Previewing the Duke basketball team for 2022-23
After a very successful season with a trip to the Final Four, the Duke Blue Devils find themselves in a situation they haven't been in since 1980. Coach Mike Krzyzewski has retired after 42 seasons with Duke. It's a NEW era for the Blue Devils, The Jon Scheyer Era.
The biggest question mark entering this season is the lack of experience Duke possesses. Paolo Banchero, AJ Griffin, Mark Williams, Wendell Moore, Trevor Keels, Theo John, Joey Baker, and Bates Jones have went to the NBA or have moved on entirely for the program. A new crop of players mixed in with a first year head coach could have some early season struggles. Here's how I expect Scheyer to open up the season with his lineups.
PG: Jeremy Roach (Junior)
SG: Jacob Grandison (Fifth-Year Senior)
SF: Mark Mitchell (Freshman)
PF: Kyle Filipowski (Freshman)
C: Dereck Lively II (Freshman)
Just off a quick glance, this lineup is very talented. A lot of length from the 2-5 spots with an established point guard running the show. Kyle Filipowski and Dereck Lively are going to be a force down low for the Blue Devils, especially with Lively's absurd shot blocking ability. It's once again though a very inexperienced lineup as only Jeremy Roach has seen substantial minutes with Duke last season. You may notice a certain individual missing from that starting lineup above. This is how I predict Duke's bench to start in November.
Reserves:
PG: Jaylen Blakes (Sophomore)
SG: Jaden Schutt (Freshman)
G: Tyrese Proctor (Freshman)
G/F: Dariq Whitehead (Freshman)
C: Ryan Young (Senior)
Once again, a lot of talent that can come off this bench. Blakes playing time will gradually increase as a sophomore. Now, for Dariq Whitehead. Whitehead during the off-season was required to get surgery in his right foot due to a fracture. With him being the expected best all-around player for the Blue Devils, this piece of news is crucial. It's currently unknown if he will miss games in the beginning of the season, or be good to go. The most likely scenario going forward would be Coach Scheyer easing Whitehead into the college level rather than having him play up to 30 minutes a game from the jump. Schutt is a sharpshooter, and Proctor is a reclass from Australia. There is no telling on how these two will adjust to the college level in their freshman seasons. Ryan Young is also a very quality bench piece.
The schedule for the Blue Devils is relatively favorable for a first year head coach. The big non-conference games for them this season are: Kansas in the Champions Classic, The Phil Knight Legacy Tournament, Ohio State at home, and Iowa at the Jimmy V Classic. The conference schedule obviously has two showdowns with a top 5 squad in North Carolina. Miami, an expected top 5 team within the ACC, will be played at home and on the road. Duke will only see Virginia on the road this year, who return almost everyone from last years NIT team.
Final Thoughts: I view this Duke team anywhere from a 3-5 seed come March Madness. I think this would be an amazing start to Coach Scheyer's career if he falls between where I see Duke this year. Whitehead's foot injury will also be something to monitor going forward as well. Foot injuries can often linger from time to time, and without Whitehead the Blue Devils will be missing an absolute monster on the court. The inexperience of the roster and head coaching will lead to struggles on the court at times, but the talent they have will be able to overwhelm certain teams. I believe this Duke team will start off slow but come March, I'd not want to see these guys in my bracket.