I'd like to start off by thanking the Duke Basketball Report for picking up my last article. And I'd also like to thank you, the readers, for taking the time to read and share your thoughts on the article. Keep it coming. I want to discuss a topic that emerged from reader comments on the last article; who should be our starting point guard.
Michael, a reader, started this debate by inquiring about what role Nolan Smith should play next year. Debate ensued and a lot of you have given well thought out and opposing views on how Greg Paulus and Nolan Smith should fit in within the framework of the team next season. Rudy got the “bench Paulus” crowd going. Here’s what he had to say:
"I say we bench Paulus and go with a starting lineup of Nolan, Gerald, Demarcus, Singler, and Lance. NOW THAT WOULD BE NASTY. Paulus can be a good role player coming off the bench along with Scheyer, Marty, King, etc..."
Another reader echoed this sentiment:
"What if we did start Nolan, Gerald, Demarcus, Singler, and Lance? I think that's a super athletic group that would be menacing in transition. And if we're forced to play a half court game we could have Paulus, Scheyer, Gerald, Demarcus or Lance, and Zoubek in the game."
If we want to run, I can't think of a better group to have on the court except maybe replacing Lance with another guard (Singler will have to get used to spending some time playing center next year and I think he's up to the challenge; he played excellent defense on Kevin Love in the McDonald's All-American game earlier this year). Although that lineup sounds great, benching your captain isn’t usually the most obvious suggestion.
As to be expected, some of you scoffed at the notion of Paulus coming off the bench. One reader, writing under the name Brady Quinn, had this response for Rudy:
"Ironic your name is Rudy. Paulus turned down being the quarterback at Notre Dame so he could come off the BENCH for us? There is NO WAY Coach K ever benches Paulus."
If it's really you Brady, how about hooking The Scrapper up with some tickets next season. Another reader had this to say:
"I think the starting lineup has to be Paulus, Scheyer, Gerald, Singler, and Zoubek. Coach K loves Paulus and Scheyer and the reality is that Coach isn't going to go fast. Demarcus, King, Nolan, etc...will come off the bench."
So the debate that emerged has essentially boiled down to the roles Paulus and Nolan Smith will play next season.
Before I tell you what I think, let's all gather a little more information and watch this YouTube video that Dan, a reader, found of Nolan Smith and Paulus playing against each other at a pickup game for Duke Basketball Campers (for the full video click here). The guy crossing up and then dunking on Paulus is Nolan Smith.
Ouch, facial! I did a little bit more research on Nolan and I was utterly shocked by his athleticism. He might be a better dunker than Gerald. If you thought that last dunk was good, watch this ridiculous mix tape:
Wow, right? I'm convinced Nolan's going to play an important role for us next season. The best way for me to describe him is by comparing him to past Duke players. I see him as a fusion of Sean Dockery, Daniel Ewing, and Jay Williams. He reminds me of Dockery because of his defensive intensity, Ewing because of his shooting touch, and Williams because of his explosiveness. Adding the fact that he's a classy, down to earth guy who can dunk out of the building, and you see why he has the potential to have his jersey hanging in the rafters someday (yeah I said it, did you see that mixtape?).
He's going to start the season on the bench but I think by the end of the year he should be starting. I fully believe that by the end of the season (tourney time), Duke will be better off having Nolan at the point and putting Paulus at shooting guard. Paulus is the best shooter on our team. He shouldn't wear himself out bringing the ball up the court; he should be spending his energy fighting through screens to get open like J.J. used to do. He's that good of a shooter. I don't think there's any chance Paulus comes off the bench, and I don't think he should come off the bench. He's too good and he's the leader of this team. But with Nolan and Paulus starting (along with some mix of Gerald, Demarcus, Singler, and Lance), I think Duke has the potential to make a deep, deep run next March. I can't think of more than two or three other teams that could even try to make a case they have more talent.
What do you think?
Do yourself a favor and watch that Nolan mix tape again, it'll get you pumped for next season.
20 comments:
After watching that mixtape, I think the idea of starting Nolan and Greg together isn't half bad.
Nolan's going to be riding the bench all season. Paulus and Scheyer=Starting backcourt.
Would you rather have Paulus and Scheyer or Nolan and Gerald in the backcourt? It's a no-brainer for me, I'd want Nolan and Gerald.
Well put, Scrapper. I think for Duke to be successful this year, it is necessary that Nolan is in the starting lineup alongside Paulus. I feel like the Duke team is almost too deep for its own good. We have young guys like smith, henderson and thomas that deserve some time but we've already invested our interest and preference in players like demarcus and scheyer. I think it's unlikely Coach K sits Scheyer, and near impossible that he sits Demarcus. That means Smith and Henderson come off the bench. Furthermore, Dave McClure is going to eat up all of Taylor King's minutes at the 3/4 position, which is a crime.
Ideal starting lineup: Smith, Paulus, Nelson, Lance, Singler
Realistic/Coach K lineup: Paulus, Scheyer, Nelson, Singler, Zoubek
Totally agree with that last comment! McClure shouldn't play AT ALL next season.
START POCIUS
I didn't know Nolan was THAT good.
Excellent article Scrapper, truly well done!
I agree Greg will get the nod, bc of experience, but also agree he's a better fit at the 2 spot. I've watched Nolan on TV in high school and he is a great combo point. He is NOT better than G at dunking. :)
Here's what I love fans, we're debating on having too many good players!!! Hopefully Coach is reading this :)
I agree that Gerald's a better dunker but I bet Nolan has a greater vertical leap.
Thanks Michael, I really appreciate it.
Come on, sure we want Nolan to start. But do you REALLY think there is ANY chance Paulus and Scheyer don't start together? I'd be shocked if Coach K tried changing things up (something he really NEEDS to do this season).
Nolan's better attribute is also a criticism: he blends in. He makes others excel but at times doesnt take over. IOW, he defers too much. We had that prob w teammates of JJ.
Now, IMO if K can push him offensively (bc defense wont be an issue) Nolan could break a lot of PGs down to drive the lane.
? Scrapper: why do you think K wont go fastball? All of us would like the half AND full court versions, but you sound very confident that he wont. Love to hear.
I don't think Coach K is going to have us run and gun and play a deep bench because of what he's shown us in the past. Duke has always had an immense amount of talent yet it's been a rare occurence when our rotation has featured more than 7 players. Let's take a look back:
Last year (2006-2007): We had Paulus, Scheyer, Gerald, Demarcus, McRoberts, Lance, and Dave play the majority of the minutes. Odd men out were Pocius and Zoubek
2005-2006: Paulus, J.J., Doc, McRoberts, Sheldon, Demarcus, and Lee. Odd men out were Pocius, Dave, Boykin, and Boateng (I think he was RIDICULOUSLY underplayed. Boateng was very effective whenever he was in the game but he didn't get much PT).
2004-2005: Ewing, J.J., Sheldon, Doc, Shav, Demarcus, Lee
2003-2004: J.J., Luol, Ewing, Sheldon, Duhon, Shav, Dockery
And the trend continues, the only real outliers were 1996-97 and 1997-98, when we had around 8 players in the rotation.
I can't say having a tight rotation has neccessarily been a bad thing for us in the past. We did win the national title in 2001 with basically a rotation of 6 players in Jay Will, Shane (oh the good old years), Boozer, Dunleavy, Nate James, and Duhon.
But if you look at the rest of that championship roster, there was a HUGE drop off in the next line of players in Reggie Love, Andre Sweet, Horvath, and Casey Sanders as options off the bench.
I was shocked that Marty and Zoubek didn't get more playing time last year and I was furious that we didn't play Boateng enough. I think Coach K has been handicapped in the past to play a tight rotation because of talent but it feels like in the last couple years he's made that his preferred playing style. We'll see what Coach decides but in the end I just don't think he will play an 11 man rotation (I'd say it's going to be capped at 8).
I hope D'Antoni talks him into playing fast because I think our best chance of winning is running and gunning with a full court press and coming in waves with our talent.
But then again, who is The Scrapper to second guess a hall of famer?
I hate that logic, that since Coach K has won 800 something games and has won three championships, he is infallible and indisputable. Yes, he has been the main reason for raising Duke to the storied and successful college basketball program that it most certainly is; he deserves a lot of credit and is absolutely a Hall of Famer.
However, watching tapes of our three championships doesn't make me feel better about the last 3 years of offense in the last 5 minutes when up by 8 or more. For those who didn't watch games, it was dribble out the clock and in the last 6 seconds, make a haphazard one-on-one move and take a terrible shot. We let teams get back into way too many games and absolutely lost several because of this strategy alone. I remember the good old days when Duke mercilessly pounded teams into the ground; thats how it should be. You continue to play your game and finish teams off; that killer instinct has been lacking of late, and I think that attitude shift spills over to the players, noting the lack of a without-a-doubt clutch player in the past few years.
The slow-the-game-down-to-a-complete-standstill strategy completely disrupts the rhythm of the offense, and if (usually when) the opponent comes roaring back, we are caught on our heels and can't execute the way we did all game. This effectively negates the success we have for the majority of the game. Yes, Coach K is a brilliant coach. Yes, for 35 minutes of games I would want no one other than him. But if he doesn't realize his mistakes and shortcomings in those last 5 minutes, we will never be able to advance past Sweet 16 or Elite 8 rounds of the tournament.
That has really been the story of Duke basketball the last couple of years: blowing games in the last five minutes.
Scrapper, I dont think you were defending K but explaining history. AND I think we all agree with that logic of pitiful stallball [ eg Terps ACC win - despite duhon's injury]
I cant help thinking part of that stallball is due to using fewer players. You are right: we are proud of scrapping defense but miss our relentless offense.
The biggest difference bet Duke and Roy's UNC arent players [hell we recruit the same guys often]. Its Roy runs all the time and we used to mix it up bet half court and full court press. I prefer the later, bc its more sophisticated - IF both are incorporated. And our players have BEEN ready to due both.
Remember when K was the best guy for the last 5 minutes??? I'm anxiously looking.
Sorry also felt like venting.
We suck the last five minutes
Well Honestly... Greg Can't handle any kind of pressure. Greg is cracking like an egg. He sees someone capable of taking his spot...so he needs to step it up! Yeah he has a great shot but that just will not get it done! Nolan riding the bench all season you got to be kidding me with that remark! He is to good of a player to sit. Be serious the coach might love Greg, but he isn't promised time. Who ever bust each other in practice is going to start! So let's see next season who can really get it done!
when that other guy said that nolan's riding the bench, i think he was talking about the fact that Coach K will not start him over paulus at point guard. He also would never switch paulus to the 2 and let nolan play point. of course nolan is too talented for the bench, but Coach K is too conservative to make such a "drastic" change. In his mind, paulus has already earned his spot as a starting point guard and i don't think for one second that the starting spot is up for the taking. if you do, little foot, you need to take a hard look at Coach K's history of rewarding seniority.
Exactly V, exactly...
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