I've been wondering about this in the off season. I think the whole tripping thing will not get left in the past. He's too large. He's an easy target. I'm just wondering how he handles the pressure. Can he be Laettner-like or even J.J.-like in ignoring the haters and continuing to light it up? Or will he dwell on his image? He knows he did wrong and I know he wants it behind him but I think we all know the masses will never let it go as long as he's winning. And nah, that's not gonna stop. Me personally, I hate it, because I know he's just a damn great kid. But the stain will remain , if for no more reason than how hard this kid plays. He knows no fear. He's a hard charger. He's gonna send a lot of players to the floor through contact because he never shy's away from it. And that will just make the hate continue. I hope he can harden his shell a bit because I see it affect him. I love this kid. His determination is magnificent. I hope he perseveres and if he does, what a season this will be.
Grayson Allens Demons.
- Thread starter Showenuff
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I think his demons alone will dominate most teams on our schedule.
I don't worry about it at all. AT ALL. The whole thing was blown completely out of proportion. All people are talking about is how good Duke is going to be. That is all they will focus on going forward. Do i give a rat's *** what RR or THR people say? No I dont. They need to try and knock our guy down b/c they know how good he is.
The difference this year vs. last year? This year Duke is going to be BLOWING teams out of the gym on many nights this year. They will focus on how good Duke is without Giles. They will focus on how good Duke is when they get Giles back. They will focus on how good Tatum is. They will focus on how important Amile Jefferson is to this team as a grad student captain. They will be focusing on Duke vs. UK. Duke vs. other Great Duke teams.
I wouldn't worry about Grayson what-so-ever or his psyche. Guy is an absolute stud and and a warrior on the court. Pretty sure CTC showed that.
The difference this year vs. last year? This year Duke is going to be BLOWING teams out of the gym on many nights this year. They will focus on how good Duke is without Giles. They will focus on how good Duke is when they get Giles back. They will focus on how good Tatum is. They will focus on how important Amile Jefferson is to this team as a grad student captain. They will be focusing on Duke vs. UK. Duke vs. other Great Duke teams.
I wouldn't worry about Grayson what-so-ever or his psyche. Guy is an absolute stud and and a warrior on the court. Pretty sure CTC showed that.
Grayson is on the Mount Rushmore of the most competitive players Duke has ever had, along with Laettner, JJ, and _____(Battier?). He is going to have a monster season and you can argue he is the best college basketball player in the world right now. Definitely not worried about his psyche. The tripping thing will always be there because its Duke and it looks bad. Oh well.
ESPN coincidentally put out an article on this exact subject this morning.
http://www.espn.com/mens-college-ba...rayson-allen-ready-put-tripping-incidents-him
ESPN coincidentally put out an article on this exact subject this morning.
http://www.espn.com/mens-college-ba...rayson-allen-ready-put-tripping-incidents-him
Unfortunately in this day and age with all the social media around, I think it sticks with him and it is ashame because he is a great kid and just made a mistake that people will always constantly remind him of.
I believe Grayson will face JJ level hatred from fans & media. Remember, social media(like its a real podium) wasn't around in 2006 so the hatred multiplies even faster. Keyboard courage will run rampant especially when we dominate & ESPN gushes over Grayson.
Sure, it might. But again the thing here is that Duke is going to be a dominant team. JJ was the focal point of that team and was the story of that season as an individual. That team went as far as JJ could carry them. He was the NPOY and was on record pace- 3's made, FT % and all-time leading scorer in both Duke and ACC history.
This year the focal point will be the DUKE team and how dominant they are more than just focusing on one individual. I think that is going to be a huge difference in the level of hatred received. Also hard to hate too much when you're team is getting pummeled.
Agree the storylines are differnt but social media will pounce anytime Grayson knocks into an opposing player. Remember Verne Lundquist at end of Oregon game? That was comically biased toward GA.
I recall being at Duke-Temple in Philly when JJ broke the ACC scoring record. That crowd was out for blood to the point that Chaney grabbed the microphone and told Temple fans to knock it off. Hope GA doesn't face that.
Yea, everytime anybody even gets bumped by Grayson now it will be blown out into epic proportion. as long as HE can handle it, i don't give a rip.
I think they're two different situations. both the JJ and the Verne one from the oregon game. I'm not concerned at all and i can't imagine Grayson is either. Too much at stake this year. he's not a one or two man wrecking crew this year.
1st. of all I love Grayson and am grateful that he chose Duke. I see some Laettner, Redick, Battier and Singler in him. He loves to win and is going to play hard every time he's on the court. He was just playing hard the way he's been taught when he upended Amile Sat. night. I've never bee to a Duke practice but I'm pretty sure they are intense. Now let me also add that he did indeed trip those two opposing players last year on purpose and it doesn't matter if either of those two players said or gave him a cheap shot earlier in the game or if Grayson was just simply ticked off and decided to trip them. What's important is that he has the desire to channel those feelings this year and just play and and clean because if he can't he may very well cost us this year. There is no doubt in my mind that he is very well aware of this and the coaching staff has talked to him about it but in the same breath they made him a team captain showing they have the confidence in him that he control this part of his game. And like what has already been said he is a marked man this year by other players, coaches, opposing fans and officials. It's all up to Grayson as to who wins this battle Grayson or everyone else.
Read a nice piece a while back regarding how upset Grayson was that he upset/embarrassed himself, his team, and his family-especially his mother. Sounded like he is super motivated not to repeat any such mistakes. With stand up play/behavior, the refs will move on and not keep him under a microscope regardless of how the fans react. That is the main thing that I think would hurt his game-if the refs hold him to a different standard. Also, last year with Duke's lack of depth and Grayson and Ingram being so vital, other teams played extremely physical with Duke, knowing that Duke could not respond in kind due to fear of foul trouble. At times it seemed like teams were deliberately trying to punk Grayson and goad him into reacting. I am not a fan of overly physical play, but it was a good strategy against Duke and Grayson last year. Games where the refs let things go had a decided impact against Duke and Grayson. Twice he reacted very poorly. Teams won't be able to get away with that this year due to increased depth and more players to share the scoring load.
With his competitiveness, and this is really for the OFC's, does he remind you a bit of Heyman?
I feel like he's the younger generation's version of Art Heyman.
I feel like he's the younger generation's version of Art Heyman.
Grayson is a bit of a lightning rod, but I think it's a badge he wears well. As some above have alluded to, he thrives on being the focal point, the Laettner or Redick, if you will.
We all know he's a good kid. Most of his naysayers do too.
We all know he's a good kid. Most of his naysayers do too.
Aren't we happy he came to Duke and I guarantee you if you took a poll among unc other any other fans in the country the question was "Would you have Grayson Allen on our team?" the answer would be unanimous if they answered honestly. OFC
Grayson is a fierce warrior, and I'm so glad he's a Dukie. The pluses of his spirted play outweigh the minuses considerably in my opinion. He's one of my favorite players of all-time.
Sometimes he goes a little overboard...but he's very effective.
OFC
Sometimes he goes a little overboard...but he's very effective.
OFC
Grayson is a fierce warrior, and I'm so glad he's a Dukie. The pluses of his spirted play outweigh the minuses considerably in my opinion. He's one of my favorite players of all-time.
Sometimes he goes a little overboard...but he's very effective.
OFC
That's great. OFC
Laettner is the one who found Gray and pointed the staff in his direction.
Is that true? That's not sarcasm, I just hadn't heard that before. That's pretty amazing.
It didn't take too long after that intro for Duke to seal the deal too. All it took was an offer.
Wow, didn't know that! Laettner is at the top of the Duke mountain to me...and he made another clutch play directing Duke toward Grayson! Two warriors with Duke blood coursing through their veins!
OFC