Duke’s success depends on 2 guards not only on Cooper Flagg, claims NCAAB analyst: “Real keys to the team”
Duke freshman Cooper Flagg has been one of the most talked about names in college basketball. However, ESPN analyst Jay Bilas believes Duke's success this season requires more than Flagg's abilities.
In a post on Instagram on November 19, Bilas expressed his thoughts about the Duke team and the 'keys' to possible success for the exciting roster.
"Duke has looked really good. It's a freshman-led team in a lot of ways, but they've got a lot of older players that are essentially coming off the bench, and they've got two older starters in Tyrese Proctor and Caleb Foster.
"A lot of Duke's success is going to be determined by how effective their guards are throughout the year. Foster and Proctor, I think are real keys to the team but their best players are cooper Flagg and Kon Knueppel," Bilas said.
Proctor ended last season ranked 25th nationally for assist-turnover ratio, at 2.95. His leadership qualities will be vital in solidifying the squad. So far this season, the junior is averaging 12.8 points, 4.0 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 47.2 FG%.
Meanwhile, the sophomore Caleb Foster shot 40% from 3-point range last season and can provide spacing on the floor. Foster is averaging 9.8 points, 2.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 45.7 FG% this year.
Like Cooper Flagg, Kneuppel is the other promising talent on the Duke roster. He has the ability to be more than just a shooter on the team. The 19-year-old arrived from Wisconsin with similar hype. Knueppel's all-around ability is a valuable skill for Duke as he possesses attributes required at different levels on the floor.
Coach John Scheyer has his work cut out as he aims to maximize the strengths of each individual on his squad while relying on the experience of the older guys.
"Those two guys are special but I think it's going to take a little while for that team, which has a lot of new pieces, to become a finished product. But that roster, I think is as good as any roster, maybe the most talented roster in the country. And I think they're going to do some really good things throughout the course of the year, " Bilas stated further.
Cooper Flagg claims ACC Basketball Rookie of the Week nod
Duke freshman guard Cooper Flagg was named ACC Basketball Rookie of the Week on Monday. Flagg had an average of 17 points, 10 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 2.0 blocks, and 1.5 steals across their two games.
Since the start of the 2013-14 season, Duke has had an ACC Rookie of the Week in 87 out of 188 weeks (46.3%). Twenty-six different rookies have won the award at least once in that span.
Flagg joins fellow rookie Kon Knueppel to become the second Duke player to win the ACC Rookie of the Week award this season.