Duke Basketball officially got underway with Countdown to Craziness this past Saturday Evening.  Perhaps the most important thing which happened was not seeing this years team for the first time, but the unveiling of the fifth National Championship banner to a roaring crowd.  Duke must now mold a lot of youngsters with a few veterans to make another run where they are already pre season ranked number four in the nation.

A General Idea ...

Quite frankly, it's hard to tell but so much from the two scrimmages held at Countdown to Craziness with concern of what to expect the team will look like during the 2015-16 season.  It will be the coming exhibition games before we have  better idea of how Mike Krzyzewski will utilize his lineups and likely a few more games into the season.  While it is obvious that Derryck Thornton will run the team due to him being the only true point guard on the roster, we will likely  see a starting rotation from five more roster players.  My guess is that we'll see Amile Jefferson, Matt Jones, Grayson Allen as starting lineup mainstays along with freshman Luke Kennard, Brandon Ingram and a focused Marshall Plumlee.  What we still need to learn is who will play behind the six aforementioned players.  Look for the staff to emphasize finding their rotation of eight to nine bodies in the coming weeks. In fact, Krzyzewski said as much in his post scrimmage press conference where he hinted toward looking for a core eight or so players.

Big and Defensive

"Our defense is ahead of our offense and we're very big," said Duke Coach Mike Krzyzewski.  "We've been concentrating a lot on defense in the first twelve practices."  The Blue Devils have been working on defending the ball screen.  Duke has plenty of length this season due to the teams size which is the third tallest roster per man during his Krzyzewski's tenure in Durham.  But being big means the Blue Devils will see picks a plenty and they are focusing on defensive rotation.  While there were just four recorded blocks in the scrimmages, two by Marshall Plumlee and two by Chase Jeter, there were a lot of contested shots around the rim.  A side note is that Krzyzewski mentioned how good Matt Jones defense was on freshman Derryck Thornton.  "Anybody guarded by Matt Jones is going to have a hard time.  Matt Jones is a great defender and not just a good one," said Krzyzewski.  Thornton had six total assists but was also forced into seven turnovers.

Krzyzewski Praised His Vets

"I thought Marshall (Plumlee) and Amile (Jefferson) sat a really good tone.  They were men," said Krzyzewski of his seniors.  He went on to say that Matt Jones and Grayson Allen helped there as well.  "The four upperclassmen set a tone and that helped the freshman get their feet wet," said the five time title holding coach.  After the game Amile Jefferson told Blue Devil Nation that he relished his role as a captain and helping bring along the newcomers.  While some of the four players Krzyzewski mentioned have been role players on previous teams, it is clear that they will take on larger roles this season.

Future Dukies and Prospects

Duke entertained a bevy of future Duke players and hopeful prospects during Countdown to Craziness.  Among them were Gary Trent Jr. and Jayson Tatum pictured left.  Trent is the son of Ohio standout Gary Trent Sr. and Jayson Tatum is already a fan favorite after committing to Duke as one  of the top two players in  a talented class.  Also in attendance was recent verbal Javin DeLaurier, Wendell Carter, Tre Jones and Immanuel Quickly.  There were some others as well, but the guys listed above all stood with the Cameron Crazies after being called out one by one.  Duke Basketball recruiting is on solid footing and while this wasn't a true game atmosphere in Cameron, there was plenty of fan love displayed for the team.    With concern to Harry Giles, a monster target of the staff, he attended Kentucky for their season opening event.  His last visit will be to Duke on October the 30th weekend as he has cancelled a visit to North Carolina.

Next Play

The Blue Devils take on Florida Southern in an exhibition game on October the 30th,  The game can be seen at BDN+ which is a part of GoDuke.com.  The game tips at 7:00 and the following day the nationally ranked football team plays a key Coastal Division game versus Miami at Wallace Wade Stadium where game time has yet to be announced.