Robert Willett - rwillett@newsobserver.com
Duke's Miles Plumlee, center, and Josh Hairston, left, run sprints with teammates during their practice on Tuesday.
DURHAM -- As big an attraction as Duke figures to be in China, the Blue Devils' traveling party won't lack for celebrity, either.
Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski said Tuesday that he expects former players Grant Hill, Jay Williams, Nolan Smith and Kyrie Irving to join the team for part or all of the upcoming trip to China and Dubai, as will Boston Celtics coach Doc Rivers, whose son Austin is a freshman guard for the Blue Devils.
Duke leaves Sunday for a two-week tour that will include three games against Chinese teams and a fourth against the national team of the United Arab Emirates.
"The biggest thing hopefully will be growing together as a team and getting to know my teammates more," Duke guard Seth Curry said. "Going to a different country, that's all you got, us guys together for two weeks. We're going to be able to grow on the court and even more off the court, and that's going to help us grow as a family."
While this is merely the latest engagement with China for the ACC - the North Carolina-N.C. State game last February was televised live in China - the Blue Devils won't be alone in the Far East. Georgetown also is touring China this summer, as is the Valparaiso women's team.
One major adjustment the Blue Devils will have to make: The smaller international basketball, which has more panels than the American ball. Duke has been practicing with a Chinese model made by Quanxing instead of the usual Nike models in advance of the trip.
Three of the four games will be televised on ESPNU and ESPN3.com: Aug. 18 and Aug. 22 against the Chinese Olympic team and Aug. 25 against the UAE national team.
COOK OUT: Freshman guard Quinn Cook has been held out of practice and will not play on the trip, Krzyzewski said, because he has not yet recovered from a right knee injury he suffered prior to his final season of high school.
Krzyzewski said Cook may or may not be able to resume individual workouts in mid-September. Either way, he expects Cook to be ready for the beginning of practice in October.
"The knee wasn't strong enough," Krzyzewski said. "We could tell that after a few practices. So we've kind of shut him down. ... He needs not only to strengthen the knee but his hip area. His body mechanics have got to be better. Otherwise, he really risks more injury."
NOTED: Krzyzewski declined to comment on the potential secondary recruiting violation he may have committed earlier this summer, other than to say, "Obviously, we would always want to do things the right way." CBSSports.com reported that Krzyzewski called recruit Alex Poythress to offer a scholarship while he was playing in an AAU tournament, which is against NCAA rules. ... Duke has awarded a scholarship to walk-on Todd Zafirovski. The junior from Lake Forest, Ill., played in five games last season. ... Freshman Alex Murphy, who has drawn comparisons to Kyle Singler, will wear Singler's former No. 12.
