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To say this is a different sort of Duke team understates the obvious:  Mike Krzyzewski traditionally prefers speed over strength, and finds it easier to counter brawn with athleticism than vice-versa.  This year, he has a team that’s huge up front and quite thin in the backcourt. It’s going to be unconventional, at least for what Duke usually puts on the court, but it could also be very very good. 

42	Lance Thomas	F	6-8	225	Sr.
30	Jon Scheyer	G	6-5	190	Sr.
55	Brian Zoubek	C	7-1	260	Sr.
41	Jordan Davidson	G	6-1	180	Sr.
12	Kyle Singler	F	6-8	230	Jr.
2	Nolan Smith	G	6-2	185	Jr.
53	Casey Peters	G	6-4	185	Jr.
51	Steve Johnson	F	6-5	210	Jr.
21	Miles Plumlee	F	6-10	240	So.
13	Olek Czyz	F	6-7	240	So.
3	Seth Curry	G	6-1	175	So.
20	Andre Dawkins	G	6-4	190	Fr.
34	Ryan Kelly	F	6-10	220	Fr.
5	Mason Plumlee	F	6-10	230	Fr.

The backcourt went through a lot of turbulence over the summer, with Gerald Henderson opting for the draft and Elliot Williams transferring home to Memphis to be closer to his ailing mother.  After a sensational freshman year at Liberty, Seth Curry decided to transfer to Duke.  And after learning that Williams was leaving, Andre Dawkins, who was committed for next year’s class, let Duke know he would be able to show up in the fall if they could use him. 

Uh, yeah.

So Duke, in short order, went from a solid backcourt to a scary thin backcourt to a three-man rotation that’s solid and one they can bring in next year who has immense potential. 

And Duke has also decided to move Kyle Singler to the perimeter.  The 6-8 Oregon native spent the summer whipping himself into ferocious condition and is ready to unveil a very different game than what Duke fans have seen thus far.  That’s at the same time saying a lot and just saying what’s obvious.

Singler has been one of the versatile guys to come along at Duke.  The obvious comparison is to a guy like Mike Dunleavy, but Singler is more ferocious inside and much stronger.  Danny Ferry?  Singler has better perimeter skills.  Shane Battier?  Battier was a great outside shooter and defender; Singler is a better ballhandler. 

In a way, the guy he’s most like is Chris Carrawell.  Both guys could play anywhere.  Carrawell spent some time bringing the ball up and also some time guarding Tim Duncan.  Singler’s done everything exept play point guard, or will by the end of the year anyway.  

While the move to the perimeter will help shift the focus from his frontcourt play, ironically, it may underscore it as well:  Singler will get plenty of three point shots, but he’ll also have tons of opportunities to post up smaller players.  What it’ll really underscore is just how versatile he is.

Where it might be tougher is on defense.  Singler will be guarded by smaller players; he’ll also have to guard them.  He’s a good defender, a very smart defender, but guarding smaller, quicker players is a challenge for anyone.  

On the other hand, he might prefer it to guarding Tyler Hansbrough. 

Singler will be joined on the perimeter by guards Jon Scheyer and Nolan Smith.

Scheyer, another versatile player, has been key for Duke since he was a freshman.  Last year’s move to point guard was an impressive coaching move by Mike Krzyzewski, but also a star turn by Scheyer.  Not a blindingly quick player, the way he controlled the ball reminded one of former Arizona great Steve Kerr, who committed turnovers about as often as he got arrested.  Scheyer also became a better offensive player in general, perhaps because he had to think less about shooting and consequently began to do it better.  He basically rescued Duke’s season, which was in danger, and sparked a late 10-2 run, losing only to UNC and Villanova.

He’ll be joined by Nolan Smith, who had an interesting season last year:  started off great, lost steam, lost his starting position, nearly lost his head to a Dave Neal screen, sat out a few games, and then came back.

And he improved a lot.  Doesn’t usually work like that, but for Smith, somehow, it did. His post-season play was some of his best basketball of the year. 

He has the potential to be a point guard and will share duties with Scheyer, but will probably start off at the wing.  He’s also likely to be Duke’s best defender overall – Smith can be a superb defensive force.  Word is he’s worked really hard over the summer and is ready to step up another level.

An extrovert, Smith stirred things up somewhat over the summer with a video he did with a Duke improv group, and also had huge fun at Duke’s season-starting celebration, where he kept roaring "are you not entertained!" during the slam dunk contest.

Duke’s addition on the perimeter, Andre Dawkins, is said to be a really good athlete, near Gerald Henderson’s neighborhood, and a superb three point shooter.  

Finally, Lance Thomas may spend time on the perimeter. The slight 6-8 Thomas has played in the post more than he probably wanted, but he’s quick and Duke has used him frequently to put pressure on ballhandlers and to help trap them.  He’s capable of making a switch like Singler’s, although he lacks Singler’s versatility.  A mid-range shot would be a great addition to his game.

So much for the perimeter, let’s get on to the big guys. Duke has a ton of them.

A lot of the buzz early has centered around the Plumlee brothers.  Miles was a freshman last year, though he clearly lost confidence, and Mason is a highly regarded freshman who raised a lot of eyebrows with some spectacular summer play.  

Mason says Miles is a better athlete, and that may have been underscored with a play in fall pickup ball that wasn’t captured on video but we wish it had:  the elder Plumlee brother took off for a dunk and jumped right over 7-1 teammate Brian Zoubek, as in Vince-Carter-cleared-him. 

Should do a lot for his confidence.

Mason is a more skilled player and is not lacking in confidence.  His game and his mental toughness have drawn some comparisons to Christian Laettner, which is high praise. 

Both Plumlees are likely to start and either is a threat to pull a double-double. 

Zoubek is also back, and while Miles dunked over him in extraordinary fashion, chances are he wouldn’t push him around much on the floor. Zoobs has become a rough customer over his time in Durham, as demonstrated last year when he manhandled FSU’s rising star Solomon Alabi.  He’s developed into a highly useful tactical weapon against other power players, and at times he’s had a major impact on the statsheet as well.  

Zoubek also showed himself to be a better than expected basketball player.  He made some beautiful passes last year, things you wouldn’t expect from a big center.  His feet have given him problems throughout his career, but now he’s healthy, and one hopes ready for his best season.

Duke also introduces 6-10 rookie Ryan Kelly, who was incredibly impressive against Pfeiffer.  He came in with a reputation as a fine shooter, but against Pfeiffer he also revealed a very nice passing game. He shot 8-11 – no great surprise against a much smaller team – but also racked up five assists against smaller, quicker players, without a turnover. 

The other guy who is quietly developing is Olek Czyz.  At 6-7, Czyz is one of the better athletes on the team, though last year he was very raw and not ready to contribute much. He’s a guy who could make a big jump or who could develop more slowly.  

There is no denying his ability though – the kid can really get off the ground.  He’s a walking answer to the European stereotype, a frontcourt player who doesn’t yet have the whole package, who can drive and dunk like an American, but with shaky ballhandling and outside skills, though that may have changed over the summer.  The potential is there.

As it is for this entire team.  Duke has some definite weaknesses – the backcourt’s lack of depth leaves little margin for error or illness, and no one on this team can create their own shot as easily as Gerald Henderson did last year. For all his admirable qualities, Scheyer is not an ideal point guard.  There will be some teams that press Duke and give them fits. 

Yet this is an intriguing bunch.  One reason Duke scheduled Pfeiffer is that they run a sort of Marymount/Paul Westhead offense, and it forced Duke to see how this team would react to an intense running team.  It’s very early, but what we suspect they saw was this:  both Plumlees, Kelly and Dawkins fit in well with Singler, Smith, Scheyer, Thomas, can run.  Among the bigger players, Singler, both Plumlees, and Kelly offer a huge amount of versatility.  Rebounding is there.  Three point shooting is there.  Shotblocking is there.  Passing is there. 

A lot of things are there, but not everything, which is true for every team.  The trademark of Mike Krzyzewski, though, is an ability to emphasize strengths and to overcome weaknesses.  Our guess is that there are enough elements to work with to make this a really good, exciting team.