Duke is among the giants of college basketball. They have won five national championships. They have had countless players move on to the NBA. Their coach is one of the greatest of all times, over 1,000 wins with one program is unheard of. They are consistently competitive and have not missed an NCAA tournament in 22 years. I literally wasn't even alive the last time Duke didn't get a bid to the big dance. They always have a good recruiting class. These are just a few of the reasons that Duke is almost always in the conversation about who will win the national title when march madness comes around.
This year is no different except that instead of being in the conversation, they're really just running it. Here are five reasons this Duke basketball team will be watching One Shining Moment with Coach K hoisting his sixth national championship trophy in 27 years come April 2nd in San Antonio, TX.
1. Marvin Bagley III
He's as talented a freshman as I've ever seen. He's being likened to Anthony Davis. He is leading the votes for Player of the Year and we're a month in. He's a 6'11 power forward that can do just about anything he wants on the court. He is averaging a double-double. AVERAGING. And he's only getting better. After a conference play gets started and he has a few more months learning from Coach K, he will be unstoppable come tournament time.
2. Grayson Allen
He is a senior. He has faced more adversity in the past two years than anyone would've expected back when he was merely an afterthought on the 2015 national championship team with three other talented freshmen. He showed the world what he was capable of in the title game in 2015 and had his best season the following year.
The next year was filled with the media and small injuries that left him at less than 100% but he is back and ready to bring a second title to Durham. He had a career-high against Michigan State and is surrounded by a variety of talented freshman that can help him fulfill his goal and leave where he started - on top.
3. Coach K
He has more collegiate wins than anyone else. He has won 1082 times total as a college basketball coach. 1,009 wins at Duke alone. Five national championships. Gold medals in the Olympics. He has a 76% winning percentage.
He is the best the game has ever seen and he continues to adapt as the game changes. He has begun to foster the one and done mentality and made it his own. He is starting four freshmen, which hasn't been done by a Duke team since the 80s. The results are continuing to stay the same - he's winning.
4. The freshmen
Starting four freshmen is not something that gets done a lot, especially not at Duke, but that's what they're doing this year. And it's working. Marvin Bagley III is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes this star-studded freshman class. He's surrounded by Wendell Carter, Trevon Duval, and Gary Trent Jr. All of which were in ESPN's top 10 of the 2017 recruiting class.
This lack of experience is a bit concerning but they've proven themselves, beating two top 10 teams since the season began and winning 11 straight. With leadership from Allen and Coach K, these freshmen are learning fast and only improving.
5. Refusal to lose.
Duke is not a stranger to any of these things. They have had Coach K for over 30 years. They've had great players like Bagley and Allen. They've had a star-studded freshmen class. They've won titles before. They've also lost before. They lost in the first round of the NCAA tournament when they had Jabari Parker. They had Jayson Tatum and Harry Giles along with Luke Kennard and Grayson Allen and still couldn't get past the Sweet Sixteen. They have had all these ingredients before.
I've seen Duke win and lose. There have already been some close games this year where I thought we were going to lose because of inexperience, bad zone defense, and even just it wasn't our night, but we didn't. I saw Duke give 100% heart at the end of every game. They refused to lose.
Their absolute refusal to back down and lose was the reason I think Duke will be winning their sixth title come spring. We might lose a game or two this year, but barring injuries, I do not believe that this team will let anyone else win in March. They will refuse to lose because that is what they've done so far. Down by 16, trailing from the first minute of regulation to winning in OT, battling through foul trouble, beating MSU without Bagley are all examples of this Duke's team ability to win no matter the circumstances.
Add all the other ingredients and there is no doubt that this Duke team has it's sights on it's sixth national championship. And personally I can't wait to sit back and watch!
