Duke’s new coach Jon Scheyer is tracking a coaching legend, but he won’t be graded on a curve.
Mike Krzyzewski has defined Duke basketball for more than four decades. When the Blues started their first season without him as head coach since the 1979-80 season, they placed the keys in the hands of head coach Scheyer for the first time.
Scheyer, 35, was not alive when Krzyzewski embarked on his legendary career. Krzyzewski retired with a record of 1,129-309 at Duke. His 1,202 wins at Duke and Army make Krzyzewski the most winning coach in college basketball history.
His career almost ended in a storybook when Duke reached the quarterfinals in 2022 before losing to rival North Carolina.
With the start of the 2022-23 season on November 7, Scheyer won’t have to wait much longer to begin a new era of Duke basketball. They entered the season 7th in the Associated Press pre-season poll.
North Carolina’s Hubert Davis brought Tar Heels to the championship game last season in his first year after two-time national champion Roy Williams retired. That the Blue Devils’ biggest rival was able to usher in a new era of basketball in Chapel Hill with ease will certainly weigh on fans as the season progresses.
Before Davis a year ago, there was no recent precedent where a champion coach’s successor could find immediate success. From the departure of Gary Williams from Maryland to the dismissal of Kevin Ollie in Connecticut, there are five instances where a team switched from championship-winning coach.
No one attended the NCAA tournament in the first season with the new coach.
Scheyer has been a key player on the Blues’ bench since the 2013-14 season, and the show expects that consistency to lead to a seamless change of keeper.
Center Dereck Lively II was ranked as the No. 2 prospect after graduating from high school, small forward Dariq Whitehead in 3rd, and center Kyle Filipowski in 4th, According to Sports 247. All three are The first pick is expected in the 2023 NBA Draft.
According to the Washington Postplayers feel no extra pressure during the 2022-23 campaign build, and that’s thanks to Scheyer.
Defender Jeremy Roach said: “It’s been a smooth transition… coach Scheyer will always give the boys confidence… he’ll make you feel comfortable.”
Think of this as the calm before the storm.
