OAD. 6-7 with that stroke. If we has a summer game we'd likely roll out Brown. Cooper, Kon, Sion and Proctor. Khaman and Foster first two off the bench. Then Gillis. But things can and will change.
I think Kon could be OAD. 6-7 with that stroke. If we has a summer game we'd likely roll out Brown. Cooper, Kon, Sion and Proctor. Khaman and Foster first two off the bench. Then Gillis. But things can and will change.
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We may be underestimating Caleb Foster. Remember, he remained the starter even after Proctor came back from injury. Caleb IMO is the fastest guy on the team with the basketball and Coach S would love to get him out on the fast break. I agree though that on an average, he, Tyrese and Sion will share the 2 guard positions with an occasional cameo from Evans or K2 for some offense (or the dreaded injury).
I don't know where Cooper will play other than "star". He and the coaches will figure it out. It may change based on the competition and who is playing well.
Maluach is a guess. Will the coaches see him as the key to the final four and let him play through his lack of experience? Or as usual will Duke play small and we'll see more of Brown at the 5 and Cooper at the 4, with Maluach and Ngongba sharing about 10-15 minutes each?
We know one thing--for whatever reason, Duke will not go more than 8 deep, maybe 9 with injuries.
I don't know where Cooper will play other than "star". He and the coaches will figure it out. It may change based on the competition and who is playing well.
Maluach is a guess. Will the coaches see him as the key to the final four and let him play through his lack of experience? Or as usual will Duke play small and we'll see more of Brown at the 5 and Cooper at the 4, with Maluach and Ngongba sharing about 10-15 minutes each?
We know one thing--for whatever reason, Duke will not go more than 8 deep, maybe 9 with injuries.
I do not think Cooper is going to get the most minutes. I see the two veteran guards getting 30 plus minutes.
Cooper will get the most imo. But Brown and Gillis can keep him fresh.
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I’ll say this now . If Duke goes to a three guard line up then why bring in Brown or big Pat ? You still have two SF on the bench and who’s the back up pg? Playing Flagg in the post a lot is playing him out of position.
I totally agree. It's not a good move. It looks like we didn't learn from last year's mistakes. Play Cooper the same way you played Mark and Dariq two years ago.
Let's say Flagg is as good as advertised. The tighter the game, especially later in the season, the more he will play. The team is around him. Personally, I think the other 4 spots are whoever is playing the best. The one guy that has to be better than he's shown is Proctor. If the overall talent is what we are hoping for, he better have his A game.
Gillis did say he had to train himself to drive again as with Edey he didn't do that much.
Playing Flagg at power forward is not playing him in the post. Winslow played the 4. Mitchell played the 4 when he was hitting his 3 pt shot. At Duke, the 4 can play anywhere.
I agree with Mac, it's going to be game to game where Cooper plays and who plays around him. You better play hard all the time and do some positive things or someone will come in who does.
I agree with Mac, it's going to be game to game where Cooper plays and who plays around him. You better play hard all the time and do some positive things or someone will come in who does.
If we start playing Cooper at the PF in February, that's based on adjustments. Amile started the season at the PF, then K inserted Matt Jones for outside scoring. That's because Winslow was tough and able to rebound. Mitchell should've never played the 4 because he resisted the position.
I am expecting a Lively type progression for Mal. With Brown playing the Young role, but likely playing more minutes than Young did.
Agreed with this. I also think Cooper gets the most minutes followed by Proctor. I really think both see 32mpg.
I also agree with this. I’m interested to see how Mal is defensively. The 30 foot three pointers are cool but how far along he is defensively IMO will determine how much he plays and the ceiling of this Duke team.
If he is somewhere close to Lively defensively in Feb/March..than watch out.
If you play flag more then 10 minutes at PF then your waisting his talent and he will become exposed just like Flip was trying to play in the post .
Proctor didn’t come back to come off the bench and Foster didn’t come back knowing Proctor was returning to come off the bench. Mal did not come to Duke to come off the bench he’s a top 5-10 draft pick and the only true center on Dukes roster that’s not coming of injury , Brown can play the 5 but is better suited for the PF spot .
The best break down I think was on cbs and the projected line up was
Proctor, Foster, Flagg and Mal with the four player being between Sion/Brown however who then becomes your scorer in the back court off the bench ?
Those sleeping on Proctor need to realize this team is built better to show his strengths . Don’t need him to score . Simply defend likes he’s been doing and get assist .
Proctor didn’t come back to come off the bench and Foster didn’t come back knowing Proctor was returning to come off the bench. Mal did not come to Duke to come off the bench he’s a top 5-10 draft pick and the only true center on Dukes roster that’s not coming of injury , Brown can play the 5 but is better suited for the PF spot .
The best break down I think was on cbs and the projected line up was
Proctor, Foster, Flagg and Mal with the four player being between Sion/Brown however who then becomes your scorer in the back court off the bench ?
Those sleeping on Proctor need to realize this team is built better to show his strengths . Don’t need him to score . Simply defend likes he’s been doing and get assist .
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