No matter when you became a Duke fan, or when you went to a game at Duke,
unless you are one of a very small number of people who attended games in Card
Gymnasium, you either have been to Cameron, or understand the central role
Cameron has in the history of Duke basketball. Â
Well our friends at goduke.com have put up a
nice feature to commemorate the beginning of the sixtieth season and are asking
for favorite Cameron memories. This is an amazing span of time for any
gym, and only a few ballparks can claim as long a life (Boston and Detroit are
giving up their ancient gems very soon now). There are very few other
college gyms which can claim such a bond with a team. Some of the old Pac
10 gyms are as beloved but not as celebrated. Duke basketball outside of
Cameron is, to our way of thinking, almost unimaginable (we make exceptions for
Final Fours). It's a magnificent environment, and one worth
preserving and celebrating. As a matter of fact, we'll throw this idea
out there now:Â some Duke alums should consider what it will cost to
modernize Cameron for the Information Age. The building itself seems very
sound and capable of another 60 years of service, but the retrofitting for
technology, which will likely have to be done at some point, will be expensive.
Anyway, go read the page on Cameron, and if you have a very cool memory to
share, please send it in. We intend to celebrate this season like it's 1999. Oh,
wait, scratch that. Anyway, let's make it a big deal.