There is certainly a lot of hype surrounding the 2016-17 Duke Basketball team and for good reason.  The Blue Devils return a solid nucleus of players to go with an outstanding freshman class.  Here are a few tidbits on what to expect this season -

Duke will bring Harry Giles Jr. along slowly in that there is no rush to get him back into playing shape right away.  His rehab is going well and he is getting his timing back as he integrates back into the game. Giles is but one of the reasons this year's Duke team will be perhaps the best rebounding team Mike Krzyzewski has had.

A season ago, Duke leaned on varying players to run the point guard spot at times.  The Blue Devils lost Derryck Thornton in  the off-season but there is no reason to panic.  What you will see this season is point guard by committee.  Grayson Allen came back to Duke for another season and he will get his chances at running the team.  In a sense, this will help his NBA career by adding to his skill set.  Duke will also rely on Matt Jones, Luke Kennard here as well.  And then there is of course, the talented newcomer in Frank Jackson.  What Duke likely wants is for these guys to be a bit interchangeable.

Duke has crazy depth this season.  The team has gone from not being able to hold traditional practices due to lack of numbers last season to a place of luxury.  This will be one of the tallest rosters ever for Duke and there are multiple players who can play varying positions.  Besides, we all know there are no positions at Duke.

The Blue Devils can throw a lot of players at you in the post this season.  Giles was a beast on the high school level but skilled enough to come at you in different ways.  The return of an even stronger Amile Jefferson is a major plus.  Not only will he groom younger players in the Duke way of doing things, he'll be a major factor.  He was averaging a double-double when he went down a season ago. There is no doubt that Chase Jeter will be much improved and he will be joined by newcomer Javin DeLaurier who supposedly grew another inch since committing to Duke. One of the more intriguing players will be Marques Bolden.  Having seen all the guys in high school, I know he can be a factor, especially when motivated,  Duke will be very versatile up front with solid scoring options.

I spoke to team depth and that means expect Duke to play much better defense this season.  The Blue Devils can throw a lot of players at you and that means fresh legs which will enable them to press and fill the passing lanes.  Duke Basketball competed by going to a zone in recent years and we will still see some of that, but we will also see a return to man to man defense.  There should be plenty of talent that knows how to switch in said defense and help when guys are beat on ball.

There is no one category that fits Jayson Tatum well if we are talking front or back court.  That is because he would play shooting guard in a pinch but will settle in as the best small forward or the best tall wing on this years team.  Blessed with a super skill set he can even learn to be a great defender which is something to watch out for.   It is notable that Tatum stands at 6-8, but there are no less than six players taller than him on the roster.

Team chemistry will be a key this season and reports are that the team gets along well.  They grew up a lot and learned to Duke way while getting to know one another when Mike Krzyzewski and Jeff Capel were helping Team USA win Gold.  It helps when you have a veteran assistant in Nate James and Jon Scheyer guiding the team through workouts.  One of the overlooked strengths of this team and program is the current staff.  Capel is the most grizzled assistant Mike Krzyzewski has ever had.  In fact, I would venture to say this is the best staff Duke hoops has had and that is saying a lot.

Three of the four pre season publications has Duke ranked first in the nation.  Duke will play nine currently ranked team games according to Blue Ribbon which is likely the best preview of the bunch.

Grayson Allen has been featured as a first team All American and Player of the Year Candidate in the pre season.  Many are saying his numbers will drop with such a talented team, but I personally wonder about that.  The reason being that teams will not be allowed to double-team him as they did a season ago and he will not have to carry the burden which will allow him fresh legs.

Duke will score the ball.  The offensive potential of this years team is off the charts.  Besides the aforementioned Allen, Duke can score from every single position on the court.  Good luck to teams trying to shut one player down for the rest of the cast will make you pay. There is the hard-nosed ability of Luke Kennard to shoot the three, the slashing ability of Frank Jackson and a steady Matt Jones in the backcourt.  Up front, Jefferson was coming into his own before injury a season ago and Jayson Tatum and Harry Giles were fill it up guys in high school.  And wait until you see that Marques Bolden can pop outside as well as play with his back to the basket.

In closing, Duke Basketball will have some epic practices.  It's hard not to leave a player name out or miss pointing out strengths in one article. That's how crazy talented this year's team will be.  It will be a fun year and we are getting ready to start hearing more and more hype for the season is upon us.