Even though they lose five contributors from last season including a pair of first round picks in the NBA Draft, the Duke Blue Devils are a top-five team and the preseason favorite to win the ACC. That is possible thanks to the addition of four McDonald’s All-Americans.
Duke Blue Devils
Last Season: T-3rd, 13-5 in ACC, 26-9 overall
Predicted ACC Finish: 1st
Projected Depth Chart
C: Jahlil Okafor (Fr)/Marshall Plumlee (Jr)
PF: Amile Jefferson (Jr)/Semi Ojeleye (So)
G/F: Rasheed Sulaimon (Jr)/Justise Winslow (Fr)
G: Quinn Cook (Sr)/Matt Jones (So)/Grayson Allen (Fr)
PG: Tyus Jones (Fr)
Gone: F-Jabari Parker, SF-Rodney Hood, SG-Andre Dawkins, PG-Tyler Thornton, F/C-Josh Hairston, F-Alex Murphy (transfer-Florida)
2014-2015 Outlook:
The jewel of Coach K’s 2014 class is big man Jahlil Okafor who is considered by most as the best in-coming freshman in the country. He is a physical presence and skilled low post threat which was a major weakness for a Duke team that was forced to play small most of last season. Okafor’s addition keeps Marshall Plumlee in a reserve role where he can provide energy and a rebounding, defensive presence in the middle.
The addition of Okafor also allows Amile Jefferson to slide back to his natural forward position after he was forced to play some center last season. His athleticism and tenacity on the glass should be his biggest strengths for the Duke Blue Devils. Semi Ojeleye barely saw the floor a year ago but should get see increased minutes in a reserve role.
Okafor was a package deal with Tyus Jones so Duke also brings in one of the top pure point guards in the 2014 class. Jones is mature beyond his years and should have a Tyler Ennis-like presence for the Duke Blue Devils as a distributor and play-maker. With Jones joining the fray, Quinn Cook is likely to play off the ball a lot more frequently this season but will run the point when Jones is off the floor.
The Blue Devils have a nice collection of wing players wled by Rasheed Sulaimon who suffered through an up and down sophomore season. Either he or Justise Winslow should be the fifth starter. Sulaimon is more of a scorer while Winslow’s versatility serves as an asset for Coach. Matt Jones and Grayson Allen are shooters and will battle for any remaining minutes at guard.
For Duke to live up to their preseason expectations, they will need Okafor and Jones to be as good as advertised. Staying healthy is also essential since the team only has ten scholarship players able to suit up this season (Rice transfer Sean Obi must sit a year.) The talent is there though for the Blue Devils to erase the memory of last season’s first round NCAA Tournament exit and make a deep run in March.
Key Non-Conference Games:
11/18 vs. Michigan State (in Indianapolis)
11/21 vs. Temple (Coaches vs. Cancer)
11/22 vs. Stanford/UNLV (Coaches vs. Cancer)
12/3 at Wisconsin (Big Ten/ACC Challenge)
12/18 vs. UConn (in New Jersey)
1/25 at St. John’s
OTHER ACC PREVIEWS:
#3 NORTH CAROLINA TAR HEELS
#4 LOUISVILLE CARDINALS
#6 SYRACUSE ORANGE
#7 FLORIDA STATE SEMINOLES
#14 GEORGIA TECH YELLOW JACKETS
AAC PREVIEWS:
#1 UCONN HUSKIES
#7 UCF KNIGHTS
#8 SOUTH FLORIDA BULLS
#9 HOUSTON COUGARS
#10 TULANE GREEN WAVE
#11 EAST CAROLINA PIRATES
SEC PREVIEWS:
#1 KENTUCKY WILDCATS
BIG 12 PREVIEWS:
#1 KANSAS JAYHAWKS
#2 TEXAS LONGHORNS
PAC-12 PREVIEWS:
#1 ARIZONA WILDCATS
#4 UCLA BRUINS
David Kay is a senior feature NBA Draft, NBA, and college basketball writer for the Sports Bank. He also heads up the NBA and college basketball material at Walter Football.com and is a former contributor at The Washington Times Communities. David has appeared on numerous national radio programs spanning from Cleveland to New Orleans to Milwaukee to Honolulu. He also had the most accurate 2011 NBA Mock Draft and the most accurate 2012 NBA Mock Draft on the internet (Yup, repeat champ… #humblebrag), and finished with the second most accurate 2013 NBA Mock Draft (nearly a three-peat.) You can follow him on Twitter at David_Kmiecik.