When it comes to Duke basketball, the question isn’t just about who will score — it’s about who will own the paint. This season, the Blue Devils don’t have a traditional towering giant like Dereck Lively or a once-in-a-generation rim protector, but what they do have is versatility, depth, and a new wave of hungry talent ready to redefine what “big man basketball” means in Durham.
Duke’s inside game will be very different this season, but it should still be pretty effective.
As we learned almost every year under former Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski, if you think you know who the starters will be, well, think again.
One of our favorite rituals in the Coach K era was that point in the season where he would tweak the lineup. Sometimes it worked beautifully – you’d see someone unexpected step up and be the best possible solution for that year’s team.
So keep that in mind when you read this take on Duke’s potential starters.
Everyone knows that Cameron Boozer is almost certainly going to start. Isaiah Evans is almost certainly going to start as well. After that?
Well, place your bets.
Caleb Foster will probably start early, but could Cayden Boozer ultimately be the point guard?
Could be.
This article has questions about Duke’s depth inside and it may be a fair question. In particular, it looks at the three primary bigs – Boozer, Pat Ngongba and Maliq Brown.
The obvious concern for the latter two would be injuries since both had serious problems last year. Assuming they stay healthy though, and don’t develop into foul magnets, we don’t see huge problems ahead.
While Ngongba is likely to start, you can’t really go wrong with Brown either. Brown is a brilliant defender but like Ngongba, he’s an underrated passer. It’s an interesting one-two punch, and if needed, Boozer is big enough to take a turn at center.
There’s no Dereck Lively or Khaman Maluach, true. However, there is a very interesting package of skills among the three players.
What surprises us a little is that Sebastian Wilkins and Nik Khamenia are not mentioned here at all.
Wilkins is a rugged presence at 6-8 and 240 and he may be capable of helping inside. He’s shown signs of being ahead of schedule. If he can defend well, Duke’s depth is automatically better. If he can produce offensively, that’s a great bit of freshman lagniappe.
We don’t think that Khamenia is physically ready for the rough and tumble play inside, but we could be wrong. However, you take him lightly at your own peril. Khamenia is going to be a player.
His skills are ahead of his body right now and when his physique catches up, he’ll be a problem. In the short term, his passing, three point shooting and overall smarts could propel him into the starting lineup.
And if Wilkins, Khamenia or fellow freshman Dame Sarr wind up starting, the big man question could be much less important.
