It's always a bonus to start off the Duke season with a nice preseason, Houdini-style punch in the gut three hours before the opener. Once again, the worst case scenario has become a reality: Harrison Barnes, the top recruit in the country, is officially a Tar Heel.
Doesn't losing out on recruits feel like a yearly ritual now? Patrick Patterson, John Wall, Harrison Barnes. What's the true perception of Duke and Coach K among high school kids? Would an Elton Brand or Corey Maggette coming out of high school in 2009 ever choose Duke over UNC, Kentucky, or Kansas?
How are Jeff Capel's recruits these days?
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Hope Coach K is enjoying his time with Team USA. It's important to be good at something at his age.
ReplyDeleteI can't even watch the Duke-UNCG game on TV. That nationally televised advantage is quickly going out the window, too. You better believe I was able to see UNC-FIAwho? the other night.
As i walked into work this morning, my UNC friends said "Roy could sell crap in a zoo." Indeed, not even they understand how Barnes could go to UNC when he would have full run of a team in Durham.
ReplyDeleteI have always wondered if Coach K secretly had people pay off kids, like getting duhon's mom a job in durham, but now I think he is paying kids just to say Duke was in their top 3 before picking someone else even if they never considered it. It's almost like paying homage to Coach K without really meaning it (like probably happened in a scene of the godfather or the wire or the sopranos)
ReplyDeleteWatching the Villain (Evan Turner) getting shut down by Marcus Ginyard made me angry. UNC with a no-skill, all hustle glue guy who magically discovered a jump shot? They're killing me.
ReplyDeleteDid Duke ever have so many transfers succeeding elsewhere. I honestly don't know, but I turned on the TV today and flipped between watching Taylor King at Villanova chucking up 3s (at a 50% clip) and Jamal Boykin at Cal playing some quality ball. This just a few days after watching Elliot look like the real ballplayer he was starting to show us at the end of last year. Averages to start this year (just 2 or 3 games I know) are:
ReplyDeleteTaylor King: 20min, 10ppg, 6rpg
Elliot Williams: 36min, 20ppg, 4.5rpg, 1.5apg
Jamal Boykin: 24min, 9ppg, 8rpg
Eric Boateng: 27min, 15ppg, 10rpg, 1.7apg
Not bad production, and all about twice as good as at Duke. I realize they are on worse teams now, well mostly, but decent teams. I don't know what my point is, but this hasn't really happened before to Duke.