Five Pressing College Hoops Questions
Nolan Smith (photo. Duke University)With the 2K Sports Classic Benefiting Coaches vs. Cancer tipping off, here are some major things to watch for (on ESPN2 right now):
* Can Nolan Smith really play point guard? The Dukies are thankfully out of the Greg Paulus-at-point era in that they’re starting Nolan Smith at the one. (Don’t worry, you’ll see Paulus at some point tonight.) And Smith will have to deal with full court pressure from SIU freshman ballhawk Kevin Dillard.
* Just how athletic is Gerald Henderson? He’s rocking the baldie now, which is a good look for the athletic small forward. Unsurprisingly, when Duke lined up to start this game, it was Henderson who jumped the ball at center court.
* Does Southern Illinois have someone worth watching? We mentioned Bryan Mullins recently, the reigning MVC Defensive Player of the Year. He’ll be following Jon Scheyer through the hamster wheel all night long. Aside from him, what about their 6-8 F Tony Boyle?
* Is Duke really a different team than they’ve been in years past? They’re promising to be a more athletic, physical bunch after a summer of dedication in the weight room. Will that play out on the court?
* Can Jon Scheyer be the player that Coach K recruited him to be? In high school, he was the best shooter in the state of Illinois hands down, once scoring 21 points in 75 seconds. He topped the 50-point plateau on the regular. Watching him slowly and methodically bank five foot set shots in the warm-up felt like I was watching someone from the 1960′s, not a 2,000-plus point scorer.
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November 20th, 2008 at 7:29 pm
s.bucketz says:
paulus eats balls straight up…i picked VCU to beat duke in the first that year cuz i seen how maynor locked down the other teams PG in the game b4(wher he stole the ball nd made 2 shots in a row to win it) nd i knew paulus wood get eaten alive by him…plus he jus looks like a dousche
November 20th, 2008 at 7:54 pm
JCARR says:
Yo DIME,
How will Seton Hall (my school) do this year?
I know our basketball program has rapidly began to decline. Any names worth mentioning? how many wins? expectations?
November 20th, 2008 at 8:05 pm
duke says:
s. bucketz are you serious right now first learn how to read then you can talk smack on the board, ppl like you just ruin these things for ppl who actually know what there talking about. I mean cmon man “Paulus eats balls strait up” Give credit when credit is due The kid has been starting 3 years and now the 6th man on one of the top programs in the country so grow up you stupid thug… GO DUKE
November 20th, 2008 at 8:39 pm
Raj S says:
Actually, Paulus is a bum, but who really cares?
November 20th, 2008 at 10:06 pm
s.bucketz says:
duke eats balls…straight up
November 20th, 2008 at 10:40 pm
Dime Magazine says:
JCARR
Funny you mention that – they actually pulled off a HUGE win tonight against USC, playing with only 7 scholarship guys. They held this really highly touted freshman at Southern Cal – DeMar DeRozan to 4 points.
The Hall’s two best players this season will be Eugene Lawrence, who was strong for them last year. And last year they had a freshman named Jeremy Hazell who had a huge summer playing in NYC.
If they play up to their potential, they’re a tournament team.
- AK
November 21st, 2008 at 12:02 am
JCARR says:
@Andrew Katz
OK thnx for the insight. And indeed a win against USC is big. Demar DeRozan 4 points wow! But the Big East is loaded with talented schools so i will continue to place my feet on solid ground and only hope for the best.
November 21st, 2008 at 12:48 am
jeremy says:
seton hall has no one on their team named eugene lawrence. he was the starting pg for st johns last year but graduated.and why is duke getting so much attention???
November 21st, 2008 at 1:01 am
Dime Magazine says:
jeremy my bad man, sorry.
i meant Eugene Harvey – was just in a rush earlier.
We were at the game tonight, so that’s why there was a lot of Duke coverage on the site.
- ak