Michael Gbinije - photo Rick Crank, BDN Photo

Real time updates continue from the King City Classic where Coach K and Chris Collins checked out future Blue Devil Michael Gbinije during the morning session.   Catch all the action as it happens with Duke’s hot prospects and commitments by joining Blue Devil Nation Premium. 

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We have already talked with Shabazz Muhammad, Alex Murphy, Marshall Plumlee, Kaleb Tarczewski during coverage from Adidas Nations and were checking out the LeBron James Skills Academies before that where Kyle Singler and Nolan Smith enhanced their skills.  And some new names which could surface in the class of 2010 and detailed interviews are forth coming.  And we will be headed to the Peach Jam on Monday where we once again, hit the AAU circuit like no other Duke site.

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Kaleb Tarczewski played well against Quincy Miller today. Read about it on BDN Premium. Photo BDN Phot, Rick Crank

Day one of our Adidas Nations coverage is underway where BDN’s Andrew Slater is on the scene bringing constant updates as they happen to our premium members.  Duke Coach Mike Krzyzewski and Chris Collins are in the house where they are watching several prospects.  One of those is Shabazz Muhammad who just dropped 32 points.  Alex Murphy?  He just dunked a ball to tie his team’s game up at 74 all with three seconds left on the game clock. 

Find out who the Duke staff is watching and how Duke’s hot  prospects are doing by becoming a subscriber to the most active Duke site on the AAU circuit, Blue Devil Nation Premium.  Andrew has already listed some of the measurements for key recruits at the LeBron Skills Academy in Akron as well.  And he will continue to cover both events as the week progresses.

He has already talked with Marshall Plumlee, Shabazz Muhammad, Kaleb Tarczewski and Troy Murphy, so interviews are coming.  So if you want to hear about the throng of the nation’s finest coaches are watching or the circus atmosphere surrounding LeBron James, check out our trial offer which lasts just a few more days or join for the year which is the best bargain.  It’s a great time to be a member of BDN Premium.

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Drew, Crean, Dixon, Huggins, Capel, Miller, Self, and plenty of assistants. NE Playaz won convincingly, 68-50. The only one who was consistently able to score for D-One was Deuce. Bello finished with 26. Quincy couldn’t defend Tarczewski and Clifton kept telling their replacement coach to pull him off of him- Adding that it was Quincy and four midgets. Miller finished with 5points, which is, by far, the least I’ve ever seen with him. Murphy, displaying his high bb IQ and improved athleticism and strength, and Tarczewski really closed out well in the second half. Alex Murphy finished with 18 and Kaleb Tarczewski finished with a team-high 19. K and Collins are watching DC Assault take on Franchize All-Stars.

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BDN interviews 2012 PG prospect Marcus Paige

One of the most unselfish point guards playing on the AAU circuit is Iowan Marcus Paige, a 6-0, 160 pound point guard.  Paige plays on one of the AAU’s top teams but with them playing the vast majority of their games in middle America, a lot of scouts and recruiting types don’t get to see a lot of him.  With just a couple of views, it would be hard for me to properly assess his game, but it is easy to see why the smooth, unselfish prospect is starting to hear form a lot of schools.  Paige is an exceptionally strong student in the classroom as well giving him pretty much the whole package. BDN sat down with Paige for an in depth getting to know you interview and here is what Paige had to say -

Describe your game in your own words?

Well I like to think of myself as a floor general to get the right guy the ball to scorers or whoever has the hot hand.  When it comes down to it, I can score with the ball myself.  What ever my team needs me to do to win,  I consider myself a winner.

How about a little background, like where you were born, etc.

Born in Ceder Rapids Iowa and raised in Marrion right outside of Ceder Rapids.  You know, not much going on in Iowa, just working on my game there.

In the middle America, huh?

Yeah, a couple of cornfields.

Well, Harrison Barnes put them on the map and you’re playing well.

Yeah [smiles]

Which schools are actively recruiting you?

Yeah, I have about five offers and a lot of schools have called when they could the other day

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Murphy will take an unofficial visit to Duke tomorrow as will J.P. Tokoto. Action shot of Murphy by Rick Crank, property of Rick Crank Photos in conjunction with Blue Devil Nation

DURHAM, N.C. – The Duke Blue Devils Men’s Basketball Coaches are set to entertain some of the nations top prospects for unofficial visits tomorrow.  Two of the names which stand out are Alex Murphy and J.P. Tokoto, both wing players in the class of 2012. Both Murphy and Tokoto’s team played their last games just moments ago.  Tokoto’s Wisconsin Playground Warriors lost in the semi finals while the New England Playaz won their game but they will forfeit moving to the final in that their team had to leave save Murphy.  The Playaz ended the tournament 5-1 while Wisconsin went 3-3.  BDN caught up to Murphy after the game and the rising senior said, “I’ll be visiting Duke tomorrow morning with my family.”  Murphy said that Duke had a firm place on his list and that they had yet to offer but that will in my opinion change tomorrow.   Murphy also mentioned that he has been hearing from North Carolina and that he would be open to their overtures.  When talking of his game, he mentioned former Duke player Michael Dunleavy.

Tokoto has family locally and they will take trips to both UNC and Duke tomorrow.  Tokoto is in the class of 2012 and he stated that he was a year away from making his final decision.  While Tokoto grew up a North Carolina fan, he is high on Duke but it’s obvious he is waiting to see if and when they’ll offer. For further details and interviews with both prospects and many more, join Blue Devil Nation Premium for full site access.  It’s a good time to join with coverage from the TOC and this weekend Nike Session 4 event from California on the way.  BDN is the only Duke site which covered both events and we’d love for you to join the rest of our satisfied members to talk recruiting.

Coach K wasted little time in coming over to ackonwledge his family after his amazingly special team won his fourth national title. Family is a keyword in the Blue Devils program as many players still seek advice and work out in the facilities. You can always come back to Duke if you are a player and Coach K uses his influence to help those who committed to him out. Coach K is pictured her with his daughter Debbie and his grandson on the court of Lucas Oil Arena - BDN Photo

DURHAM – Well, there is nothing like going into summer with a national championship in tow for Duke fans and the program.  It’s amazing how many positives come out when you are the last team standing.    One of the first and most important things is how a title helps with recruiting.  The Blue Devils coaches cannot be out on the road this month and NCAA rules have shortened their window of opportunities in seeing kids but that is just a blip in the radar.

Duke garnered a lot of respect with their win which is evident when BDN talks to several future prospects on the recruiting trail.  Doors have been opened and negative recruiting against the Blue Devils is tougher for unscrupulous opponents.  Take your pick of a few accusations that must now be taken off the table.  Big men do not develop at Duke?  Did anyone see how awesome Brian Zoubek was down the stretch?

That is just one of many accusations used against Duke but we’ll not get into that here for that is a story for another warm day.  What we can tell you is that when Duke calls they get kids attention.  A simple letter from Duke gets kids excited.  One prospect recently told BDN  in a proud manner that Duke was now involved for his services, yet all he had was a letter but his interest may mean the Blue Devils take a closer look.

The Duke staff sends feelers out to several prospects but only a few make the grade and remain on the radar after the staff takes in open gyms and the grassroots events otherwise known as AAU basketball.

And prospects and their parents are wising up to the negative barbs by doing more research on their own.  It is well documented that many in the media want to play Duke up as the evil giant or that they are hated by many, but if one digs deep you’ll see that there is little research done prior to what seem like  monthly rant fests.  Many unproven accusations have been sent the Blue Devils way and the curious thing is this seems to come more from shoddy journalism of late.  All it takes is one hater to get the ball rolling and then another media type might pick it up and roll with it not knowing there were few proven facts.  This in turn snowballs due to less stringent media requirements of the day and gullible people who believe anything they read on the web.

Face it, in the dawning age of the world wide web, falsehoods are a dime a dozen and with major search engines giving “Joe,” off the street a chance to pass himself off as a legitimate and better yet knowledgeable writer for one of the many fan type sites that are butchering traditional journalistic integrity.  I cannot tell you how many times I have to shoot down rumors in our members forum from people who take these want to be insiders or new age journalist word.  That would for example be the word of a guy with no track record who has never seen Duke play in person nor one who might live in say, ACC country.  Their sources?  Why it’s what they hear in the sea of shoddy modern day reporting where assumptions often take the place of fact.

One of the prospects Krzyzewski wants to coach in the future is Austin Rivers, son of Glenn "Doc" Rivers former NBA player and coach of the Boston Celtics. Read more about the Rivers recruitment on BDN Premium

The truth is the truth and the fact is that Duke is more than ethical in their approach to recruiting and they have a track record for such.  And keep in mind that when you are on top, everybody literally gangs up on you.  When the Duke staff walks into events like say the Peach Jam a top notch Nike ran development camp for prospects, there will be respect for the job they did winning the title from other coaches, but once they have passed you can see some of them start to talk, heck, I’ve even heard it firsthand.

But the prospects themselves certainly know Coach K [Krzyzewski] is in the house and that they are coming off a national championship where they beat the numbers 2, 3, 10 and 12 teams in the country to gain the ultimate trophy.  But of course, Duke had an easy road, right?  Okay, enough on some members of the media and their hate.

The Blue Devils were already enjoying good recruiting efforts with Josh Hairston, Kyrie Irving and Tyler Thornton in the class of 2010 already in the fold and due on campus in late June.  But they have most recently received  two early verbal commitments from Michael Gbinije and Tyler Adams, two solid prospects which should prove to be part of a puzzle.

And if you dig some facts up, you’ll find that both Gbinjie’s and Adams families were in approval in that they knew the opportunity that was at hand for their sons.  I mean, how many kids parents wouldn’t want to play for a coach who has four national titles, an Olympic Gold Medal and a track record for success?

Make no mistake, Krzyzewski’s duties with Team USA have been a positive.  While I was trying to get away from talking more of the media I cannot help but reflect on how many negative articles existed saying that Kryzyzewski was hurting Duke by taking the job.  Are you kidding me?  The guy wins a Gold medal and in the process becomes an even better coach.

Tyler Adams a 6-9 banger from Mississippi is the latest prospect to cast his lot with the Blue Devils. BDN Photo

How attractive is this to kids knowing  that Krzyzewski talks on a regular basis with the likes of Kobe Bryant and LeBron James?   I mean, Kryzyzewski has proven he can mold the best our country has to offer into champions and this most certainly is a positive. in that he played a big role in putting USA basketball back on top.  A deep involvement in USA Basketball opens a lot of door and his contacts with NBA types along the way surely helps in learning from the games best.  In short, he can tell kids how Dwight Howard or the many other stars prepare and enlighten them on the little intangibles which could very well make them a better player.

Duke recruiting is also aided by the staff of Chris Collins, Nate James and Steve Wojciechowski [Wojo} form one of the best assistant coaching staffs in America and they can point to facilities akin to the best in the country as just one of the many selling points.  But they all come back to Coach in their spills and for good reason.

While interviewing Chris Collins going into the West Virginia game in Indianapolis I made the statement that I had not seen him look this fresh since in a decade.  Collins agreed with that statement and elaborated on it in an interview in BDN’s archives and the very next day the man himself made the comment that he felt fresher than ever and Duke was finally getting some of the positive coverage it deserved.

It’s hard to call Duke a rejuvenated program for they won more games in this decade than any other team, but rest assured some new approaches have worked wonders and it shouldn’t be hard to see that Krzyzewski is firmly entrenched at Duke despite the silly if not ridiculous rumors that he was interested in the New Jersey Nets job which was more shoddy journalism.

Kryzyzewski is totally into his coaching these days and he is enjoying each and every challenge along the way.  The 2010 Duke team was special in many ways and their success is proof that Duke is still Duke and that they are always playing for the big prize .

And on the recruiting trail?  Duke is red hot and the proof of that will come soon enough when kids continue to want to play for a program that is family for life and one that is a proven winner on and off the court.  Negative recruiting and articles will continue but Duke forced the nation to take a deep look when the Blue Devils were in the national spotlight.  And they saw the truth, that the national champions were a tight knit group of great kids who showed the heart of their coach.  And none of them had their noses stuck up in the air as some would have you think.  They also saw the real Krzyzewski and the real program and the best thing of it all is that some media members may actually start to figure out that a team that helped gave CBS it’s highest ratings in ten years is not so hated after all.

The proof is in the pudding and the ingredients formed a champion.

Follow Duke Basketball Recruiting by joining BDN Premium for full site access and continued updates from our experienced team of analyst.

Josh Hairston and Tyler Thornton named Gatorade Players of the Year in their state - copyright BDN Photo

The 2010 Duke Recruiting class currently consists of three players and all were named Gatorade players of the year in their state.  Josh Hairston [6-8 forward] was voted the top player in Maryland.  Hairston transferred to Montrosse Christian Academy from Courtland HS in Virginia and enjoyed a very successful year.

Kyrie Irving was named the top player in the state of New Jersey where he played for St. Patrick’s and he of course will run the point guard spot at Duke next season.  Irving was also named to the McDonald’s All American team.

Tyler Thornton [6-2 guard] led his Gonzaga Prep school to the title and was named Gatorade player of the year District of Columbia.

Blue Devil Nation congratulates the three incoming Blue Devils for their success on the hardwood this season.

It is now official that Carrick Felix is the newest Duke Blue Devil.  Felix is a 6-6 athletic swing man from Southern Idaho Junior College.  Felix visited Duke Sunday until early this morning, meeting with admissions who accepted him into Duke.  Felix will have three years of eligibility left.  Felix excels in the classroom and he looks forward to expanding that education while in Durham.  Nate James was the lead assistant in the newest Blue Devils’ recruitment.  In fact, James assisted Duke as the lead recruiter with Michael Gbinije as well.  Join BDN Premium and talk about this latest news on our members only message board.  This announcement came as no surprise to our members which is one of the many benefits for full site access.

Just added to BDN Premium – How Duke discovered Carrick Felix and how they plan to use him in their system.  Get the real deal inside.

Just another Monday morning for the Blue Devil Nation. The men whipped the Hokies, the women whipped the Terps to win the ACC regular season, Duke signs a football prospect, two prospects visit during the basketball game a spring football update and of course, the young lady profiling in the pic above is our cheerleader of the week.

A lot of people will call  Duke’s 67-55 win over Virginia Tech ugly, but beauty is in the eye of the beholder.  Shooting just 29% Duke had their second worst game from the field this season and still won.   Of course, they beat UConn as well shooting 28%.  So, you can’t hit your shots and win.  That’s a beautiful thing for a Duke fan.  The Duke defense held Virginia Tech to 55 points.  That’s a beautiful thing to Mike Krzyzewski.

Duke won the battle of the boards – again.  History shows this is a rarity which means this is the best rebounding team Krzyzewski has coached at Duke. In fact, this team is 20-2  when they win the battle of the boards this season

Have you heard that Brian Zoubek had 16 boards last evening?  Yeah, I figured you had.  Amazing effort, huh?  You’ll hear from the “Zoubinator” shortly for we caught up with him to get some post game comments last evening.

At 11-2 in conference, Duke is in complete control of their destiny in a bid to claim the ACC regular season title.  Duke goes on the road to Virginia and then Maryland before closing the season out at home against North Carolina.  A split on the road and a win over UNC  would almost assuredly lock it up for Duke.  Maybe they’ll win them all, but then again, Duke cannot overlook anyone down the stretch.  Maryland is right there with Duke in the standings, while Virginia needs a win to boost their NCAA hopes and UNC just needs wins and are playing for their tournament life, even if it is the NIT.

There goes that Conner Vernon again!  After making a splash as a true freshman, the wide receiver caught the only touchdown pass during this weekends closed scrimmage.  A lot of kids fall prey to the sophomore jinx, but if his performance this past Saturday was any indication, he can avoid that.

So, I am watching the scrimmage and something seems a bit weird and then it comes to me, via seeing Thaddeus Lewis on the sidelines.  Duke is breaking in two new quarterbacks and both are green as grass at this time.  FWIW, Lewis told me he’d be heading to the NFL Combine and we wish him luck.  We wish Duke’s two new quarterbacks well too.

Speaking of Sean Schroeder and Brandon Connette, both had their moments.  Schroeder ran the scout team last year while Connette was still in high school.  Connette seems to be the better runner to go with good size but Schroeder was comfortable and threw the ball well.  We’ll have an interview with Schroeder up shortly.

There were sixty prospects on campus on Junior Day for Duke Football and Duke got a good one to verbal in Jalen “Scoot” Simmons, a running back with 4.5 speed out of Charlotte.  He picked the Blue Devils over UNC, NCSU, Clemson and a couple of SEC schools.

Props to the women’s basketball team for almost clinching the ACC title with a win over Maryland.  The Terp’s disrespected the women, walking through them as they got into position for the nation anthem and so Duke gave them a Christmas present.  No, not a real present.  They unleashed Karima Christmas

Finally, the prospects attending last nights Duke-Virginia Tech basketball game were Marshall Plumlee and Michael Haynes.  For more on that, might I suggest you join Blue Devil Nation Premium for full site access?  That’s where we talk about the other sport known as recruiting.

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