Duke figures size matters

Before each college basketball season, Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski adjusts his offense and defense in an effort to highlight the strengths of his players. This year will bring more changes than most, as Krzyzewski guides his tallest team ever into tonight's opener against UNC Greensboro at 7 p.m.

Even with Thursday's announcement that 6-foot-10 freshman forward Mason Plumlee is out indefinitely after suffering a fractured left wrist in practice, Krzyzewski enters his 30th season at Duke with a roster stocked with tall, athletic post players whose sheer size and strength seems likely to overwhelm many opponents.

What the Blue Devils won't have, as they attempt to improve on the 30-7 record they posted last season with an ACC Tournament championship and a trip to the regional semifinals of the NCAA Tournament, is a guard who excels in the dribble penetration that has fueled so much of the program's success.

In the last 10 years, Duke has been known for creating offense off the drives of players such as Jason Williams, Chris Duhon and Gerald Henderson. Sometimes those players created shots for themselves. Or, if they could cause the defense to collapse on them, they would fire a pass out for an open 3-pointer.

The game plan has been adjusted accordingly. Duke will run a lot of motion offense, counting on big guys such as Mason Plumlee's older brother Miles to set strong screens to free 6-8 junior Kyle Singler and guards Jon Scheyer and Nolan Smith for easy shots.

"I'd much more rather have big men rather than more small guys," said Singler, who often played out of position at center as a freshman. "It's something we've juggled in the past. We've always had one or the other. I think it's good that we have big men now."

With Singler starting at small forward, Mason Plumlee is expected to contend for a starting role when he returns. Senior co-captain Lance Thomas, another 6-8 forward, will spend a lot of time defending opposing wings on the perimeter.

And 7-1 Brian Zoubek could be one of the first players off the bench.

Krzyzewski and the players predict that this could be one of the best rebounding teams Duke has ever had. That will be a welcome change for fans, because rebounding traditionally hasn't been one of the Blue Devils' strengths. In the past five seasons, Duke has finished higher than sixth in the ACC in rebound margin just once.

And in the best-case scenario, that height could also help up clean up a lot of mistakes that go along with a taller lineup.

On Nov. 3, for example, Mason Plumlee turned the ball over in the backcourt in the Blue Devils' exhibition win over Findlay. Plumlee kept his cool as Findlay's Nick Coon tried to power up near the basket for a layup, and, like a baseball slugger belting a hanging curveball, the younger Plumlee clubbed the ball out of bounds before it got anywhere near the rim.

"We should block a lot of shots," Krzyzewski said after the 84-48 exhibition win over Findlay. "Part of it is we're tall. We're pretty athletic, and with a couple of them, there was a sense of urgency because they made a mistake and then had to block a shot. Just before I was going to wring their neck they blocked a shot, and it's tough to yell at them when the crowd is cheering for them."

Duke also will make changes defensively. The Blue Devils traditionally have relied on intense man-to-man pressure in an attempt to create turnovers and prevent opponents from getting open 3-point shots. But it doesn't make much sense to do that anymore. At times during the exhibition games, Duke even has played some zone defense, a tactic Krzyzewski has used sparingly throughout his career.

"We don't have to pressure that much," Smith said. "We can funnel guys into [the big guys] and force the little guys we're guarding to shoot over those guys, and then rebound and outlet the ball."

There will be times when opponents simply won't be able to shoot over the Duke forwards. That became clear during pickup games last summer.

Miles Plumlee said there weren't many driving opportunities that resulted in easy baskets when the Blue Devils were scrimmaging among themselves. Plumlee, who put on 15 pounds of muscle during the offseason, oozed confidence when he talked about what would happen when opponents drive to the basket this season.

"I'll block it," Plumlee said. "And if I don't, you've got another 6-10 guy flying at the rim. So it's pretty hard to get a shot off."

However, all that height can't disguise Duke's lack of backcourt depth. The Blue Devils have only three true guards on scholarship: veterans Scheyer and Smith and freshman Andre Dawkins.

That depth will be challenged even more than usual in the first two games of the season against UNC Greensboro and Coastal Carolina. Smith will serve an NCAA suspension in those games because he played in unsanctioned summer league games.

Latest Comment View all comments

Multimedia

Images

Related Content

• Story:
  UNC Greensboro (0-0) at No. 9 Duke (0-0)