Question: Now that it is official about Cassius Stanley entering the draft, what your thoughts on his draft stock?
Answer: “To be honest, this was no shock at all. Many forget that Cassius was a highly ranked top prospect early on in his HS days and this one year at Duke showed all that although he dropped in the rankings, he was still an extremely talented player. His game is more made for the NBA game than the college game and yes, parts of his game need both refining and development, but that shouldn’t hinder his career. Look at what Westbrook has managed to do in the NBA and coming out of college most questioned his ball handling and his shooting. Not saying that Cassius is going to duplicate anything close to an NBA All-Star, but some players are just a better fit in the NBA. I do think that he has the potential to be taken in the 1st round. Jerome (his father) did a great job on the marketing side of things and gathering info on his son.”
Question: How would you assess the Duke roster (assuming Carey leaves and Hurt stays)?
Answer: “There are a lot of pieces for the Duke staff to work with and a roster full of Pro prospects. Some of the things that jump out at me are:
1) They have some height with 6 players 6-8 or taller and that gives them some line up flexibility. Duke can go small adding shooters in the line-up or multiple ball handlers. Go big where the only player in the line-up under 6-3 is the point guard and for stretches if needed, Jalen (Johnson) could facilitate the offensive (and I am sure that will be part of his role this year at Duke anyways). Go traditional with either 2 bigs, 2 point guards or the 1-5 line-up. Like I said lots of pieces to work with. And if there is one thing that everyone should know by now, Coach K loves versatility and causing mismatches to his line-up.
2) Duke has ball handlers with Goldwire, Roach, Steward, Moore, Johnson and Brakefield can handle it too. Lots of players that can excel with the ball in their hands. Dribble drive and penetration will be a strength. All of those guys can get to the rim too.
3) On the flip side of things, with all those players that can handle the ball, Duke will need players to knock down shots. The proven guys are Hurt and Baker, and I feel although he is an incoming FR, Steward needs to be in that group. I do feel that Duke has those guys that are capable of knocking down shots in Roach, Jalen, Brakefield and Goldwire. All of them need to be consistent and if even half of them have a decent shooting percentage that will greatly help Duke. But again, all of them need to show that they can up their game in that area; not only for Duke to be successful but to also increase their NBA draft stock.
4) Post defending is going to be in question. I have mentioned before and I won’t go in much detail again, but can Williams physically handle the post and stay away from fouls? Can Tape’ handle the jump in competition and be a stronger rebounder? Can Coleman compete as a FR? Will Johnson handle ACC bigs?
Question: Who do you feel are the best NBA Draft prospects on Duke next season?
Answer: “Without a doubt, Johnson and if Hurt returns and adds strength/weight, he is right there too. The next set of players would be Moore due to his versatility, Roach with his ability to attack off the dribble and potential to defend. Steward for his overall ability to score. After that there is a drop in my eyes. Williams needs to show that his recent jump in rankings is warranted and that he is capable on both ends of the floor. Brakefield needs to have his talent show out with whatever role and play time he gets. But the entire roster has the potential to be drafted if each work on the parts of their game
Answer: “To be honest, this was no shock at all. Many forget that Cassius was a highly ranked top prospect early on in his HS days and this one year at Duke showed all that although he dropped in the rankings, he was still an extremely talented player. His game is more made for the NBA game than the college game and yes, parts of his game need both refining and development, but that shouldn’t hinder his career. Look at what Westbrook has managed to do in the NBA and coming out of college most questioned his ball handling and his shooting. Not saying that Cassius is going to duplicate anything close to an NBA All-Star, but some players are just a better fit in the NBA. I do think that he has the potential to be taken in the 1st round. Jerome (his father) did a great job on the marketing side of things and gathering info on his son.”
Question: How would you assess the Duke roster (assuming Carey leaves and Hurt stays)?
Answer: “There are a lot of pieces for the Duke staff to work with and a roster full of Pro prospects. Some of the things that jump out at me are:
1) They have some height with 6 players 6-8 or taller and that gives them some line up flexibility. Duke can go small adding shooters in the line-up or multiple ball handlers. Go big where the only player in the line-up under 6-3 is the point guard and for stretches if needed, Jalen (Johnson) could facilitate the offensive (and I am sure that will be part of his role this year at Duke anyways). Go traditional with either 2 bigs, 2 point guards or the 1-5 line-up. Like I said lots of pieces to work with. And if there is one thing that everyone should know by now, Coach K loves versatility and causing mismatches to his line-up.
2) Duke has ball handlers with Goldwire, Roach, Steward, Moore, Johnson and Brakefield can handle it too. Lots of players that can excel with the ball in their hands. Dribble drive and penetration will be a strength. All of those guys can get to the rim too.
3) On the flip side of things, with all those players that can handle the ball, Duke will need players to knock down shots. The proven guys are Hurt and Baker, and I feel although he is an incoming FR, Steward needs to be in that group. I do feel that Duke has those guys that are capable of knocking down shots in Roach, Jalen, Brakefield and Goldwire. All of them need to be consistent and if even half of them have a decent shooting percentage that will greatly help Duke. But again, all of them need to show that they can up their game in that area; not only for Duke to be successful but to also increase their NBA draft stock.
4) Post defending is going to be in question. I have mentioned before and I won’t go in much detail again, but can Williams physically handle the post and stay away from fouls? Can Tape’ handle the jump in competition and be a stronger rebounder? Can Coleman compete as a FR? Will Johnson handle ACC bigs?
Question: Who do you feel are the best NBA Draft prospects on Duke next season?
Answer: “Without a doubt, Johnson and if Hurt returns and adds strength/weight, he is right there too. The next set of players would be Moore due to his versatility, Roach with his ability to attack off the dribble and potential to defend. Steward for his overall ability to score. After that there is a drop in my eyes. Williams needs to show that his recent jump in rankings is warranted and that he is capable on both ends of the floor. Brakefield needs to have his talent show out with whatever role and play time he gets. But the entire roster has the potential to be drafted if each work on the parts of their game
