Duke’s standout player 'up in the air'

It has been quite a while since Duke entered a basketball season with such a blank slate in terms of preformed plans and expectations.

Last year, the offense ran through Jahlil Okafor (with his talented classmates as the supporting cast). Two years ago, it was Jabari Parker and Rodney Hood whom everyone was supposed to blend around. Before that, the Blue Devils were a senior-heavy group running through another big man, Mason Plumlee.

This year…

“Yeah, it’s definitely up in the air,” junior Matt Jones said at Duke’s media day Tuesday. “It seems like we have a lot of great players. I don’t know. I guess it’s just the guys’ job to just assert themselves and separate themselves from the pack. If we can do that, Coach will have a better grasp on who to put in different spots.”

The only player Mike Krzyzewski identified as a separator is Brandon Ingram, the top-10 recruit who signed on late last April. The long, lean Ingram is listed at 6-foot-9, 190 pounds — 23 pounds heavier than he was on July 1. While he is clearly a talented work in progress, the same could be said about the Blue Devils as a whole.

“Coach is a very smart person,” Jones said “He is going to put us in positions to be successful. As a team, it’s just up to us to understand each other and listen to Coach, just hang on every word he says.”

It’s not a complete mystery for Duke, though. This team’s strength will be on its perimeter, with guys like Ingram, Jones, Luke Kennard, Grayson Allen and Derryck Thornton.

“Perimeter scoring, driving, we have some explosive scorers on our team,” Krzyzewski said. “Low post scoring can be offensive rebounds. If somebody does too much in trying to take away a shooter, all of the sudden, you move into the post, and you can get something because you’re not being guarded as well. It’s more opportunistic, where as with Jah (Okafor) it was more planned.”

So no, Amile Jefferson and Marshall Plumlee won’t be expected to take major leaps and bounds in their final year, scoring more than in years past. But that’s fine, Krzyzewski said. Most players aren’t complete players, and specialization is good.

“Don’t let what you don’t do well get in the way of what you do well,” Krzyzewski said. “In other words, go to your strengths.”

Without an anchor in the post, guys like Ingram, Thornton and Allen should have the freedom to drive. And that idea plays directly to Allen’s strength.

“What we’re doing is perfect for him,” Krzyzewski said. “Unless he screws it up.”

It will be more of a motion, free-flowing offense. And while Thornton is the only true point guard, he didn’t have the benefit of spending the summer with the rest of his teammates. He had classwork to finish in order to graduate high school in three years, so he didn’t arrive until Aug. 17. So the offense won’t be turned over to any one player, Krzyzewski said.

And, besides, if Thornton is going to play to his strength and pressure the ball defensively, he’s not going to be handling the ball for 40 minutes.

And speaking of defense, Krzyzewski is optimistic that this team can be more athletic and longer on that side of the floor. Guys like Thornton and Ingram help there. But nothing with this group is a given and expectations are a bit up in the air.

Krzyzewski said it’s fair to expect Allen to be one of the better players on the team. Other than that, though, it’s all pretty fluid.

“It’s more of a developing process as a team,” Allen said, comparing this year to last year. “Getting to know each other and blending together.”

It’s just been awhile since it’s been quite this fluid in Durham, with virtually no separation.

This story was originally published October 6, 2015 at 6:22 PM with the headline "Duke’s standout player 'up in the air'."