Realistic expectations for the rest of the year.

[GhostOf301]

I love the defensive ability with this team. I think they will be a team that can stay in the game even on an off night, so they will be there at the end of hard games. They have shown signs of being able to make comebacks. But small example sizes. And that was early. Flagg has shown improvements in efficiency, which was the cause of our loss to Kentucky. So that is a good sign. James, Brown and Ellis are going to prove to be the biggest contribution to the team IMO. With Evans being our spark guy. Everyone else just needs to be competent, IMO.

I don't see a game they should lose, but I am going to assume there will be a bad night or two and say they finish the regular season 27-4. Feel like this is a final four team.

 

[smashmouth5]

The talent and schedule is there to run the table in the regular season, but you will always have a night where a team goes bonkers from 3 and you can't get out of your own way.

 

[christophero]

Stay healthy and a one seed and final four.

 

[t-towndomer]

Win out and hanging another natty is a realistic expectation. Probably won't happen, but it's not unrealistic to think it may.

 

[AlanInNJ]

I would be disappointed if we didn't win the ACC regular season, 1 seed and final four. I do think we are going to drop a game or two in league play due to a very poor shooting night. I agree 100% our defense should keep us in every game no matter how poorly we shoot or play. No injuries please!!

 

[Mac9192]

Our last final four team was 22. I think this team is at least that good. Banchero was a stud, but I think Flagg is better. Proctor, Kon, and Sion are solid, and Maluach seems to be improving. I think our biggest thing to worry about is everyone staying bought in to the team. There's a lot of talent, and as games get tougher, a few guys will get left out. How they handle that will possibly play a big part in how far Duke goes.

 

[BluePhil]

Our last final four team was 22. I think this team is at least that good. Banchero was a stud, but I think Flagg is better. Proctor, Kon, and Sion are solid, and Maluach seems to be improving. I think our biggest thing to worry about is everyone staying bought in to the team. There's a lot of talent, and as games get tougher, a few guys will get left out. How they handle that will possibly play a big part in how far Duke goes.

I think now that Sion is starting we have a lineup with no real holes. I think we are more complete than 22.

If we lose more than one in regular season I'll be surprised.

 

[Another#1Dukie]

Duke really can't afford to lose more than 2 games the rest of the way, if they want a 1 seed. The great thing is Duke's D is great at #3 in Kenpom and their O is getting better and better at #8. They and Iowa St are the only teams in the single digits in both, currently.

Right now, they're ranked 3 in NET. Of the 17 games left to play they have 4 Q1's and 3 Q2's left to play
Duke is 4-2 vs Q1
Take Auburn who is 1 in NET as an example. They have 17 games left and have 13 Q1's and 4 Q2's left to play.
Auburn is 6-1 vs Q1

The top SEC teams are all going to have a similar Q1 games left to play. Depending on how things play out, there could be 4 SEC teams on the top line.

Duke just needs to win!

 

[pisgah101]

We will be in every game regardless of opponent because of our D. O looked good Saturday and if it can be consistent we won’t lose again. We will be favored in every game from here till at least the final four(if we make it) which is quite impressive.. as others have said we could run the table and win it all but an off night (or 2) likely happens. At Clemson is no walk in the park, if we win that one I’ll think we can run it

 

[johnl1219]

We will be in every game regardless of opponent because of our D. O looked good Saturday and if it can be consistent we won’t lose again. We will be favored in every game from here till at least the final four(if we make it) which is quite impressive.. as others have said we could run the table and win it all but an off night (or 2) likely happens. At Clemson is no walk in the park, if we win that one I’ll think we can run it

I think the toughest will be at Clemson and at UNC. Perhaps those are the only 2 loses in conference, but I would agree, if Duke can win those, they have a real chance to run it.

 

[bullcity gamer]

Staying Healthy (Primarily: The Starters, Brown, and Evans). If Duke stays Healthy, they are capable of achieving everything below:

1. Defeating Illinois @ MSG
2. Sweeping the tar out of the heels
3. Finishing Unbeaten at Home
4. Winning the ACC Regular Season & Earning the #1 Seed in the ACC Tournament
5. Winning the ACC Tournament in Charlotte
6. Earning a 1 or 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament with their first two round games being played in North Carolina
7. Earning a Final Four Bid
8. Winning #6 in San Antonio on April 7th

The Team has looked Together all season to this point and I do not see that changing. These Guys look like they Genuinely Enjoy playing together and are On A Mission

Get the interior more involved on the offensive end of the court, more confidence from Gillis/Foster/& Big Pat, make Fast Starts More Consistent and The Blue Devils will take another step towards their ceiling

Enjoy Watching The Continued Growth of These Blue Devils 🙂

 

[bleediteveryday30]

Staying Healthy (Primarily: The Starters, Brown, and Evans). If Duke stays Healthy, they are capable of achieving everything below:

1. Defeating Illinois @ MSG
2. Sweeping the tar out of the heels
3. Finishing Unbeaten at Home
4. Winning the ACC Regular Season & Earning the #1 Seed in the ACC Tournament
5. Winning the ACC Tournament in Charlotte
6. Earning a 1 or 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament with their first two round games being played in North Carolina
7. Earning a Final Four Bid
8. Winning #6 in San Antonio on April 7th

The Team has looked Together all season to this point and I do not see that changing. These Guys look like they Genuinely Enjoy playing together and are On A Mission

Get the interior more involved on the offensive end of the court, more confidence from Gillis/Foster/& Big Pat, make Fast Starts More Consistent and The Blue Devils will take another step towards their ceiling

Enjoy Watching The Continued Growth of These Blue Devils 🙂

I hope you're right! That would be sweet!

 

[christophero]

Think we need more out of Brown to cut the nets down. He hasn't been the same since he hurt his toe.

 

[bullcity gamer]

I agree Brown hasn’t been the same since he hurt his toe Chris. Brown is still A Great Defender and that’s his Specialty. Collectively, between Flagg, Maluach, Brown, Gillis, and Big Pat, just need them to be More Consistent as A Unit scoring inside the interior.

 

[DukeDallas9192011015]

Staying Healthy (Primarily: The Starters, Brown, and Evans). If Duke stays Healthy, they are capable of achieving everything below:

1. Defeating Illinois @ MSG
2. Sweeping the tar out of the heels
3. Finishing Unbeaten at Home
4. Winning the ACC Regular Season & Earning the #1 Seed in the ACC Tournament
5. Winning the ACC Tournament in Charlotte
6. Earning a 1 or 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament with their first two round games being played in North Carolina
7. Earning a Final Four Bid
8. Winning #6 in San Antonio on April 7th

The Team has looked Together all season to this point and I do not see that changing. These Guys look like they Genuinely Enjoy playing together and are On A Mission

Get the interior more involved on the offensive end of the court, more confidence from Gillis/Foster/& Big Pat, make Fast Starts More Consistent and The Blue Devils will take another step towards their ceiling

Enjoy Watching The Continued Growth of These Blue Devils 🙂

THIS. Health is still the most important thing for this group. I always felt like Zion's toe injury threw everything off for that group, I don't want that to happen again, we should have won it that year.

This team is deeper than that team (and just about every Duke team from my memory), and we have had great injury luck so far, but we can't lose anyone in the rotation. I truly believe this team is due for a special run if we can stay healthy and keep knocking down shots.

 

[Mac9192]

Staying healthy is every teams concern. Most any team that has championship aspirations are an injury away from not being a contender. We just need to not have slow starts, and keep improving.

 

[sheyduke]

I think Duke takes four losses in league play and two will be real head scratchers. The guards need to be more consistent and the front court needs to stop being too unselfish. One of those losses will be with Flagg getting into foul trouble in a tight game.
I also don’t think one of those losses comes to UNC .

 

[dukesince91]

I think Duke takes four losses in league play and two will be real head scratchers. The guards need to be more consistent and the front court needs to stop being too unselfish. One of those losses will be with Flagg getting into foul trouble in a tight game.
I also don’t think one of those losses comes to UNC .

I sure don’t see what you’re seeing. I’ll be shocked if they lose 3 in league play. This team’s defense is legit.

 

[sheyduke]

I sure don’t see what you’re seeing. I’ll be shocked if they lose 3 in league play. This team’s defense is legit.

Yes but I’m always going to look to the down side that way I don’t have to read everyone’s post about how this team didn’t reach THEIR expectations. Plus I like playing with an edge .

 

[bullcity gamer]

Solid Win Blue Devils. Wish Gillis would have played more minutes in the 2nd half. He gave Duke a great spurt in the 1st Half.

 

[sheyduke]

Solid Win Blue Devils. Wish Gillis would have played more minutes in the 2nd half. He gave Duke a great spurt in the 1st Half.

No need to. Flagg cane out mad and it showed. Bet Diaz Graham don’t watch sports center or social media 😂

 

[bleediteveryday30]

This team puts the D in defense.

 

[bleediteveryday30]

#1 in Kempom with a 36.91 Net efficiency. 9 in offense and 1 in defense. Very nice 👌

 

[bullcity gamer]

Bring on The Irish

 

[bleediteveryday30]

Bring on The Irish

Let's hope they have no luck on Saturday.

 

[christophero]

But beat Penn State

 

[Mac9192]

If nothing bad happens, I think it's safe to say this is one of the teams with a chance to win it all. It always helps when your best player isn't a ball hog. Cooper is the real deal. His hair isn't sticking to his head in the 2nd half for show. He doesn't just rebound, he goes and gets the ball. And he's not afraid to pass it. Kon is special too. He's not flashy, but man does he know how to play the game.

Oh, and the rest of the guys aren't too bad either.

 

[DukeDallas9192011015]

My only worry about this year is how bad the ACC is, how prepared will we be come tournament time? What if we trail a game by 5 with 12 min to go in the tournament? We very well may not be in that situation the rest of the regular season. Gonzaga went through this for many years. They got a 1 seed seemingly every year but always fell short. Was it because they weren't challenged enough during the regular season?

Regardless. This Dukes team defense is much better than Gonzaga has ever played defense, so we do have that to hold on to. We are tough too, no team is going to punk us. Kansas tried to, but we fought back. Cooper is one tough SOB, he's not afraid to put his body on the line in help defense. And don't even get me started on Sion, that dude was insane last night, he had 7 rebounds but it felt like 17.

 

[Another#1Dukie]

My only worry about this year is how bad the ACC is, how prepared will we be come tournament time? What if we trail a game by 5 with 12 min to go in the tournament? We very well may not be in that situation the rest of the regular season. Gonzaga went through this for many years. They got a 1 seed seemingly every year but always fell short. Was it because they weren't challenged enough during the regular season?

Regardless. This Dukes team defense is much better than Gonzaga has ever played defense, so we do have that to hold on to. We are tough too, no team is going to punk us. Kansas tried to, but we fought back. Cooper is one tough SOB, he's not afraid to put his body on the line in help defense. And don't even get me started on Sion, that dude was insane last night, he had 7 rebounds but it felt like 17.

I have this same thought about Duke playing in a weak ACC. I guess it's great that Jon scheduled so many tough games up front and playing Illinois late in the season will be helpful. Duke has been tested a lot and they are an entirely different than KU and UK played.
The overall good thing is Dukes Defense has been elite since the start. That will always keep them in games.
It is what it is at this point. Duke just needs to win!

 

[AlanInNJ]

I am absolutely not trivializing Flagg. The young man is a beast and a great all around team player. And the other new guys are no slouches. But I can’t help but think Sion might be the most important addition to this years team.