Why Duke Basketball Is Going To Dominate Next Season | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Sports

Why Duke Basketball Is Going To Dominate Next Season

A few of the reasons we're #StrivingForSix.

65
Why Duke Basketball Is Going To Dominate Next Season
IMG

Duke basketball. Maybe you watch it religiously. Maybe you don’t watch it at all, but you still root for some other team. Maybe you have no idea what’s been going on. But chances are, regardless of who or where you are, you’ve at least heard of the infamy that is Duke basketball, the 2015 national champions. Or maybe you’ve heard of Christian Laettner. Maybe you’re UNC, and you hate us. Whatever your stance is, though, I’m here to let you know that next year’s Duke basketball team is going to absolutely dominate (and, quite possibly, win another national championship), and I’ve got 10 good reasons why:

1. Grayson Allen


You’ve probably heard at least something about Grayson. His freshman year, he was a primarily bench player that only really “turned up” during the championship game against Wisconsin. Many have attributed the 2015 win to Grayson’s relentless energy. Sophomore year, Grayson became a force to be reckoned with. He was second in the ACC in terms of points, became the ACC player with the highest leap in points between seasons, scored the buzzer-beating basket against UVA and was the star of the Duke basketball team. One can only imagine how amazing he’ll be next year.

2. Harry Giles


Harry Giles was ranked the number one recruit for this season, received a 97 Scout Grade and is currently ranked at number one for the 2017 “Way-Too-Early” Mock NBA Draft. Basically, he’s insanely good. At 6’11”, he towers above most of the team. He’s crazy at dunking and shooting, and is reminiscent of the 2015 national champion, Jahlil Okafor. His only downfall is the torn ACL he’s recovering from, but it has been reported that he’s feeling at 100 percent.

3. Coach K


Coach K has 1,000 wins. I could just leave it at that, but I’ll continue. The current coach of the US Olympic team, Coach Mike Krzyzewski has the most wins of any coach in NCAA history: five NCAA Championships, 12 Final Fours, 12 ACC Titles and 13 ACC Tournament Championships. Basically, the man’s crazy good. I have zero doubts.

4. Amile Jefferson


In case you haven’t heard, following an injury, Amile sat out for the majority of last season, including the NCAA tournament. Therefore he decided to redshirt, meaning he will be returning for the 2016-17 season. Although Amile isn’t the "best" player on the court, I can say with honesty that he’s definitely one of the players with the most heart. He’s an amazing captain and encouraging person. I think that having him there again will encourage the team quite a bit.

5. Cameron Crazies


I’ll admit it: we’re a little obnoxious. We scream at inappropriate times. We never shut up. But I love it. We’ve been described as the "biggest home court advantage in college basketball," and I definitely agree. We’re distracting. We’re annoying. We’ll make sure our team plays to our best. And you bet we’ll make it to the NCAA tournament, too.

6. Marques Bolden


So the boy delayed his decision about as long as humanly possible. So what? He still chose Duke in the end, and he’s definitely a force to be reckoned with. And he may be able to fill the hole left behind by the loss of Marshall Plumlee. Let’s go, Marques.

7. The Draft


After the national championship, Duke lost 4 players: Quinn Cook, Jahlil Okafor, Tyus Jones and Justise Winslow, all high-scoring and all important to the team. Last year, then, Duke started over with an essentially new team. However, this year, Duke only lost Marshall Plumlee, Derryck Thornton and Brandon Ingram, only two of which regularly started. This means most of the players have at least some experience.

8. Size


Just look at Duke’s loaded roster. We’ve got six new players, plus all but three from last year. We have plenty of replacements, most of which are completely capable of playing well.

9. Jayson Tatum


In my opinion, Jayson’s very underrated and overshadowed by Harry Giles. However, this kid is also completely insane. He’s pretty high up in the current rankings for a reason, and he’s been playing all season with admirable heart and determination. He won Gatorade’s National Player of the Year. This boy is ready.

10. We’re Duke!


We won the National Championship in 2015 when everyone thought Kentucky had it in the bag. We beat UNC and UVA last year when we were basically unranked. We can do anything, and we will do everything. We’re striving for six, because Duke basketball never stops.

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
Student Life

5 Things To Do That Are Better Than Writing A Paper

Don't waste your time trying to write that paper when there are so many more interesting things you could be doing.

1295
computer keyboard
Unsplash

Writing a paper is never fun and is rarely rewarding. The writer's block, the page requirement, be specific, but don’t summarize, make sure you fixed any grammatical errors, did you even use spellcheck? and analyze, analyze, analyze.

Papers can be a major pain. They take up so much time and effort that by the end of the process you hate yourself and you hate the professor for making life so difficult. Questions of your existence start roaming in your mind. Am I even cut out for college if I can’t write a single paper? Am I even capable of taking care of myself if I lack the energy to open my laptop and start typing?

Keep Reading...Show less
Relationships

10 Reasons Why Sisters Are The Best

Who could be a better friend than your own sister?

836
sisters
Taylor Hooper

I can barely remember back when I was the only child. Most would say it’s because it is extremely difficult to remember things as a toddler but I would say it's because I was bored until my sister came along. My mother always says how important the "sister bond" is and with every year that passes I realize how right she is. Instead of writing a novel about all of the wonderful things there are about having a sister I decided to list a few of them instead.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

How To Adult

You're gonna make it after all.

2478
how to adult
Twitter

It is the time of our lives that we are beginning to enter the adult world and most of us, if not all of us, have no idea what we are doing. It's like starting a video game, but skipping the tutorial. We're all just running around aimlessly hoping we accidentally do something right that moves us along the right path. Now that graduation has just happened, or is right around the corner for some of us, it's time to start thinking about how we are going to take care of ourselves once we are on our own.

Keep Reading...Show less
Lifestyle

7 Signs You're A Starbucks Addict

I'll be the first one to admit I'm addicted to Starbucks.

1204
drinking coffee
Tumblr

If you’re anything like me, you love a good cup of coffee. My coffee always comes from Starbucks; I refuse to drink it from anywhere else. Over the years, it’s become one of my biggest addictions. So, if you are aware that you’re a Starbucks addict as well, or maybe you need to check to see if you’re an addict, here are seven ways to tell.

Keep Reading...Show less
people  in library
Photo by redcharlie on Unsplash

College involves a whirlwind of emotions, whether it’s from the stress of an assignment (or twenty), or from fighting with your roommate. It can be overwhelming at times and it’s important to take a step a back and calmly think things over. Maybe gain some perspective. The following aren’t foolproof tips and may not apply to you, but I was able to find success with them (hope you do too!)

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments