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Duke Staff Scares Off Kentucky on Recruiting Trail

Random UK Fan

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Dec 10, 2018
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according to a writer with Fansided. Thoughts?

"Obviously, Big Blue Nation isn’t too thrilled with the turn of events. Understandably, by no longer pursuing Duke basketball targets, Big Bad John appears to be taking a measure to keep his fanbase from having to witness future punches to his gut from Coach K.

The first point guard to land a Kentucky scholarship offer in [the 2020] class, Jeremy Roach, committed to the Blue Devils back in May, and UK had decided to move on weeks before after seeing the writing on the wall in that recruitment.

A couple of months later Duke struck again with a commitment from top-10 recruit Jalen Johnson, one of UK’s earliest targets in the 2020 class, a two-time visitor to Big Blue Madness, and a player that professed Kentucky to be his ‘dream school’ growing up.

Coach K walks confidently down whatever path he chooses without giving a hoot as to Kentucky’s location; meanwhile, Coach Cal seems to be choosing any and all paths that allow him to stay out of the way of his superior."
 
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I don't think Cal is going to be scared off Duke per se. But, I think you could argue maybe he'd rather not go head-to-head as often. Coach K doesn't offer that many scholarships. From the 2018 and 2019 classes, he's only offered 26 scholies - and he signed 9 of those kids. That's a heck of a yield.

Head-to-head from the 2020, 2019, 2018 classes:

2020:
BJ Boston- Kentucky
Jalen Johnson- Duke
Jeremy Roach- Duke

2019:
Vernon Carey- Duke
Matthew Hurt- Duke

2018:
RJ Barrett- Duke
Zion Williamson- Duke
Cam Reddish- Duke
EJ Montgomery- Kentucky

I remember reading on the DI that the Duke staff backed off of EJ late in the game, too. I presume because they knew Bolden and DeLaurier were returning.
 
He’s not a household name, he’s too far down the list. Ten is ranked top low for the likes of duke. Plus duke didn’t want him anyway.
LOL, I have yet to see one Duke fan say that, but keep projecting it. Maybe you will get some people to believe it. Duke wanted Boston.

I will say that K's track record lately is pretty impressive on recruits that both schools are going after though.
 
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I don't think Cal is going to be scared off Duke per se. But, I think you could argue maybe he'd rather not go head-to-head as often. Coach K doesn't offer that many scholarships. From the 2018 and 2019 classes, he's only offered 26 scholies - and he signed 9 of those kids. That's a heck of a yield.

Head-to-head from the 2020, 2019, 2018 classes:

2020:
BJ Boston- Kentucky
Jalen Johnson- Duke
Jeremy Roach- Duke

2019:
Vernon Carey- Duke
Matthew Hurt- Duke

2018:
RJ Barrett- Duke
Zion Williamson- Duke
Cam Reddish- Duke
EJ Montgomery- Kentucky

I remember reading on the DI that the Duke staff backed off of EJ late in the game, too. I presume because they knew Bolden and DeLaurier were returning.
Backed off is not correct. Duke wanted him, but it wasn't as urgent with Javin and Marques coming back. I wouldn't say they went after Ej with the same type of fervor as RJ or Zion, but they were not taking themselves out of his recruitment either.
 
^Yep. Honestly, I feel like BJ Boston seemed like the recruit that posters on the DI wanted the most. K isn't invincible, but he's been very, very successful the last few years.
 
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Backed off is not correct. Duke wanted him, but it wasn't as urgent with Javin and Marques coming back. I wouldn't say they went after Ej with the same type of fervor as RJ or Zion, but they were not taking themselves out of his recruitment either.

Seems reasonable. I thought I read that on the Devil Insider somewhere, but maybe it was more to what you're alluding to - a want, just not an absolute need.
 
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Seems reasonable. I thought I read that on the Devil Insider somewhere, but maybe it was more to what you're alluding to - a want, just not an absolute need.
That is how I understand it. Duke wasn't going to say not to accept the scholly offer.
 
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There's coach k and duke,

and then there's everyone else
I don't necessarily disagree, but I have seen UK's & Duke's #1 classes watching the championship game from home on so many occasions. After AD and Zion, I'm not sure there is as big a discrepancy from players ranked 1-25. Lately (With the exception of Zion) I've seen other coaches do more with less. Recruit rankings haven't had a whole lot to do with with the last 2-3 championships.
 
I don't necessarily disagree, but I have seen UK's & Duke's #1 classes watching the championship game from home on so many occasions. After AD and Zion, I'm not sure there is as big a discrepancy from players ranked 1-25. Lately (With the exception of Zion) I've seen other coaches do more with less. Recruit rankings haven't had a whole lot to do with with the last 2-3 championships.

True. But how many schools run a program based on the OAD model? It's essentially just Duke and Kentucky. Duke has had 4 teams with multiple OADs (2015, 2017-19). If we take the past 10 years for Kentucky and the 4 years from Duke, you've got 10 Elite 8 Appearances out of 14 opportunities. Ain't no one else having success like that.
 
I don't necessarily disagree, but I have seen UK's & Duke's #1 classes watching the championship game from home on so many occasions. After AD and Zion, I'm not sure there is as big a discrepancy from players ranked 1-25. Lately (With the exception of Zion) I've seen other coaches do more with less. Recruit rankings haven't had a whole lot to do with with the last 2-3 championships.
I believe you are discounting (if you are even factoring it in at all) that UK and Duke are led by freshman most years lately and the other teams winning it all at times are teams that have been together longer than 8 months. That is big thing IMO.
 
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I wonder why he didn't mention BJ Boston...
He did. I was just pasting the highlights. Boston went on to score 41 in a recent tourney which the writer somehow ignored or didn't know.

"Of course, what requires an honest Dukie to mention is the fact that the Duke basketball coaches noticeably backed off Boston over the summer. However, even if Kentucky fans did agree with such an observation, they’d fail to acknowledge that the Blue Devils’ decreasing interest surely had nothing to do with feeling threatened by the Wildcats.

Instead, the evidence clearly shows Coach K had a change of heart after noticing Boston, a supposed sharpshooter, go 15-for-62 from downtown across 18 EYBL games this year. Furthermore, the teenager’s defensive deficiencies came under the spotlight at Peach Jam when he allowed 31 points from a four-star combo guard."
 
I believe you are discounting (if you are even factoring it in at all) that UK and Duke are led by freshman most years lately and the other teams winning it all at times are teams that have been together longer than 8 months. That is big thing IMO.
No doubt. The OAD was fun at first, but then seeing what a role upperclassmen play in the seasonal success has me ready for the days where at least 1-2 stay.
 
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No doubt. The OAD was fun at first, but then seeing what a role upperclassmen play in the seasonal success has me ready for the days where at least 1-2 stay.
Definitely. I am not as down on the OAD guys as you appear to be though. You need talent. It isn't like too many programs are winning it all at a high rate with teams loaded with upper class men. I will take the uK and Duke model over everyone elses personally.
 
How in God's cheesy nut sak did Duke not win a championship last year?
The thing at the end of the year is a one and done tournament and teams can get upset in that format despite being clearly the better team? Something along those lines maybe?
 
How in God's cheesy nut sak did Duke not win a championship last year?

In the MSU game Duke was -10 on the turnover margin. And we had exactly 0 transition points. Duke wasn't a great halfcourt team last year. If Duke doesn't get out and run, there's little to no separation between them and almost any tournament team.
 
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Don’t link that dude’s work.

There’s a lot of great, Duke beat writers. Giles isn’t one of them.
 
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I don't think Cal is going to be scared off Duke per se. But, I think you could argue maybe he'd rather not go head-to-head as often. Coach K doesn't offer that many scholarships. From the 2018 and 2019 classes, he's only offered 26 scholies - and he signed 9 of those kids. That's a heck of a yield.

Head-to-head from the 2020, 2019, 2018 classes:

2020:
BJ Boston- Kentucky
Jalen Johnson- Duke
Jeremy Roach- Duke

2019:
Vernon Carey- Duke
Matthew Hurt- Duke

2018:
RJ Barrett- Duke
Zion Williamson- Duke
Cam Reddish- Duke
EJ Montgomery- Kentucky

I remember reading on the DI that the Duke staff backed off of EJ late in the game, too. I presume because they knew Bolden and DeLaurier were returning.

Or K realized Call had him beat so he bowed out - as anyone should.
 
I think it is safe to say that Duke would be the betting favorite in a best of series with anyone last year. Including the Spartans.

Are you willing to argue that the best team always wins in a one and done format?
 
I don't know if Duke was clearly the best team last year. They were the most hyped team for sure. They were probably the best team but clearly is probably strong. I don't know though. The narrative with Duke, especially from many of their fans, changes so often. Fans are like that though.

They were really good though. No doubt there.
 
I think it is safe to say that Duke would be the betting favorite in a best of series with anyone last year. Including the Spartans.

Are you willing to argue that the best team always wins in a one and done format?

Didn't say the best team always wins, but Duke barely snuck past Virginia Tech and barely snuck past Central Florida before that.

MSU didn't have a great shooting game, didn't have 3 lotto picks, was missing their starting SG Langford for half the season, and still won the game. And MSU ended up higher in the final KenPom ranking. I don't think it was some fluke or that MSU pulled off a miracle.

Duke was still really good, and I'm sure they would've been a favorite in a series, just like they were the favorite to win the tournament. I just don't think they were "clearly" better than any / every other team.
 
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I don't know if Duke was clearly the best team last year. They were the most hyped team for sure. They were probably the best team but clearly is probably strong. I don't know though. The narrative with Duke, especially from many of their fans, changes so often. Fans are like that though.

They were really good though. No doubt there.
Just an opinion, which I should have more clear about. One that I stand by. I don't think Duke loses a best of series against anyone last year and i do not think a single elimination tournament decides who the best team is. Again, just an opinion.
 
I don't know if Duke was clearly the best team last year. They were the most hyped team for sure. They were probably the best team but clearly is probably strong. I don't know though. The narrative with Duke, especially from many of their fans, changes so often. Fans are like that though.

They were really good though. No doubt there.
Just an opinion, which I should have more clear about. One that I stand by. I don't think Duke loses a best of series against anyone last year and i do not think a single elimination tournament decides who the best team is. Again, just an opinion.

Agree completely on a single elimination tournament. I just thought Duke only played good late in the year and not great. They were pretty lucky late in several games. Seemed like they were never the same after the Zion injury.

You don’t overhype Duke anyway though. I wasn’t meaning that.
 
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The thing at the end of the year is a one and done tournament and teams can get upset in that format despite being clearly the better team? Something along those lines maybe?

The thing with you guys though were that you looked like shit the entire tournament. A couple of calls go the way they should have at the end of the game and they are bounced by UCF in the second round. It was just stunning to me honestly considering how good you looked at times and having Zion.
 
I think it is safe to say that Duke would be the betting favorite in a best of series with anyone last year. Including the Spartans.

Are you willing to argue that the best team always wins in a one and done format?

Didn't say the best team always wins, but Duke barely snuck past Virginia Tech and barely snuck past Central Florida before that.

MSU didn't have a great shooting game, didn't have 3 lotto picks, was missing their starting SG Langford for half the season, and still won the game. And MSU ended up higher in the final KenPom ranking. I don't think it was some fluke or that MSU pulled off a miracle.

Duke was still really good, and I'm sure they would've been a favorite in a series, just like they were the favorite to win the tournament. I just don't think they were "clearly" better than any / every other team.

Lets not forget the 38 points UK graciously spotted Duke. Those mofos escaped (if not for those 38 points)!
 
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