This team is done
- Thread starter TheDude1
- Start date
I agree. I'm not sure why duke fans feel the need to voice their pessimism more than once. It seems like they enjoy ruining others' time.
Btw, for the first time I can remember, my Gamecocks will be ranked higher than my Devils. Before the season started the odds of this happening were insanely low. From an NIT team, the Gamecocks lost their top three frontcourt guys to graduation and 4 other important players to a BB gun incident. Frank Martin has them at 16-4, with three of those losses coming with the best player suspended.
And hey, if we lose in the first round, we'll pull for Northwestern!
We might have to play a Northwestern in the first round if we never turn the corner.
Well the "Wildcat" in my username is from undergrad @ Northwestern, so that works for me. How ridiculous if NU makes it in and Duke doesn't.
Smith took 3 ridiculous 3's and made them all. What are the chances of that? If he misses 2/3 is he playing Hero Ball? Sometimes, the situation calls for someone to step up and take a big shot. If it goes in, he is the hero. But, if it doesn't, he shouldn't be crucified. Frank, Matt, Luke, Grayson, and Tatum all missed open 3's towards the end of last night's game. 2 of those would have upped the lead to 11 and it probably would have been game over. With all four bigs injured/not fully back in game shape/synch, should we be passing up open 3's? Grayson shot 1-9 from 3. What are the chances of that? At the beginning of the year, a poster here commented that every shot that Grayson took looked like it was going in during early season workouts. He was automatic. Well, if he is one of your leaders and he is missing everything, who takes the big shot? Luke was the guy early, but has been a bit inconsistent lately. He drilled one 3 to put Duke back up near the end then almost bricked his next 3. He also missed the front end of a 1 and 1. Matt's 3 was a little to deep for him to be taking and my liking, but Matt had been great the previous game and last night earlier on. So, who takes the big shot? Many here are talking about hero ball and selfishness. In the first half, Duke shot well, had a ton of assists and would have had a double digit lead if not for a flukey travel on Matt and 2 ridiculous 3's by Smith. In the second half, those same open shots didn't fall. The same passes did not result in an assist. Then, Tatum makes a couple of fantastic drives that he inexplicably missed. This team has a ton of pressure on it. Matt, Luke, Grayson, and Tatum have a ton of extra pressure on them because of the injuries to Amile, Harry, Marquese, and Chase. Right now, Duke has virtually no low post offense to take the pressure off of the perimeter guys. Heck if any of the just mentioned bigs were able to contribute like they are capable of, a couple of those missed 3's and layups are follow-up dunks. Duke has no low post defensive presence to take pressure off of the perimeter defenders.
This team has had no time to gel, no time to establish roles. The coach is out. Guys are playing injured or out of shape due to injuries. Why are so many surprised that this team is struggling to establish roles, chemistry, and consistency? Why are people surprised that Duke struggles to win with their 4 top bigs barely able to contribute due to injuries and their outside shots not falling? Were Luke and Grayson being selfish when they missed their foul shots? Should we shoot Harry because he missed a few foul shots? Last nights game was very disappointing. I certainly wasn't thrilled by the execution at the end of the game on either side of the ball. But please, could we just give this team a chance to get healthy and a little bit of game time together before we crucify anyone?
This team has had no time to gel, no time to establish roles. The coach is out. Guys are playing injured or out of shape due to injuries. Why are so many surprised that this team is struggling to establish roles, chemistry, and consistency? Why are people surprised that Duke struggles to win with their 4 top bigs barely able to contribute due to injuries and their outside shots not falling? Were Luke and Grayson being selfish when they missed their foul shots? Should we shoot Harry because he missed a few foul shots? Last nights game was very disappointing. I certainly wasn't thrilled by the execution at the end of the game on either side of the ball. But please, could we just give this team a chance to get healthy and a little bit of game time together before we crucify anyone?
This team does not have the maturity of the 2015 team. The big 3 freshman from that team were selfless players who bought into the team concept. This team is nowhere near close to that. Too many guys trying to make it about themselves. Especially Tatum.
Its a message board of rabid Duke fans ....We're going to disagree....We're in general very spoiled by the dominance of our program....Some like us OFC'ers have followed the Blue Devils since we were kneehigh. I understand your premise very much, but all of us have opinions..
OFC
BAM! Far apart....Talk about heart....Remember Okafor coming back in the UNC game after being injured in Durham? Tyus coming back in Chapel Hill grom a nasty fall?? Those guys were all about heart, winning!
OFC
Dude, it's almost Feb, all the Frosh have been playing for weeks, and we just lost to one of the worst teams in the ACC - at home. We've rarely looked good in the past month, with our offensive and defensive efficiencies cratering, despite playing some really bad teams. We had an insane amount of returning talent to go with a top-ranked class, and at this point, with our upcoming schedule getting tough, may not make the tourney.
At least UK lost tonight.
I fully expect a win over Carolina. We will still have some good wins this year. I am meaning in terms of being a legit title contender.
NC State easily has the talent to NOT be one of the worst teams in the league. They just have a habit of State-ing. A loss to State is not as bad as it might seem.
I don't think the result of this single game is necessarily THE telling moment. Watching all year, we have had no consistency, have struggled often on defense and offense... There are a lot of the "canary in the coalmine" type of indicators so far this year.
Sorry that people are irritated with the thread. I'll change the title to better reflect reality. Just genuinely think that this team is flawed, and it is too late in the year to realistically hope for a turn around. I hope I am wrong, and would happily come back here and eat seventy tons of crap if it turns out that I AM wrong. Happily happily happily.
NC State easily has the talent to NOT be one of the worst teams in the league. They just have a habit of State-ing. A loss to State is not as bad as it might seem.
I don't think the result of this single game is necessarily THE telling moment. Watching all year, we have had no consistency, have struggled often on defense and offense... There are a lot of the "canary in the coalmine" type of indicators so far this year.
Sorry that people are irritated with the thread. I'll change the title to better reflect reality. Just genuinely think that this team is flawed, and it is too late in the year to realistically hope for a turn around. I hope I am wrong, and would happily come back here and eat seventy tons of crap if it turns out that I AM wrong. Happily happily happily.
The only way this team comes around, in my opinion is if Allen finds a way to get his killer instinct back. He's in such a funk with what the media is doing to him and his play shows. He looks lethargic. Yes he brought it on but enough is enough. Play ball young man like we all know you can. The other thing is Tatum appears to be a little selfish, at times playing hero ball. He reminds me of a more talented Rivera, worried about his draft status. A little bench time wouldn't hurt him.
I get the feeling barring injury, he's immune to bench time....I just feel staff is that deeply committed to the young man. However I agree with your point.
I will say he did seem to realize he should not have tried the coast to coast playground move at the end of the game. I am no coach, but would guess its vital for staff to step in and adamantly use this as a TEACHING MOMENT....I think its the type moment if used wisely could alter Jayson's style for the better and make him more of a TEAM PLAYER.
OFC
@atl-heel is begging for a Duke beatdown of UNC. I like those subtle jabs you're sending us. We'll see how it all works out. You should look at the rosters for next season. I know elite players aren't a guarantee of success (trust me, we know), but the cupboard might get a little bare in Cheater Hill.
Tatum is a selfish player, watch how he reacts when he scores, or when he misses a shot. He plays 'me' ball, and hasn't figured out team concept. Dennis Smith has to play the way he did for State to have a chance. Yes Grayson missed too many open 3's, and unless he gets back to how he was last season, this team has slim chances to be as good as I think they should. I see no problem with how Jackson, Giles and Bolden play, but I'm sorry Tatum has that aura about him that he needs his 15 shots, and right now his selfish mentality and Allen's low energy are main reasons team is sluggish
Jay, would you mind changing the title to "This team is looking limited" or "This team has some serious and possibly uncorrectable shortcomings" or something a bit less... well, petulant?If you can, that is.
I wouldnt worry about editing the thread "Dude." Heck, lots of us fans have doubts considering the pre-season hype. Its just been an unbelievably chaotic year. I will wager this Duke team has endured more drama than a number of seasons combined. Add the losses, and its easy to have doubts...
OFC
I didn't know I needed to state that. I thought this was a message board for Duke fans to write their opinions.
It is not surprising that Allen may be a little timid to play all out at this point - having been picked apart for his transgressions and then scrutinized every time he has contact on or off the court, its only natural to hold back a little to avoid fanning the flames
I don't know what it is with Allen's offense, but when is the last time we saw him dunk? And last year (and in high school) he was so consistent on 3 point shots. This is a shell of the player we saw the past 2 years. It has to be due to what he has been through (only part of which is his own fault).
But just how done are we? Are we rare, medium, done, well done, or burnt slap dab up. Looks like we may have a couple of more stages to work through before we give up.
OFC
OFC
Good point. Because if we DO win a title, I want you to find this thread, make up a t-shirt with the thread title on the front and a hashtag on the back something like #dumbass, and then send it to me. And I would wear it every day. Forever. Because... Well, you know. Six.
Duke is medium at this point, but getting more cooked by the day. We need a motivational speech like the one Coach Wally gave during halftime of the movie 'Necessary Roughness', and if that doesn't work then we are done
Sounds like a plan. Lets nail down the parameters, are we done like lose first round done? Do we overachieve if we make the 16? Will an Elite 8 finish be good enough to say those of you who said this team was done were a a bit silly? Or does this team done mean we just aren't going to win it all this year? We need to know this stuff, shirts are on the line here.
If we lose the remainder of our games this season, I'll be right here #nobandwagon
Dude they have played together a whole four games. There is a reason you play pre conference games.This is not a video game give them a chance.IMO you will be seeing a different team.
FSU is done! Losing 41-15 to GA Tech at the half.
To be fair FSU has actually beaten some good teams this year. I think that's what's most disheartening, Duke's best win is Florida.
Okay, lets hammer it out.
I would say, given the hype the team has had, our coach, and the sheer talent we have (what, seven or eight future NBA players? Returning All American, a double double machine, and 2 of the top 3 or so recruits in the nation) anything short of the Final Four is a disappointment. I know that seems like a terribly high bar, but that is what the team is shooting for, according to Coach. I suppose I could accept Elite 8 as a sign of "good enough" if we had to compromise?
Wow. I respect most opinions here, but damn, let's chill a bit here. I will panic 2/3rd of the way through ACC play and they are still in a spiral. Until, I have faith they'll turn it around.
Side note - I would NOT want to play this team in March. Once it clicks, watch out.
Side note - I would NOT want to play this team in March. Once it clicks, watch out.
wow look at the fsu GT game lol! 15 points in a half against a team worse than nc state and one we beat by 50! ACC is crazy this year and it is by far the strongest it has ever been. Team needs guys fully healthy and in established roles something that has impossible with the number of injuries. Having Coach K will help!