It seems like just yesterday when Zion Williamson and company were flying through the rafters of Cameron Indoor Stadium. However, the seasons have changed, and it’s almost that time for the 115th season of Blue Devil basketball. Duke is once again in the conversation for a national championship and ranked No. 4 to start the year.
The Blue Devils will face another daunting schedule this season, beginning with No. 3 Kansas in the Champions Classic and of course, featuring games against North Carolina and defending champions Virginia Cavaliers. The team will also get a chance to avenge its Elite Eight loss to Michigan State when it travels to East Lansing, Mich., Dec. 3 for the ACC-Big Ten Challenge.
Mike Krzyzewski will head the program for his 40th season, and while he is still piling onto his 1,132 career wins, the head coach is undoubtedly reaching the home stretch of his career. Regardless of how long Krzyzewski continues to coach, he has built an incredible coaching tree over his four decades in Durham. The likes of Mike Brey, Jeff Capel and Bobby Hurley will undoubtedly keep the five-time national champion’s legacy expanding after Krzyzewski decides to call it quits.
Perhaps the biggest story of the 2019-20 season so far is floor general Tre Jones opting to return to Duke for his sophomore season in hopes of winning a national championship like his brother, Tyus. The Apple Valley, Minn., native was selected as a captain for the upcoming year and should be the team’s go-to guy. He’ll be teaming up as captain with seniors Jack White and Javin DeLaurier, who are looking to blossom as players while leading a young crop of Blue Devils.
This year’s squad features yet another top-two incoming recruiting class, but without megastars like Williamson and R.J. Barrett, Duke will have a new, “old school” vibe by featuring a plethora of options ready to make major contributions on any given night. Still, the program should still dominate college basketball headlines, as Creative Director David Bradley and his staff have built Duke’s social media presence to the biggest in all of college sports.
Along with their talented recruiting class, the Blue Devils return some solid pieces in Jordan Goldwire and Alex O’Connell who could be valuable veteran starting pieces by contributing with defense and shooting, respectively. However, Krzyzewski could opt to use the two juniors coming off the bench and instead may roll the dice on two versatile freshman wings, Wendell Moore Jr. and Cassius Stanley.
It seems like Duke could utilize a 10-man rotation throughout the 2019-20 season, but a data dive into Krzyzewski’s rotation history suggests that there is bound to be an odd man out.
Finally, if the “#TheBrotherhood” doesn’t already encapsulate a feeling of family around the program, Krzyzewski went above and beyond with his grandson Michael Savarino joining the team as a freshman walk-on.