Miles Plumlee talks of the coming season, playing with his brother Mason and a special dunk in this audio interview -
Tag Archives: Miles Plumlee
2009-10 Player profile and preview – Miles Plumlee
According to Perky Plumlee, when his sons Miles and Mason stand back to back with their arms raised, Miles has almost a full hands reach advantage. That length combined with athleticism should allow Miles the opportunity to build upon his freshman season where he adjusted to the speed of the college game.
Miles started the season in the middle for the Blue Devils last year but found himself learning the Duke system on the run and ultimately out of the line up. The Duke staff hopes that Miles can become more consistent with his play in 2009-10 and harness the fire that earned him a starting spot in the pre season.
The eldest Plumlee will be joined by his brother Mason this season and there is no reason to think that the chemistry between the two siblings will do do anything other than help on the court. Expect Miles to float between the four and five spot this year, allowing junior Kyle Singler more freedom where he will play his natural position.
Yes, I know that Duke doesn't have natural positions, but with this seasons team he will be depended upon to battle on the boards with Mason and Brian Zoubek. Still, Miles strength in high school was his inside-out game where he faced the basket. So, look for him to have an improved back to the basket game this season.
Over the summer, Miles competed in the N.C. Pro Am event held at N.C. Central and he had packed on twenty solid pounds of muscle. He showed signs of brilliance, but the environment didn't allow him but so many looks. Despite that he was one of the better front court players in the league.
Miles also scored a lot of point at Christ School Arden via his perimeter shot, but his ability to run the court and handle the ball well for a big man is when he's at his best. During one dunk at the event, Miles had his elbows even with the rim before the flush.
Duke is very deep in the front court this season, so it'll be interesting to see how things shake out for Miles Plumlee. I've been hearing that the staff is pleased with Miles off season development, thus Duke fans anxiously await seeing that improvement for themselves.
BDN Duke Basketball Premium Update – visits set
As you know by now Roscoe Smith is slated to visit Duke this coming week. The visit [private] caught Duke off guard because it was not planned until recently. Despite that, Duke is elated to have him visit, especially Nate James one of the lead recruiters with Smith. After his visit to Durham, Smith will head to Oak Hill Academy where he will ready for the start of the school year. Our understanding is that Duke will set up an in home visit with Smith in the near future. Smith still has a standing offer but nobody expects him to pull the trigger soon.
Tyler Thornton and Josh Hairston's official in home visits will take place September the 20th. Hairston, of course, transferred to Montrosse Christian Academy. Duke is ironing out last minute details on "Countdown to Craziness," an event that will take place on October the 16th. The event will kick off the fast approaching season and should be a lot of fun. The aforementioned Hairston and Thornton will attend the event. There are other visitors in the works for that day as well, more on that later.
While Brandon Knight expands his list of schools, it may interest you to know that Duke is working on an in home visit in September. One must remember that Duke has kept their name in there for a good while now. While they would like be happy with Kyrie Irving pulling the trigger quickly, they are covering the bases. In fact, Duke seems to still have some type of back-up plans should Irving and Barnes suddenly sour. Speaking of Kyrie Irving, Duke will be in-home with Kyrie on September the 9th. Harrison Barnes is slated for October the 5th. Please check past updates for the official visit dates. Duke is waiting for the Rivers camp to solidify a visit, but they are not pushing for it, instead allowing them to do on their time. Austin Rivers is still expected to visit in September. There is word that the visit will coincide with one to UNC as well.
Mason Plumlee will room with Ryan Kelly this season. Both players continue to work hard in the weight room under Williams Stephenson. Miles Plumlee has the highest measured vertical leap on the team. When standing side by side with Mason, their hands raised, Miles has about a four-inch reach advantage. Lance Thomas is the team's strongest player in the weight room.
Recruiting analysis - With Barnes now saying he will take until spring to make a decision, Duke is covering the bases with Smith, a player who has shown a decent amount of interest in Duke. Duke was obviously hoping Barnes would decide in October. The same holds true with Kyrie Irving, who Duke will be all over this month. Duke feels really good about their chances with both kids, but they need one of them to go ahead and verbal no later than October so they can move on with plans for 2011 and 2012. Other prospects holding offers are Quincy Miller, Marshall Plumlee and J.P. Tokoto.
We'll add an addendum to this post a bit later. Thanks for your patience while I took a mini break and sorry for the run-on post in that I am suddenly having format issues.[/private]
NC Pro AM Report – Duke Basketball Players Take to the Court
The North Carolina Pro Am is rolling along and once again a bevy of Dukies took the court to play some hoops in the dog days of summer. Team Duhon bounced back tonight crushing their opponent 97-47 behind Mason Plumlee's 17 points. Plumlee, who struggled from the field the night before, threw down three early slams on his way to 11 first half points.
The incoming freshman seemed to have a bit of a chip on his shoulder and that led to 17 points, 9 rebounds, 4 blocks and 2 assists, 2 steals despite sitting out eight and a half minutes of the lopsided game. The PA announcer was pretty creative when Mason scored saying, "on the flipper," "Mason Plumlee with authority," or "Get out of the way, Mason Plumlee with the slam."
Plumlee's teammate Jon Scheyer started the game slow, mainly due to him not seeing the ball from fellow guards. Nevermind he is the starting PG at Duke. Anyhow, Scheyer adjusted and drained 3 three pointers, had 16 points and dished around 5 assists. It was clear to me that Scheyer will have no trouble picking up where he left off running the show for Duke this coming season.
In the evening's first game, freshman to be Ryan Kelly scored 15 points but his team fell short 74-59 after their win over the aforementioned Team Duhon the night before. Kelly finished well around the bucket and like the Plumlees has a good handle. The big problem for Ryan was getting the ball in his hand. I joked to one guy that getting a pass was like finding a polar bear in the tropics for some of the Duke players.
The nightcap feature the return of Kyle Singler and he didn't disappoint with his play. Singler scored 20 points on his usual variety of moves and showed that he is ready to go this season. Singler has lost some weight in an effort to play a different role for Duke this season, but he is still effective on the glass.
His teammate, rising soph Miles Plumlee ended the game with 8 points, but the PA announcer raved about his ball handling skills and a sweet reverse dunk. Unfortunately, their team came up short losing 72-64 down the stretch in a game that was nip and tuck throughout. Some questionable calls and balls falling off the rim late sealed their fate and they look to bounce back in the next go round.
There was another Blue Devil on the floor, but he played for the victors. Walk on Casey Peters played some significant minutes and hustled throughout the game on his way to 6 points. Peters was responsible to leading the Duke managers in a win over the UNC crew last season and was added to the team for the coming year.
Blue Devils were in the stands as well on Wednesday. Nolan Smith was there to cheer on his teammates and socialize in the environment and Plumlee's mom, Leslie was their supporting her boys. There was another future Devil going unnoticed as well, in Seth Curry. The youthful looking Curry will sit out this coming season after transferring from Liberty University.
The action continues this evening and admission is free. Check the NC Pro Am site for schedules and rosters. Keep in mind that as the event goes on, there will be some no shows by the players. For past reports, scan the archives or go to the Duke Basketball drop down menu on the top left of the main page.
Getting to the Point (and the Post)!
After Duke's Sweet 16 loss to Villanova, on March 27, Coach Krzyzweski was asked, "Does this in any way make you more eager to find a post player who can really score?" He answered, "And a point. And we feel -- it's not like we haven't tried to find them. A couple of them have gone to other schools right at the last second. We were like a three-headed monster on offense. And it carried us a long way, but it couldn't -- they played a lot of five against three tonight."
The Blue Devils may end up with a top rated point guard but it will not be from the Class of 2009. Eric Bledsoe and John Wall have signed with Kentucky, while Darius Smith decided to head East to Connecticut. Those three point guards all had Duke on their list, but the Blue Devils have most likely finished up their recruiting for this year and did not bring in a point guard to complement 6'11 Mason Plumlee and 6'9" Ryan Kelly two McDonald's All-Americans who will potentially provide Coach Krzyzewski considerable depth in the front court. The recruiting focus now shifts to 2010.
For this coming season, point guard duties will remain with Senior Jon Scheyer, a 6'5" wing guard, and Junior Nolan Smith, a 6'3" combo guard. While neither Scheyer nor Smith is a true point guard, both players bring point guard skills onto the court. When the two play together those skills combine to create a point guard who, while not spectacular, is certainly solid.
Jon Scheyer protects the basketball which results in a minimal number of turnovers. After Scheyer led Duke to the ACC Championship and was named the tournament's Most Valuable Player, Kyle Singler commented, "He makes plays for himself and others. That spot for us, when Jon has been there, has been huge for us." For the season, Scheyer recorded a 1.8:1 assists to turnover ratio, while averaging 14.9 points per game. Defensively, Scheyer is a tremendous off-the-ball defender who led Duke with 1.6 steals per game.
Nolan Smith's key skills are on-the-ball defense and the ability to finish at the rim. When he is healthy, Smith is a player who makes Duke a stronger team. Staying healthy has been a bit of a challenge for Smith over his first two seasons as a Blue Devil. He missed three games, late this past regular season, after suffering a concussion and bruised ribs in a game at Maryland. As a freshman, Smith was slowed down the stretch after hyper-extending his knee. With Duke being thin in the backcourt this coming season, it is imperative Smith avoid any significant injuries such as the concussion as well as the nagging little problems of his freshman year.
Last season, the three headed monster Coach Krzyzewski alluded to was: Kyle Singler, Gerald Henderson, and Jon Scheyer. The three combined to average 47.9 points per game which represents 72 percent of the team’s points. With Gerald Henderson gone to the NBA, Coach Krzyzewski will be looking for a couple of players to step up their consistency on offense. Nolan Smith, who averaged 8.4 points per game last season, is a likely candidate as is Elliot Williams, who averaged 4.2 points.
As a freshman, Williams came on strong, after being inserted into the starting line-up, averaging 7.3 points over the last 12 games. Williams brings exceptional athleticism onto the court and has the ability to play pressure defense. He needs to develop a consistent jump shot and must improve on his woeful free throw percentage, but Blue Devil fans should look for Williams to be a significant factor in the rotation from day one especially if he makes the type of freshman-to-sophomore improvements prevalent in the college game.
Coach Krzyzewski will only have three guards at his disposal next year so look for Kyle Singler to spend major minutes at small forward. Duke will have to play a larger line-up out of necessity and the competition for playing time should be fierce. Seniors Lance Thomas and Brian Zoubek have started 62 and 21 games respectively during their first three seasons in Durham. They have the advantage of understanding Coach Krzyzewski’s defensive system and will be looking to have breakout senior seasons. Neither player has proven to be a consistent offensive option but both have their niche. Thomas is a versatile defender who is valuable in a fast tempo contest, while Zoubek is an extremely talented passer out of the high post. Zoubek made 82.8 percent of his free throw attempts as a junior.
Sophomore Miles Plumlee and freshmen Mason Plumlee and Ryan Kelly will be intent on taking away playing time from the two experienced seniors. Miles Plumlee looked lost on the court at times during his freshman season but also showed flashes of talent. He is mobile and should benefit from the standard freshman-to-sophomore improvement. His brother, Mason Plumlee is a player many analysts believe has the ability to make an immediate impact. Time will tell. Ryan Kelly is a wiry outside-in player with 3-point range. Kelly won the 3-point shooting contest at this year’s McDonald’s All-American game.
Out of those five frontcourt options, someone needs to step up and establish themselves as a consistent offensive threat. As Coach Krzyzewski stated in March, Duke played a lot of three on five last year and the lack of an interior offensive threat hurt the team. Zoubek and both the Plumlees have the size to be an impact post player what remains to be seen is if they can develop the game to get the job done. Thomas and Kelly are players who need to provide minutes at power forward so Singler can play on the wing. Sophomore Olek Czyz is a wild card and could compete for playing time at power forward due to his leaping ability and strength, or see duty on the wing due to the lack of backcourt players.
Singler, Scheyer, Smith, and Williams will be the core of next year’s rotation. The question is who will be players five, six, and seven? The answer will be interesting but Duke Fans will have to wait until next year and ACC games in January before knowing the answer. In the meantime, it is only late spring and a whole summer of starting line-up and minutes per game speculation lies in front of us not to mention summer pick-up game reports. I’ll see you all on the message boards!
Mason Plumlee chats up the Blue Devil Nation
Blue Devil Nation Premium caught up with Mason Plumlee who just helped lead his Christ School team to their third consecutive state championship. The following is an in depth and exclusive interview where he talks of that game. He also touches on playing against and with Ryan Kelly, his brothers Miles and Marshall Plumlee, the upcoming all star games and his plans for the future. Enjoy the interview -
Your Christ School team won another state championship game. Can you tell me about the game?
It was great. It was probably the most fulfilling out of the three (CS has won three consecutive state titles). It was the expectation all year for us and anything less than winning would have been a disappointment. There were a lot of mixed emotions but it was a relief. But it was more happiness than anything.
Have you thought about the fact that your high school career is over and that after some All Star games, you'll next dribble the ball in Durham?
[private] In terms of getting ready for Duke I am, but I want to enjoy the last semester with my teammates and the people I have been here with for three years. I'm just trying to enjoy the rest of the year here.
Can you look back and reflect on your Christ School experiences?
I've learned a ton of stuff on and off the court, but it's more just the people I've been with and the players I've been able to play with made it more fun and such an enjoyable experience.
When you first moved from Indiana to North Carolina, did you see yourself being as successful as you are today?
I really didn't . Especially my first year. I thought we had a really good team that wasn't expected to win the state. I could have never imagined we'd have won three championships in three years which is pretty awesome.
How often do you talk to Miles?
I talked to him after we won the state tournament. He was happy for us and congratulated us and everything.
What has Miles had to say about his experience at Duke thus far?
He just said there are ups and downs and that it's not always easy but overall he enjoys it.
You were named to the prestigious McDonald's All American team. While growing up, did you think you would attain that status?
Yeah, it would be easy to say now that's what I wanted but I didn't ... the first time I decided it was something I wanted to reach was when I went to watch the 2005 game in South Bend, Indiana. I think Josh McRoberts got the MVP in that game and that was the first time I saw one, so ...
Will it be odd not to go right into AAU ball this summer?
Yeah. It is kind of weird because I love AAU and I will miss it. Like you said earlier, I have got the McDonald's, the Jordan game and the Nike Hoop Summit, so I will be a little busy.
Tell me a little more about the Hoop Summit ...
It will be played April 18th and we'll go out there 3 or 4 days. It's in Portland. John Wall is on our team who Duke is recruiting.
When the McDonald's committee selects you, the Jordan and so on. How do they contact you? Or how do you find out you've been selected to play in those games?
Well, the McDonald's stuff came in the mail and once that happened a couple of people who are voters called me or called my coach. I think Bob Gibbons called my AAU coach. Then like the Jordan Classic, the Nike guy called my Dad and said I was invited. Then I got something in the mail later. The Hoop Summit? They called my coach.
Back to the championship game for a minute. You went up against your future teammate Ryan Kelly and beat those guys twice this year. Were they a little tougher this time out?
Yeah. I think they tried to slow it down a lot more and were more ready for us. I mean, the first ... we kind of knew as a team going in we weren't going to beat them by thirty plus again. We just played our game and came out on top.
What are the differences you see between Ryan Kelly's game and your game?
Well! I figure he's a pretty good shooter. I think we are more similar than different. I don't know ... on his team he has to do the majority of the scoring. I've been fortunate to play with people like Lakeem Jackson, Reggie and a little bit more of a balanced team.
Was there any type of rivalry that developed between you guys? I mean you both signed at Duke and that kind of thing. Did that add a little something extra when you guys met?
Yeah, I guess. From the outside looking in, it's kind of like that. But for us it was just our team against theirs. The most important thing was a championship.
Do you think you can play alongside Kelly?
Yeah.
Do you see Miles as a more inside oriented guy next season?
I've played with Miles my whole life and he can do a lot more than just play inside. I think with me coming in next year and Ryan and having more depth inside, he'll be able to go inside-out more. Right now, he is just down on the block.
Let's talk just a second about your younger brother Marshall. Do you think that Duke may recruit him?
Well, I don't know, it'll be interesting. Of course, as his brother I hope they do. I hope he improves his game enough to where they will recruit him. He's got a long way to go, just like I do before I get to Duke next year. I hope that we can all stay together like we did here at Christ School and hope Marshall keeps improving. He's working really hard. If he just grows into his body I think he'll be pretty good.
Do you know where Marshall will play his AAU ball for this summer?
Yeah, he's going to play for Indiana Elite. He'll go to the Carolina Challenge. I know AAU will be different this year because they have an open period in the Spring. I think the tournaments are more regional up until July.
How long do you have left in high school?
We have until May which will not be that long.
You guys take a pretty good academic load and study a lot ...
We have study hall every week night from Sunday to Thursday which lasts from 7:30 to 9:15.
Good deal, that'll help prepare you for college. When you finish school will you go to Indiana to be with your parents ... Durham ... where will you be hanging out?
I will go home for the first month or so to be home with my family and work out there. I will go to Duke for the second session of summer school which I think starts July 1st.
Thanks for your time and good luck with the All Star games. Enjoy yourself, stay healthy and be a kid.
I will. Thanks Mr. Watson.
Thank You. [/private]
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