Duke Chronicle Men's Basketball Preview 2023 by Duke Chronicle

NATIONAL CHAMPIONS

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NATIONAL CHAMPIONS

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Graphic by Dom Fenoglio and Colton Schwabe / The Chronicle

SPOTLIGHT ON SIX

2 | FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2023

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Sean Stewart’s Duke ties go back to a famous alumni neighbor | PAGE 4

Sorry not sorry

Mindfulness & meditation The strict regiment behind Jared McCain’s game | PAGE 8

Roach’s development What the numbers say about the senior’s progression | PAGE 10

Rookies united

The closeness of the recruits shows strong team chemistry | PAGE 11

Reasons to stay

Why Duke’s returners decided to come back for another go | PAGE 12

From portal to podcast

Ryan Young’s journey to, then inside, The Brotherhood | PAGE 13

Back for blood

Duke has high expectations, and is using toughness to get there | PAGE 14

Crossword

A special, Duke men’s basketballthemed edition | PAGE 15

vS vS vS vS vS vS vS

ARIZONA — DURHAM

NOV. 14

MICHIGAN STATE — CHICAGO

NOV. 29

ARKANSAS — FAYETTEVILLE

DEC. 2

GEORGIA TECH — ATLANTA

DEC. 20

BAYLOR — NEW YORK

JAN. 9

PITTSBURGH — PITTSBURGH

JAN. 27

CLEMSON — DURHAM

FEB. 3

NORTH CAROLINA — CHAPEL HILL

FEB. 21

MIAMI — CORAL GABLES

MARCH 2

VIRGINIA — DURHAM

MARCH 4

N.C. STATE — RALEIGH

MARCH 9

NORTH CAROLINA — DURHAM

denotes ACC game

Can a stronger Filipowski help Duke dominate at the top level? | PAGE 7

NOV. 10

DUKE MBB KEY MATCHUPS

A hero’s welcome

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FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2023 | 3

2023-2024

what’s inside

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sports sports staff staff Editor: Andrew Long Managing Editor: Rachael Kaplan Blue Zone Editor: Mackenzie Sheehy Assistant Blue Zone Editors: Dom Fenoglio, Ranjan Jindal Features Editor: Sophie Levenson Associate Editors: Audrey Davies, Franck Djidjeu, Caleb Dudley, Martin Heintzelman, Micah Hurewitz, Elliott Jarnot, Luke Jovanovic, Suresh Kannoth, Jonathan Levitan, Anna Newberry, Garrett Spooner, Tyler Walley, Brent Yoo Special thanks to: Editor-in-Chief Audrey Wang, Rachael Kaplan, Photography Editor Alyssa Ting, Sports Photography Editor Morgan Chu, Dom Fenoglio and Colton Schwabe

4 | FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2023

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The Chronicle

A HERO’S WELCOME

Inside Stewart’s deep, and legendary, Duke roots

By Andrew Long Sports Editor

ean Stewart’s childhood room has all the staples of a sports-obsessed teen: jerseys and medals aplenty hanging on the walls, a sizable shoe collection and a Boston Celtics championship poster. But this particular room has a twist. Above photos of a young Sean hangs a framed blueprint of Cameron Indoor Stadium. Steps away from a red neon sign mounted to the wall that reads “Sean13Stewart” and sandwiched between middle school basketball trophies rests a small Duke basketball autographed by Coach K. Peek into his closet, and the bottom rack is loaded with Duke-branded Nikes. “My whole life I’ve been a Duke fan,” the freshman forward said at the team’s preseason media day. “My wildest dream is here and I’m living it right now.” That part is obvious. The reason why — not so much. For as long as he can remember, Stewart and his family have lived on the same street in the Orlando suburb of Windermere, Fla., as Grant Hill. Yes, that Grant Hill: the Blue Devils’ heralded two-time national champion and arguably most successful professional product ever; the retired No. 33 jersey suspended in Cameron Indoor Stadium; the opening act of Duke’s most famous historical moment — a full-court heave to set up Christian Laettner’s “shot” in the 1992 Elite

Morgan Chu | Sports Photography Editor

Sean Stewart (13, blue) lifts the ball for a lay-in at Countdown to Craziness. Eight that spearheaded a run to a second NCAA title in as many years. To Stewart, though, he’s just “Uncle Grant.” He’s the neighbor across the street who he’d known since he was a baby, whose kids he’d grown close with. He is the neighbor who was, in many ways, responsible for cultivating Stewart’s lifelong dream to play basketball for the Blue Devils, which is now just days away. “Whoever would have thought,” Hill told The Chronicle.

‘He kinda brainwashed me’

Hill first got acquainted with the Stewart family through Sean’s father, Mike, who spent nine years as a journeyman in the NBA. Upon moving to Florida — and sharing a street — they began interacting more and more. Their wives soon became close friends, as did their children. “Probably as close as you can be without really being blood relatives,” Hill said. The two families took vacations and spent

holidays together. Hill shuttled Stewart and his brother Miles to the park and to basketball games. The Hill household became a frequent host for playdates among the kids. “I’ve essentially seen him and watched him grow up,” Hill said. It’s no surprise, then, that Hill’s deeprooted Duke pride rubbed off on the young Stewart the more time they spent together. That came to a head on a fateful visit to campus in 2015 — the year the Blue Devils last won a national championship — to watch the first game of the season at Cameron Indoor. Stewart was awestruck, and Chekhov’s gun was loaded. Hill, who brought his family alongside Stewart’s, didn’t know how influential a trip that would later prove to be. In his eyes, the game wasn’t even the kids’ favorite part. “We went to Dame’s Chicken and Waffles,” Hill said. “I remember that was a big hit. I thought that was a bigger hit than the actual game because they were all so young.” To this day, Stewart touts that visit as the genesis of his desire to take Duke’s famed floor himself, not as a fan but as a player. “Being in Cameron and watching Duke play in person may have sealed the deal,” Hill said. “I think he might have been eight, nine years old, 10 years old at the time.” Hill underestimated the significance of that game at the time, but he isn’t naive to the fact that his influence may have See STEWART AND HILL on Page 16

The Chronicle

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FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2023 | 5

DUKE MEN’S BASKETBALL PREDICTIONS 2023-2024 MICAH JONATHAN RACHAEL ANDREW HUREWITZ LEVITAN KAPLAN LONG

REGULAR SEASON RECORD

GO-TO LINEUP

WILL DUKE WIN ACC?

26-5 16-4

TYRESE MARK PROCTOR MITCHELL

PROCTOR, ROACH, MCCAIN, MITCHELL, FILIPOWSKI

YES

26-5 16-4

KYLE SEAN FILIPOWSKI STEWART

PROCTOR, ROACH, MCCAIN, MITCHELL, FILIPOWSKI

YES

25-6 15-5

KYLE JEREMY FILIPOWSKI ROACH

PROCTOR, ROACH, FOSTER, MITCHELL, FILIPOWSKI

YES

25-6 16-4

TYRESE PROCTOR

PROCTOR, ROACH, MCCAIN, MITCHELL, FILIPOWSKI

YES

TEAM MVP

ACC RECORD

UNDERRATED PLAYER

BEST WIN

CALEB FOSTER

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FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2023 | 7

SORRY NOT SORRY

Column: Filipowski is Duke’s best bet to ‘be the dog’

uke and Virginia Tech took a tense battle to the final seconds on a blustery night in Blacksburg, Va., this past January. The score set at 75 apiece, Hokies guard MJ Collins pulled up for a go-ahead mid-range jumper and sank it with 13.3 seconds to go. As he was heading down the court and toward the rowdy Hokie student section in jubilation… BANG. A fist-pump of excitement caught thenfreshman center Kyle Filipowski square in the throat, leaving him doubled over and in immense pain, not to mention wrought with emotion from the ensuing unsuccessful attempt to win the game. He had led the Blue Devils with his career-high 29-point double-double, and in the locker room a choked-up Filipowski reiterated just how much he hated losing. I have never seen anyone define the mood in a locker room as he did that night. Heart-crushing and somber, yet imbued with this curiously confident and forward-thinking attitude — especially given the circumstances — is Micah Hurewitz how I would describe it; the last thing he told me that night at Cassell Coliseum was this: “Don’t let the outside noise get to us and we’ll be good.” With “D-U-K-E” across his chest, it’s understandably hard to avoid the outside noise. And weeks later, when given another chance

Morgan Chu | Sports Photography Editor

Sophomore center Kyle Filipowski, shown at Countdown to Craziness, has become a fan favorite and a centerpiece of a talented Blue Devil lineup. to take down a conference foe on the road, a missed call saved Virginia from a loss and kept the visiting team’s scoring leader without a point for the first and only time of his still-young career. And as we now know, ignited, the Blue Devils went on a nine-game win streak to slam the door on the regular season and win the conference tournament in Greensboro, N.C. But just one week after that, an elbow from a Tennessee player going for a rebound caught the freshman star-turned-human punching bag under his left eye. Tough as nails, he returned and tried to lead his team back into the game. It has been a long time since I had seen a Duke player take as much of a physical beating as Filipowski did his freshman year. And little did we know, he had been dealing with nagging

discomfort caused by a slightly misshapen joint that required surgery on both hips. To be able to follow up a roller-coaster season and a brutal tournament loss, one which he referred to as an “eye-opener” (while I’m not sure if he meant that literally, it does work) — which has left him with an objectively neat battle scar — with a first-time surgical procedure and a long summer of rehab is quite admirable. He did it all while contemplating, and ultimately deciding on returning to college as opposed to testing the NBA Draft waters. Filipowski has said that he was nervous following his arthroscopic procedure in mid-April, sitting, mind wandering through the forest of what-ifs, but found that he was “going how my body was leading me.”

According to head coach Jon Scheyer, he was “way ahead of schedule,” and Filipowski now says he feels an improved range-ofmotion, can get into a wider stance and is quicker and more explosive. “He’s new and improved Flip,” Scheyer said at an August press conference. “I thought I reached my limit. Now I’m reaching this new unknown world that has just been opened up to me,” Filipowski said at the team’s preseason media day. For a player who averaged roughly 15 points and nine rebounds per game and won ACC Freshman of the Year, that is quite the statement. We will get to see what new moves he has in his bag, but if anything on the court is an indication that “two-hip Flip” is ready to go for year two, it was his thunderous slam over his freshman teammate Sean Stewart at Countdown to Craziness. Though in just a scrimmage, I could envision that play being set to the theme from “2001: A Space Odyssey” in a future highlight reel. You just have to think his surgeon and physical therapy team are smiling after seeing it. But during that time he was in pain he made sure to not make any excuses, trying to tough it out and take responsibility when he was a bit off. He had said that he was reluctant to have the procedure done during the lead-in to the 2022-23 season, possibly erasing a good chunk of his freshman year. See FILIPOWSKI on Page 17

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8 | FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2023

MINDFULNESS AND MEDITATION

In order to drown out the noise...

By Ranjan Jindal

Assistant Blue Zone Editor

“J

ust Wanna Rock,” by Lil Uzi Vert plays as the Cameron Crazies roar to their feet in anticipation at Countdown to Craziness. Head coach Jon Scheyer knowingly grins and shakes his head in the back as the rest of the team watches in admiration. TikTok sensation and freshman guard Jared McCain does what he does best: Bring joy to a crowd with dancing. McCain has won the hearts of college basketball fans with his cheerful smile and outgoing personality. His game isn’t too shabby either. With a consistent jump shot and unselfish playmaking ability, the Sacramento, Calif., native was the 11thranked prospect in the class of 2023 — the highest recruit in this year’s Duke class. Five-star basketball recruit. Two million TikTok followers. But there’s another side to the story. McCain is extremely extroverted — unorthodox for a player of his caliber — and this has generated plenty of hate on social media. From those who ridicule his decision to paint his nails or accuse him of spending too much time on TikTok, there is no shortage of McCain critics. “There’s definitely some times during the season where I’m like ‘Why? Why am I getting hated on?’ All I’m doing is dancing and smiling and just trying to spread some positivity,” McCain said at the team’s

preseason media day. “But it’s just them projecting their insecurities, they want what you have … I’m just being me, so I can’t listen to that.” Because of their historical success, McCain was prepared for more resentment after his commitment to the Blue Devils. “I kind of knew coming into it that especially at Duke, which is one of the most hated [programs], that you’re gonna get hated on,” he said. So, how does McCain stay calm and focused on basketball amid hate and outside distractions? The answer might be unexpected, but in true McCain fashion, he doesn’t care what others think.

No stone unturned

“I meditate every single day, every day,” McCain said. “Especially with the social media hate and just being on the court, it helps me be so calm.” It all started roughly three years ago, when McCain watched Matt D’Avella’s YouTube video of his 30-day meditation, inspiring the Centennial High School product to start routine practice. In conjunction with his daily yoga and meditation, Southern California-based basketball trainer Shea Frazee has been instrumental in McCain’s development as a player, both physically and mentally. Frazee has trained McCain since eighth grade, when he had plenty of time for daily training.

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Samantha Owusu-Antwi | Features Photography Editor Jared McCain runs across the court before his dance at Countdown to Craziness.

“If you’re not in the right place mentally, if you don’t have the right kind of focus, you’re going to learn slower,” Frazee told The Chronicle. “Because you’re going to be having this internal battle in your head and a lot of times that turns into an internal battle within your body for who’s in control.” This mental battlefield is a serious detriment to many physically gifted athletes, and meditation is not a gimmick. McCain’s discipline for waking up at 5:30 every morning to do yoga is unwavering, a product of the mental strength that comes with meditation.

It’s one thing to block out the noise when other people are screaming and yelling. But what about when it is just you, alone with your own thoughts and inner voice, with no escape but the sound of your breath? That’s the power of meditation, focusing solely on inhaling and exhaling for an extended period of time. In addition to silencing the doubters in his mind, meditation plays a powerful role in relaxing McCain before he takes the court. “I know what I’m capable of,” McCain said at media day. “After having a bad game, I know how to be centered with myself and find my breath.”

The Chronicle

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FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2023 | 9

...McCain turns to discipline

Morgan Chu | Sports Photography Editor

Jared McCain releases a shot from the free-throw line at Countdown to Craziness. The mind is a muscle, and just like the physical toll of basketball, meditation is one of the strongest forms of training. One of the biggest keys to McCain’s mental growth, according to Frazee, was Timothy Gallwey’s “The Inner Game of Tennis,” where Gallwey illustrates how self-doubt and mental weakness can affect sports performance and limit life success. Frazee’s father introduced him to “The Inner Game of Tennis,” and Frazee tries to read it multiple times a year. During their training sessions, he discussed this with McCain, who has fully bought into introspection.

“I read [“The Inner Game of Tennis”] before every game,” McCain said in a TikTok. “That probably built my confidence the most.” “[Gallwey] did a really good job of taking the understanding of Buddhism and Hinduism, and then importing them into how to practice tennis or sports or anything that is physical and skill-based,” Frazee said. Yoga and meditation, rooted in ancient Hindu tradition, have quickly grown to worldwide phenomena due to their numerous benefits. However, it hasn’t fully taken the high school and collegiate athletic

world by storm. Nevertheless, McCain’s open-mindedness to try something new is unique, and reflects his greater humility. “He’s not gonna leave any stone unturned,” Frazee said. “He’s gonna do all the aspects of preparation and he’s about as good as I’ve seen. So it’s always impressive and a lot of times inspiring to watch him go about his business in that way.” It’s a secret superpower, one that helps McCain elevate himself above the competition and stand out amongst the elite physical specimens of college basketball. At 6-foot-3, McCain isn’t undersized by any stretch, but is still one of the smaller guards at the collegiate level. With his superpower, however, he can play like he’s taller than that. “For better or worse, everybody’s really, really, really good and the margin for somebody in [McCain’s] position to be better than other people comes down to a combination of overwhelming physical gifts or the mental side of the game,” Frazee said. Before Countdown to Craziness in October, his first chance to show both his basketball and dancing skills on a live stage to the Cameron Crazies, McCain remembered his breath. “Meditation always calms me down,” McCain said after Countdown. “I knew [Countdown] was gonna be hectic out there, so just always being able to come back to my breath is huge.”

‘I can touch people’s souls in different ways’

His smile is infectious and so is his mindfulness practice. The so-called “Freshman Four” — McCain, Caleb Foster, TJ Power and Sean Stewart — have filled the @DukeMBB Instagram page with pictures of them in yoga poses. McCain and Foster are also in a yoga class together. The Californian is an inspiration for many, and has a celebrity aura about himself that even transcends the fame of a Duke basketball player.

He’s not gonna leave any stone unturned. He’s gonna do all the aspects of preparation and he’s about as good as I’ve seen. SHEA FRAZEE

Jared McCain’s personal trainer

“[Students] usually ask us to take pictures of Jared,” Power said jokingly on “The Brotherhood Podcast.” McCain has an enormous following, inspiring kids across the country. Graduate student Ryan Young mentioned that McCain stood out on the team’s summer bonding trip to Chicago and everyone wanted to meet him. See McCAIN on Page 17

GO DUKE!

SHOOTERS II

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10 | FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2023

ROACH’S DEVELOPMENT

IN WITH THE OLD...

By Rachael Kaplan

Sports Managing Editor

ou all know his name. The senior. The captain. Lucky No. 3. Duke’s shining star in the 2022 NCAA tournament, its elder in a year of young guns and new beginnings. Monday marks the start of Jeremy Roach’s fourth year at Cameron Indoor Stadium. He has played two positions under two head coaches, in front of the Cameron Crazies and with their absence painfully obvious, through No. 1 rankings and alongside No. 1 NBA Draft picks. One Final Four, one ACC title, 95 games and 75 starts. Roach is the cornerstone of this Blue Devil team, a moniker he has earned after three years of contribution. For those who casually know Roach’s story and evolution, you may have heard of the slower start, the breakout March Madness performance, the junior year captainship and the transition from point guard to shooting guard. You know Roach is good at basketball, with his honorable mention All-ACC selection and team MVP honors last season. But what are the stories and rhetoric based on? Let’s dive into the numbers behind Roach’s three years with the Blue Devils and what they can tell us about his fourth.

Through the years

Roach became a mainstay in the Blue Devil lineup as a freshman. He started 18 of the 24 games that year amidst a shortened — and unsuccessful, by Duke’s standards — COVID-19-riddled season. The St. Paul VI product averaged a respectable 8.7 points per game on 45.6% shooting from the floor. As a sophomore, roster turnover and injuries meant Roach’s role had to evolve as the season wore on, with the Leesburg, Va., native spending as many as nine straight games coming off the bench. When the NCAA tournament rolled around, he was planted back into the starting five and proved he had earned that promotion. Last season, Roach served as the lone captain on a new-look Blue Devil team, initially playing the point until a toe injury sidelined him for three games in January. When he returned, he began playing more of an off-ball role and saw his offensive production skyrocket. The 6-foot-2 guard’s 13.6 points per game were good for second on the team, only behind Kyle Filipowski. As an offensive entity, Roach’s evolution over his three years is more effectively visualized in terms of his shot attempts rather than his shooting percentage. Figure 1 shows Roach’s shot attempts and makes per game throughout his three seasons. The largest jump from his sophomore to junior campaign is evidenced in his twopoint shot attempts, which increased nearly twofold. With his two-point shot percentage actually decreasing over his three years, from 59.1% to 47.3% to the 47.5% he shot inside the arc last season, the increase in shot attempts must be the immediate contributor to his higher point totals.

Sophomore breakout

Roach started 27 of 39 games as a sophomore. With the shift in his usage over the season, his minutes naturally decreased from 35.2 to 23.0 per game. However, his point total remained fairly steady, from 8.6 to 8.7 points

per game. The shot numbers were not the same either — Roach’s two-point attempts dropped from 4.9 as a starter to 3.0 off the bench. The reason for the balanced scoring effort? A more efficient shot. Figure 2 shows Roach’s sophomore year shooting percentages grouped by the type of shot and split by his starting status. There were dramatic increases in both his two-point and 3-point shooting percentage off the bench as compared to when he started, with a 10.5% jump in his two-point shot and a 19.0% leap in his long shot. In his sixth-man role through the end of the regular season and the ACC tournament, Roach had the opportunity to hone his shot and his skill, which enabled him to continue some of that success through a starting role in the NCAA tournament — when he shot 54.3% inside the arc — and then into his junior year.

Graphs by Rachael Kaplan | All stats taken from sports-reference. com

A positional shift

In Duke’s Phil Knight Legacy loss to Purdue on Nov. 27, 2022, Roach injured his toe. While he played in the following three games, the then-junior was unable to practice, missing the Blue Devils’ Dec. 10 win against Maryland Eastern Shore. He returned for the first three games of the continuous conference slate, but was sidelined once again after Duke’s lopsided loss at N.C. State. In his absence, then-freshman — and now-co-captain — Tyrese Proctor stepped into the starting point guard role. Roach missed three games and was eased back into the action, coming off the bench against Miami and Virginia Tech. When he returned to the starting lineup, he did so mostly at the two, letting Proctor continue floor-general duties while the captain could play in more of an off-ball role. Looking at Roach’s points, assists, turnovers and total rebounds per game both before and after the injury, there is only one notable difference. Even in more of a shooting guard role, his assist numbers barely changed, dropping from 3.2 to 3.0. His turnovers increased from 2.1 to 2.3, and his rebounds decreased from 2.5 to 2.4. The shift was in his point totals — with the opportunity to take more shots, Roach’s points per game jumped from a respectable 11.9 to a more impressive 14.9. This time around, his shot numbers didn’t change much, as he took less than one more field goal and had 0.4 fewer 3-point attempts per game. So let’s look at his shot percentages. Figure 3 shows Roach’s cumulative and per-game field goal and 3-point shooting percentages throughout his junior season, with the red line signifying when he returned from that toe injury for good. The cumulative average restarts at his injury return mark, the Jan. 21 game against Miami. Looking at the solid black line, while it does take a few games to level out from each starting point, its ending point post-injury is significantly higher than before. Roach’s field-goal percentage through Jan. 4 was 35.9% — from Jan. 21 through the end of the season, it was 47.7%. While his 3-point shooting percentage did not see nearly as immense of a shift, it did increase from 32.3% to 36.1%. By comparison, Roach’s field goal attempt numbers did not follow a similar trendline. He averaged 11.1 attempts before his hiatus and 12.0 thereafter. This shows that the senior’s scoring rise, unlike his year-over-year change, was due to his increased efficiency and better shot selection. Amid all its changes, this is still

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3 Roach’s team. Duke has been where he has grown and developed, where he became the star he is now, with a spot on the Jerry West Award watch list and his name penciled onto a shortlist of four-year Blue Devil stars. The 22-year-old will lead an especially deep backcourt this year, and with the plethora of guards at head coach Jon Scheyer’s disposal, Roach will have to adapt, just as he has done through the past three years. Whenever Roach and Proctor share the

court, look for the senior’s production to follow a similar trend to his post-injury 202223 season, with moderate assist numbers but explosive scoring power in the shooting guard role. When Proctor is off, Roach may assume more of the point-guard role, calling an offense that will likely feature two freshmen in a smallball lineup. Though Proctor’s time on the bench is likely minimal, Roach will be less of a scoring threat during those possessions as he commands a young offense.

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FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2023 | 11

ROOKIES UNITED

...AND WITH THE NEW

Alyssa Ting | Photography Editor

Duke’s freshmen watch the Blue Devils’ football game against Notre Dame Sept. 30. By Mackenzie Sheehy

program’s secret recruiting weapon, helping to draw in the remaining three members of his class of 2027 squad. ast Campus was pulsing with energy as “You played a huge role in my bright-eyed and bushy-tailed freshmen commitment,” McCain told Foster on the arrived at Duke Aug. 19 for move-in. podcast. Parents were ushering their kids toward a new It may be surprising, then, to learn that collegiate adventure as orientation leaders the Freshman Four did not know each other schlepped bags to rooms. Various Blue Devil well in high school beyond crossing paths on faculty and staff were grinning from ear to tournament circuits. So when they arrived ear, trying to settle nerves and engage the on campus in the summer, building a bond new students in positive conversations. was essential both on and off the court. The There were four greeters who stood out freshmen did it with ease. — literally — among the rest: Duke men’s “I didn’t expect to hit it off as quick as basketball’s “Freshmen Four.” Composed we did. I don’t know why, I was just kind of of TJ Power, Sean like, ‘This is Duke. I Stewart, Caleb Foster think it might be more Once we stepped on and Jared McCain, the cutthroat,’” Power said campus and we lived Blue Devil debutants at the team’s preseason were out welcoming together in the summer, we media day. “But they’ve their classmates as if it been great. We have a just formed a great bond. lot of fun.” were the most normal thing in the world. They were fast SEAN STEWART friends “We just love going from the Duke men’s basketball outside and meeting new freshman forward start, but their close people,” McCain said on relationship really “The Brotherhood Podcast.” blossomed in a “Us four, we’re really good at [asking] ‘What’s place they were all familiar with: the gym. your name? What are you majoring in? How Establishing an early morning routine, the are you doing?’ ... connecting with people.” freshmen were in the gym together at 6 This skill of connection and interaction a.m. each day, with Power blasting Mariah served the group of four well a few months Carey and other R&B music in the early earlier as they met on Duke’s campus for morning hours as a wake-up call. Using their the first time in the summer. Hitting it off shared work ethic to push each other, their instantly, Power, Stewart, Foster and McCain relationship was built on the solid foundation cultivated a close friendship that is evident of determination and drive. from miles away and has taken social media “[It’s great to be around] kids that are by storm. Even on a team that prides itself willing to go the extra mile just as much as on culture and chemistry, the freshmen stand you,” Power said on the podcast. out in their brotherhood bond. “It doesn’t even feel right at this point [if So how did this happen? we don’t],” Foster added. It started from the very beginning: the Their bond truly took off, though, recruiting process. outside of basketball and working out. Before It was Foster who played the initial role moving into their suites at Wilson Residence in bringing the Freshmen Four to Durham. Hall on East Campus, the foursome shared Lovingly dubbed “C Fos” by his teammates, an apartment in the summer that allowed the Harrisburg, N.C., native committed to them to dive into relationship-building Duke mere months after sophomore phenom head-first. Kyle Filipowski joined head coach Jon “We’d just come back [to the apartment], Scheyer’s roster. From there, he became the sit in the little living room, talk with each

Blue Zone Editor

other … we would talk for hours sometimes,” Chapel Hill and I walked in there, and I got booed,” McCain said. “Now I’m locked in.” Stewart said. The group, never ones to let their “That just fuels us,” Stewart added. competitive spirits go to waste, were also Despite the increasing fame and big fans of board games throughout the expectations on their shoulders to perform offseason. “Uno” defined their summer on a championship-caliber team, these four experience; Stewart and Foster still cannot aren’t letting the moment go to their heads. agree on who won the most games. “Spoons” They are still the same group that gets up in was a popular one too, but the four of them the early hours of the morning to go work can agree that McCain out or go the extra was the champion mile to beat the elder Those freshmen, man, statesmen in practice. there. they get after it. They’re It wasn’t unusual to At each of their cores catch them at Dame’s competitive. They have good is a similar desire to Chicken and Waffles prove their place at an humility about them too. illustrious basketball every Sunday as well, institution and not getting out in the Durham community JON SCHEYER take anything for beyond the college Duke men’s basketball granted. head coach Scheyer certainly bubble. recognizes the “Once we stepped on campus and we lived together in the unique nature of his freshman class and its summer, we just formed a great bond; we’re remarkable mixture of talent, work ethic and confidence. always together,” Stewart said at media day. “Those freshmen, man, they get after it. When everyone else arrived on campus, however, the buzz surrounding Power, They’re competitive, they have good humility Stewart, Foster and McCain really started to about them too,” Scheyer said at ACC Tipoff. amplify. They began to realize the gravity of “They put in the work, and I’ve been a lucky their role on campus when people came up guy to coach them.” While the lights are about to get brighter to talk and take pictures — even if they were and the stages bigger, these freshmen are mostly interested in McCain. “They usually ask us to take pictures of ready for whatever is thrown at them because they have each other. Their bond has grown Jared,” Power said on the podcast. “My camera skills now, I got you,” Foster deeper than on-the-court chemistry or a relationship of necessity during the summer. joked. The Freshmen Four are not afraid to Power, Stewart, Foster and McCain are truly interact with the community, even as their brothers in every sense of the word. “The freshmen are some of my favorite names become increasingly well known. It’s not uncommon to see them out and about people I’ve ever met in my life,” McCain said on campus as they recognize their roles as at media day. “I love all of them.” When the Blue Devils take the court for ambassadors of The Brotherhood. “We’ll just walk around outside talking to their first regular-season contest Monday people and get food,” Power said. “We’ll go sit against Dartmouth, there will be plenty of with new people in the dining hall and stuff.” uncertainties. Who are the starters? What will With the start of the school year also the rotation be? Is this team championshipcame daily reminders that basketball season capable? One thing, however, will be for certain. was looming. While there is a certain level of pressure, the freshmen are ready for the big The freshmen will show up locked in and stage. The thing they are looking forward to ready to go, and their charismatic bond, most? Duke versus North Carolina in Chapel translated into on-court chemistry, will quickly strike fear in the college basketball Hill. “I accidentally Ubered to a Target in world.

REASONS TO STAY

Returners ready for round 2

Morgan Chu | Sports Photography Editor

All but two players on last year’s roster decided to come back for another season. By Jonathan Levitan

Associate Sports Editor

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12 | FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2023

he first months of Jon Scheyer’s first year as head coach were as promising and turbulent as one might have expected after more than four decades of Mike Krzyzewski and all that name means in Durham. It all came to a head in a whirlwind start to February, during which the Blue Devils followed up a stirring revenge win against North Carolina with crushing road defeats to Miami and Virginia.

That was the point in the season when Duke’s young team seemed to grow up. One month later, the Blue Devils were ACC tournament champions, concluding a remarkable turnaround for a team that looked as if it might never realize its considerable potential. This time around, with a second-year head coach and four out of five starters back in uniform, they don’t have to grow up all over again. A basis for success already exists in that locker room.

“Everything is new, you’re filling it all out,” Scheyer said of his first year on the job at the team’s preseason media day. “And this year, the way we’re going to play is different and that’s new. But they know me, they know each other. They know what worked and what didn’t work. So at least you’re working with some sense of a core of understanding what it takes to be successful.” When the Blue Devils came out on the wrong side of an instant classic at the 2022 Final Four against North Carolina, that was the undeniable end: Krzyzewski rode off into the sunset (on a golf cart), assistant coach Nolan Smith departed in the offseason for Louisville, and — most notably — six of the seven Duke players from that game never hit the floor inside Cameron Indoor Stadium again. One year later, Scheyer’s first Duke team entered the Round of 32 on a 10-game winning streak only to be handily defeated by a more physical Tennessee side. Again, it felt like the end for this most recent iteration of the Blue Devils’ core, especially in the fluid, topsy-turvy landscape of college basketball in 2023. But here Duke is, with a combination of veteran talent and elite newcomers — the four freshmen make up the nation’s No. 2 recruiting class — that seemed impossible back in March. It is a blend that has elevated an already dangerous team into the No. 2 squad in the preseason AP Poll and the team that others in the ACC are looking up at as a new season begins.

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“Again, 11, 13 guys last year, they’re learning what it’s like to be a Duke basketball player, everybody on my staff is learning, me, as head coach,” Scheyer said. “And this year, just the familiarity helps a lot. So we’re off and running at a higher level … whether that translates right away, we still have a long way to go.”

‘Here for a reason’

The Duke in the NBA machine has, perhaps, never whirred stronger. It was a real possibility that the 2021-22 team would become just the second ever to field five firstround selections come draft night; still, the Blue Devils landed four first-round picks including the near-unanimous Rookie of the Year in Paolo Banchero. Two freshmen from last year’s Duke team entered the draft as early entrants and left as first-round selections themselves, with Dereck Lively II landing in the lottery and Dariq Whitehead joining the professional ranks later that evening. When the NBA season began anew in October, 24 Duke players permeated 18 rosters across the association, and that leaves out the considerable influence of Brotherhood alumni in management, ownership and the commissioner’s office. It is not hard to imagine the pull that the NBA has on the stars that arrive on Duke’s campus each year. Even so, a number of the professional prospects on last season’s roster See COMING BACK on Page 18

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FROM PORTAL TO PODCAST

Young welcomes role as captain, podcast host

By Dom Fenoglio

Assistant Blue Zone Editor

big man who doesn’t dunk, the 44thranked power forward in his class and a player who didn’t have enough talent to see the court his freshman year, Ryan Young is by no means a traditional Duke captain. Young, a sixth-year graduate student, is the oldest returner on this year’s roster by a wide margin. The 24-year-old, however, has only been with the Blue Devils for one season. So while he is an old head by college basketball standards, his presence is new in The Brotherhood. Still, it didn’t take long for the towering center to grow quickly into his own at Duke, both as an off-the-court mentor for the seven freshmen on last year’s roster and as a seasoned veteran in the games themselves. This season, Young became just the second transfer player to ever be named a captain. Even more impressive is the platform Young has created to spread Duke men’s basketball, as he hosts “The Brotherhood Podcast,” which features current and former players, coaches and others around the program. In just one year, Young went from someone uninvolved with The Brotherhood to one of its biggest advocates.

‘You didn’t take a day off ’

Unlike the majority of Blue Devils, who enter Durham as highly recruited players

expecting to make an immediate impact, Young did not see the floor in his first year at Northwestern. He redshirted to work on his size and game, and struggled with the adjustments and humility that came from being at the bottom of the ladder. To get through this time and progress as a person and player, he leaned on older players who pushed him beyond his limits and brought the best out of him. When he did earn a place in the Wildcats’ rotation, Young competed in the Big Ten — a conference stacked with elite big-man talent, including former First-Team All Americans Kofi Cockburn and Luka Garza. “It was difficult to come to college and realize, ‘I’m not even good enough right now to help this team right now as a freshman,’” Young said at Duke’s preseason media day. “There were so many lessons learned through those first couple years and tough losses that I think molded me into the leader I am today.” When he arrived in Durham, Young was ready to flip the script and teach the same lessons to a new generation. In the cases of fellow centers Dereck Lively II and Kyle Filipowski — freshmen in 2022-23 — even former head coach Mike Krzyzewski noticed the impact the older big had on the rookies. Lively struggled to find his role on the team early in the season after coming back from an injury, but ultimately developed into a lottery pick. Filipowski began his rookie year still needing to adjust to the physicality of the

Morgan Chu | Sports Photography Editor

Ryan Young (middle) sits with his teammates on the bench at the 2023 ACC tournament college game, but consistently improved en route to winning ACC Rookie of the Year. “You helped them. You really helped them,” Krzyzewski said to Young on episode 16 of the podcast. “They got better, not just because of what they did. That was one of the things you brought to the team last year. You were there every day, and you didn’t take a day off.” Young’s work ethic and veteran presence have further grown this season, and he has embraced his role as a captain wholeheartedly.

His fellow captains, senior Jeremy Roach and sophomore Tyrese Proctor, spoke with Young on episode 15 of the podcast about the team’s lofty goals, their unique leadership styles and what they have seen from the team in the preseason. Each player enters the season with a unique background: Roach is entering his fourth season with Duke, Proctor brings international experience from his time with See YOUNG on Page 19

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BACK FOR BLOOD

Duke embraces toughness in Final Four pursuit

By Sophie Levenson

Mitchell — a stalwart defensive presence The Blue Devils feel they have every asset in last season’s lineup — had to sit out the necessary to get to the 2024 Final Four in fight due to injury. Phoenix, and every reason to win it. They yle Filipowski sat with his chin Now, a chip-on-their-shoulders have made their message crystal clear: A resting on folded hands, staringly mentality has overtaken the Blue Devils national championship is the only option. glumly at the ground while a trainer as they prepare for a new season. The attempted to clean up the cut under his eye. sentiment they’re trying to prove? Duke Eyes on Cameron Just moments before, a Tennessee player’s is tough. It’s an older team now, not only Roach thinks the key to Duke’s success lies elbow had collided with his face, hitting one with more experience but also with largely in its deep backcourt. He, alongside the 7-foot freshman center hard enough to newfound confidence. sophomore point guard Tyrese Proctor, draw blood. The elbow happened early, setting the tone for the rest of the game. In Duke’s second-round matchup against No. 4-seed Tennessee, the Blue Devils struggled to keep up with the brutal physicality of the Volunteers, ultimately losing the game by 13 points to fall out of the NCAA tournament. The game drew a total of 28 fouls and kept a low score on both ends, the final number 65-52 — a testament to the strong defensive front put up by both teams. Tennessee hit Duke hard, and nobody was afraid to say it. The headlines that ran for the game included the Raleigh News & Observer’s “Duke bullied, out-toughed in physical loss to Tennessee” as well as AP News’ “Tennessee beats up Duke.” In senior captain Jeremy Roach’s own words — from Duke’s preseason media day in September — “they punked us.” He’s right. A freshman-heavy Duke team struggled to contend with the size Samantha Owusu-Antwi | Features Photography Editor and experience rife in that Volunteer The Blue Devils have been adamant about their ambitions for the season. roster. On top of that, forward Mark Sports Features Editor

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leads a team of highly skilled guards, now featuring freshmen Jared McCain and Caleb Foster, the respective No. 3 and No. 4 guards in their class. “We have the four guards, I would put them up against anybody,” Roach said at ACC Tipoff. Duke’s backcourt, according to the veteran, is the best in the nation — and “it’s not even close.” Roach isn’t alone in his high hopes for the Blue Devils. The team sits at No. 2 nationally in AP preseason rankings and has seen a number of its players on award watchlists in the last few weeks. Proctor was tabbed to the Bob Cousy award watch list for the best point guard in the nation, Roach’s name is on the Jerry West award watchlist for the country’s best shooting guard, Mitchell found a spot on the Julius Erving award watch list for the best small forward and Filipowski is a Preseason First-Team All-American. The ACC also marked Duke as its preseason favorite. The early verdict: This team should be pretty good. Other conference schools know there’s a storm brewing inside Cameron Indoor Stadium, too. At ACC Tipoff, a number of players from various conference foes had Duke on their minds. “I’m looking forward to playing in Cameron. That’ll be fun,” said Clemson center PJ Hall when asked which ACC matchup he’s most excited for. See TOUGHNESS on Page 19

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CROSSWORD

The Chronicle’s specialedition MBB crossword By Ben Matz 1

43 47

49 52

23 25

44 48

Across 1 Chili pepper that means “wide” in Spanish 6 Meh 10 Mitchell who plays for 52-Across 14 “:” 15 2021 Pixar film named for its hero 16 Length x width, for a rectangle 17 “Save the _____ for your mama” 18 Greek god of war 19 Present 20 52-Across’s ardent fans, familiarly 23 Narrow ravine 24 One of 60 in a min. 25 Madrid’s country, to the locals 28 Knight title 29 Fireplace residue 32 Title whose apostrophe replaces the letter “d” 33 Kyle who won ACC Rookie of the Year for 52-Across 37 Off-Broadway theater award 38 Feline creature 39 ____ rage (result of juicing) 40 Coach of 52-Across 44 Memo starter 45 “___ Always Sunny in Philadelphia” 46 Opposite of in 47 Underdog victories in March Madness 49 Sphere 50 Positive quality 52 Athletic team that is the theme of this puzzle 58 Explorer of children’s television 59 “Hamilton’s” ends with “Non-Stop” 60 Vergara of “Modern Family” 61 Red in the cheeks 62 Pink, as meat 63 Ill-suited 64 Time periods 65 French fashion designer Christian 66 Using few words Find the answers on dukechronicle.com.

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Down 1 “Thunderstruck” rock band 2 Director/screenwriter Ephron 3 Chowder variety popular in New England 4 52-Across plays theirs at Cameron Indoor Stadium 5 Winning time and time again 6 Sauvignon _____ 7 Move suddenly 8 Laptop brand 9 Tries a bit of a drink 10 Paolo Banchero’s team 11 Grammy winner India.____ 12 Zebras, on the court 13 Kit ___ bar 21 “Frozen” snowman 22 Nil 25 :) replacement 26 Wooden shoe that’s the root of an English word meaning “wreck” 27 Perfectionists might take great ones 28 Construction area 29 All together 30 Mini or tutu, e.g. 31 Finds a place to lie low 34 Actor/rapper who starred on “Law & Order: SVU” 35 “___ it on me!” 36 Radius or ulna, for instance 41 Planks are meant to strengthen it 42 Former walk-on Spencer who earned a scholarship for this season for 52-Across 43 Ploy 48 Watch someone’s dog, say 49 Green lights 50 Houston MLB player 51 One going down a slippery slope, perhaps 52 Entry point with a knob 53 ____ Major (Constellation) 54 Berry in trendy smoothie bowls 55 Miles and miles away 56 One might put chapstick on them 57 Tardy 58 Hip-hop’s “Dr.”

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16 | FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2023

STEWART AND HILL FROM PAGE 4

played a pronounced — perhaps the most pronounced — role in Stewart’s eventual touchdown in the Triangle in teamlicensed gear. When it came to the recruiting process, though, Hill made a point to distance himself. He wanted to give Stewart the space to explore potential destinations, understanding the deeply personal nature of the journey and the necessity of self-selection. Stewart agrees, and appreciated the hands-off approach to allow him to pick the right place. But his childhood fandom and the shining memory of that day lingered, as did Hill’s presence in his life. “He told me to be really open to my options,” Stewart said at the team’s preseason media day. “But when I was young, it was Duke, Duke, Duke.” Hill is a proud and prominent Blue Devil alumnus. He serves on the board of trustees, has appeared on “The Brotherhood Podcast” and even features his own clip saying “another one” in the video the program releases every time it bags a new recruit. His pass to Laettner and highlight-reel one-handed dunk from the 1991 title game play on the jumbotron before every home game. For Stewart, that meant Duke was never far away, despite Hill’s best efforts to corral it. “I’m sure through the years Sean and his family have heard me talk, share with pride, just my love for Duke,” Hill said. “And so I’m sure when you hear as much as I’m sure Sean has heard, you’re gonna love Duke or hate Duke.”

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Clearly, Stewart adhered to the former. The key to this? A one-track mind toward When Stewart laces up the Duke“I guess I indirectly did that when he was his goals and an unwavering dedication to branded Nikes from his bottom shelf 10,” Hill said. do whatever was needed to get there, both on and steps onto Coach K Court for the the court and off it. Blue Devils’ season opener against ‘Always had that fire’ “I think the thing that I really admire Dartmouth, it’s no longer about a signed In the 18 years Hill has known Stewart, about his game, and hopefully I played this ball, a blueprint on the wall or a yet-to-be two things have remained irrevocably way when I played, but he always plays hard,” fulfilled dream. He’s worked for this, and constant: his drive and his utter disdain for Hill said. “Playing hard is a talent. And you now he’s here. losing. Because Stewart was the youngest never have to get him to play harder.” “I don’t even know how to explain how among all the kids when his family would Evidently, this was something the folks I’m gonna feel when we first step on that hang out with Hill’s to play games, that in Durham picked up on, and in December court and all the Crazies are watching us,” meant he lost a lot. 2021, Stewart put pen to paper as the newest Stewart said. “But I’m really excited. That’s “I think he always had that fire. When he member of head coach Jon Scheyer’s project. probably going to be the most hype I’ll be for was young, he competed, he lost, he would “I think his dream school, when they a game, ever.” get really mad,” Hill said, laughing. “And I showed interest, I don’t think there was really The last time he felt that way was eight mean, really mad.” any decision on his part or any thinking it years ago for another curtain-raiser, with So growing up, Stewart was determined through,” Hill said. “Duke was the school Grant Hill by his side and in his ear. to not lose — to “work [his] butt off ” and that he always wanted to play at.” It’s just as surreal now as it was then. achieve his goals. Hill has always admired that about him. “I remember telling [Stewart’s] mom, I was like, ‘if they don’t bark as a puppy they won’t bite as an adult,’ or some line like that,” Hill said. Having spent as much time with Stewart as Hill has, he’s seen him play plenty of basketball. He first got a clue that he had the potential to be something special in middle school — something no doubt helped by Stewart’s father’s 6-foot-10 stature and neardecade in the league. From YMCA ball to middle school, to Windermere High School and then to Florida’s storied Montverde Academy (home to Duke products like RJ Barrett and Dariq Whitehead) for his senior year, that potential was realized, and quickly. Entering his freshman year in Durham, Stewart was a consensus five-star recruit and fielded offers Morgan Chu | Sports Photography Editor from Michigan, Georgetown, Ohio State Sean Stewart dances for the crowd at center court inside Cameron Indoor Stadium. and, of course, the Blue Devils.

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G O T 2

_ Begin!

6 “Let the __ 5

9 The Riddle

S E M G A 7

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FILIPOWSKI FROM PAGE 7

Thankfully for Duke, it was an issue which created no barriers to his playing time, as he started in all of the Blue Devils’ 36 games and truly excelled. His frontcourt mate Ryan Young said he couldn’t tell Filipowski was hurt last year. I sure as hell couldn’t. His procedure and subsequent period of immobility allowed him to sit back and reflect, but the outspoken and self-assured sophomore did not shy away from sharing his inner thoughts. On the loss to the Volunteers, which he describes as “getting punked,” he said that “their next game after us really showed how tough they were … things always come back to bite you eventually.” Filipowski summarized the sentiment shared by Duke fans around the country in the most professional way he could. He gets it. As he quipped about Tennessee’s surprising Sweet 16 loss to eventual Final Four team Florida Atlantic, he got a bit of a laugh from conference media at October’s ACC Tipoff event in Charlotte. He also said that he wants Duke to be “the first to elbow someone in the throat.” Well, that’s also quite direct. He’s clearly not shy about sharing how he feels and the kind of physicality he wants to exude as he prepares for this season. After all, he will more than likely be tasked with more of a bruiser role in the paint as a de-facto big alongside a possible three-guard lineup. And as reigning ACC champions and retooled with a new crop of five-stars to fill a talented lineup and deep bench, there will be an even bigger target on his back. The story of the season will be how he and his teammates handle it.

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“People can think whatever they want about our program and oftentimes it’s an outsider’s perspective that Duke can be soft,” Scheyer said at ACC Tipoff. “Duke has been built on competitiveness, hard work and doing all the dirty work.” With 18 “good pounds” tacked on to his slender frame, now at nearly 250 pounds, Filipowski provides the preseason No. 2 team a true stretch-five. Last season he became just the third Blue Devil to connect on 30 3-pointers and collect 300 rebounds in a season, the others being eventual top-two draft picks Jabari Parker and Paolo Banchero. More broadly speaking, he fills a highly coveted stretch-big role, the likes of which Duke has rarely seen since a certain fellow New York native led the Blue Devils to two championships and four Final Fours. Filipowski has embraced the comparisons to Christian Laettner and his “unique” reputation, in his words, while maintaining his own path and desire to win a championship himself. Yeah, maybe he is the villain. Take into account the added chip on his shoulder from the naysayers stemming from his dismissal from a summer workout a year ago and you can start to see where he’s coming from in terms of wanting to prove himself. But if that comes with him serving as a resource for the Blue Devils, Scheyer and his teammates should lean into it and embrace it. “No one is going to feel sorry for you,” the preseason All-American said at ACC Tipoff. “You gotta do the dirty work.” Duke’s opponents will be thirsty for blood while Filipowski has established that he will be unapologetically tough. Badass. Resilient. Unapologetically himself. “It’s tough out there,” he says. “You either go be a dog or get dogged.”

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McCAIN FROM PAGE 9

“It feels really good, I can touch people’s souls in different ways,” McCain said about his ability to influence others. It would be easy to become conceited, and let this fame get to his head. But McCain maintains his down-to-earth, genuine personality, no matter what. Whether it be preparing a routine to show off on TikTok, or playing basketball in front of a packed house, he has a constant joy about him. “I think he really enjoys preparing and executing a plan to entertain people, whether it’s understanding all the little nooks and crannies of [basketball] or if it’s choreographing an entire routine,” Frazee said.

‘I knew I was gonna be in this position’

McCain once asked Golden State Warriors guard Steph Curry how he handles slumps and Curry answered, “trust your work.” Many college newcomers face the “freshman wall,” a combination of physical and mental fatigue with the rigorous demands of college athletics. But McCain’s full-body preparation style is perfect for this, with his work ethic showing a love for not only the game but also the process. “I’ve always loved getting up early, I watched those videos of CEOs who wake up early and get the work in,” McCain said at media day. “I like the pressure of knowing I’ve got to perform right now. I trust my work.” His openness to trying meditation and his joy in whatever he does translates to the court, as he strives to become the best player he can be by learning about every skill in the game.

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2023 | 17

“He really enjoys just being good at any part of basketball, it doesn’t matter,” Frazee said. “Because of that, you’re teaching him stuff you would teach a five-man or a post player. He’ll just enjoy it, and he’ll do it at the highest possible level he can do it at.” However, there is also a mental impact to preparation, knowing that you have the ability to play with the best in the country. McCain has made dream boards outlining his goals since middle school, validating that his basketball career is deliberately planned. “I feel like I’ve manifested this,” McCain said at media day. “I’m a huge believer in visualizations and just the law of attraction, so I did know I was gonna be here. I knew I was gonna be in this position.” The law of attraction is the idea that positive thoughts bring positive results into someone’s life. McCain is the walking embodiment of positivity. He is “unapologetically himself” according to head coach Jon Scheyer and he perfectly walks the tightrope between confidence and humility. When asked what he would tell his earlier self, McCain responded, “Be prepared for the hate, be prepared for people just being flat out mean. Always be yourself, no matter what situation you’re in, always be yourself.” “It’s a balanced confidence, whereas it’s rooted into a lot of self awareness and understanding who he is as a player and who he is as a person,” Frazee said. One of his goals from his middle school vision board was to get an offer from Duke, and he has gotten that and more. So far, he’s achieved everything he has manifested on these boards up to this point. But he’s in the process of creating a board right now, with an unmet goal at the center: An NCAA championship.

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18 | FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2023

COMING BACK FROM PAGE 12

are back in tow for another chance to make a run into March and — if they have their way — that coveted first weekend of April. Each of those four starters — Jeremy Roach, Tyrese Proctor, Kyle Filipowski and Mark Mitchell — has his own reason for being here on the eve of the new season. Funnily enough, though, each of those reasons boils down to a desire to fully realize the tantalizing promise they showed together. Proctor was the first to announce his return in March. The 19-year-old Australian sophomore was not originally supposed to make his college debut until this season but is already a first-round prospect and team captain with nods to the ACC All-Freshman Team and preseason All-ACC Second Team under his belt. “I just don’t think I was finished yet,” Proctor said at media day of his decision to return. “Obviously reclassifying, that was a big part of it as well, just having that year for improvement, I guess it was. I had chances to go and I got all my feedback and stuff like that, and it just felt like it was the right decision for me to come back.” Filipowski, the ACC Preseason Player of the Year, also may have been a firstround choice in June. When the sevenfooter instead opted to delay his inevitable professional future, some pointed to his hip injury — Filipowski underwent an arthroscopic procedure on both hips in April — as a possible reason that he did not end up as a lottery pick alongside Lively. But Filipowski has made it clear: He wanted to be here this season, just as Proctor did.

“I loved it here this past year. And I know that there’s just so much more I can improve on,” Filipowski said. “And I wasn’t even thinking about my hips, either. I wanted to make the decision of staying or going without any factors involved, and that’s hips included.” Perhaps nobody has been through more in this era of Duke basketball than Roach, who debuted in the COVID-19-affected 2020-21 season before breaking out en route to the Final Four the very next season. The two-time captain also had professional prospects this offseason but brushed them aside for the second year in a row. At the team’s preseason media day, the veteran reflected on the “one vision” mindset that has helped him and Duke build the foundations of a culture in which star returners are the norm. “If you win, everything will take care of itself,” Roach said. “You get to the Final Four, a national championship, then of course everything will take care of itself then. But if guys come in worried about their numbers or worried about what they’re doing on the floor stats-wise, then it’s not gonna work out the way they want it to.” Among the four, the sophomore Mitchell has been strangely overshadowed. He was something of an unheralded contributor for Duke in his freshman season, starting every game for the Blue Devils until a last-minute knee injury kept him out of the season-ending loss to the Volunteers. For the Kansas City, Kan., product, the opportunity to suit up alongside his former and present teammates means a great deal. “I think we definitely have more to do here, and obviously having two of my peers back that were kind of in the same spot as

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me I definitely think helped,” Mitchell said. “I think that’s kind of undermined — people talk about going to the NBA, staying or leaving, just you want to have your guys around you. And I know having them each and every day, it makes it a lot easier for me, too.” Like Mitchell, Jaylen Blakes and Jaden Schutt are returners off the bench who have been somewhat overlooked but remain an important part of the strong position Duke is in today. For Schutt, a sharp-shooting four-star freshman on last year’s team who played in only 14 games, the possibility of hitting the transfer portal was never in play. “I don’t think it was really a decision,” Schutt said when asked of his decision to return to Duke. “It was more, I came here to win a national championship and be a part of winning. The transfer portal is out there, it is a thing, but I’ve never left anything in my life, never transferred. This is my team, this is my home, so just wanted to contribute to winning.” Add up each of these like-minded (yet unique) decisions, and it really does begin to feel as if Duke has a roster that is more than the sum of its parts. Maybe, as Scheyer thinks, their collective return has made them stronger in ways too difficult to fully grasp. “They all were being recruited by other places,” Scheyer said. “NBA, a transfer, could go on and on. And they all came back for a reason, and I think that bonds you. That unifies you. I try to remind them of that from time to time: You’re here for a reason, and so follow it up now with action. Don’t be about words, be about action.”

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PRESEASON POLL

Morgan Chu | Sports Photography Editor

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YOUNG FROM PAGE 13

Team Australia and Young has four years in Evanston, Ill., under his belt. This allows the three to lead symbiotically, with both guards describing themselves as leaders by example and Young admitting he has taken on a “rahrah” role this year as a vocal presence in the locker room and on the court. “I think ‘captain’ is something that’s thrown around these days … but it’s actually meaningful. It’s been something meaningful in our program for a long time. I remember myself, when I was named captain, that was a big deal to me,” head coach Jon Scheyer said at media day. “Ryan’s probably our most vocal person on the team. You can ask any of our players — his voice carries a lot of weight.”

‘Uncle Ryan’

When the Blue Devils traveled to Orlando, Fla., for the first two rounds of last season’s NCAA tournament, they were bombarded with a flurry of questions from the media. One “reporter” stood above the rest per the request of the in-house media team: the 6-foot-10 Young. Young started asking questions purely to entertain but soon got hooked on interviewing. The result? “The Brotherhood Podcast.” In addition to contributing to team morale and dynamics, Young is simultaneously reaching a new audience of potential Duke fans. Already the most-followed basketball program on Instagram and TikTok with 1.3 million and 826.4 thousand followers, respectively, “The Brotherhood Podcast” has peaked at 15th in the basketball category

TOUGHNESS FROM PAGE 14

“I’m excited to go to Cameron this year,” said Ryan Dunn, a sophomore guard at Virginia. Does a talented team getting frequent national attention make for a bigger target than in years past? Maybe. But the Blue Devils know this, and have no intention of letting that get in the way of success. Instead, they want to channel confidence into an “attitude” that can squash their opponents. “People were definitely coming for us last year, no question about it, and I think with that No. 2 [ranking] people are going to be coming at us even more now,” Filipowski said. “But I think we should definitely play with more of an attitude.” The New York native went on to reference the 2018-19 season, when Zion Williamson and RJ Barrett — both now NBA stars — led the Blue Devil squad. What Filipowski alluded to was the Duke-on-top attitude that Williamson and Barrett carried with them all the way to the Elite Eight. It’s something the team looks to replicate this year.

Toughness

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in the US on Apple Podcasts and garners thousands of listeners per episode across various platforms. “The Brotherhood Podcast” has featured a number of current and former players, including the self-proclaimed “Freshmen Four,” who affectionately refer to the host as “Uncle Ryan.” Young’s interviewing skill allows viewers to also see the players’ personalities shine through, and he is able to bring out smiles from each of his guests. For instance, Mark Mitchell is known as the fast-food lover of the team and can name everything that comes with an All-Star breakfast from Waffle House. In many ways, Young’s role as the podcast’s host allows him to act as a bridge between the Blue Devils of new and Blue Devils of old and as a voice of what this season shapes up to be. The podcast’s center, and each of the discussions it facilitates, is in its name: The Brotherhood. It’s something every guest, no matter their graduation year or affiliation with the team, has lauded. “You will have relationships with all these guys, so about my sophomore, junior year I felt like I played with some guys who played in the 90s even though I was born in ‘93,” 2015 national champion and former Blue Devil captain Quinn Cook said to Young on episode 5. “I felt like I played with Ricky Price, and I played with Trajan Langdon, all these guys. It was just authentic.” “We’re proud of [the Brotherhood],” Krzyzewski told Young on episode 16. “Other people might try to copy it, but it’s tough to copy because I was the coach for 42 years, so we created a family.” in the throat again. But more importantly, the Blue Devils want to adopt the kind of mental toughness that Bilas preaches in his book. It’s not that the team thinks it wasn’t tough before. Roach defends Duke’s efforts while also acknowledging that there’s room for an even tougher mindset. “They just kind of out-manned us and we don’t want that to happen again,” he said at the team’s preseason media day. “We didn’t back down, they just out-manned us.” The team’s plan for this season involves embracing its tough side and making sure that nothing — and no one — blocks its road to Phoenix. Last year taught Duke that playing the nice guy against mean, tough teams doesn’t necessarily get you very far when it comes to tournament season. It’s a cornerstone of Blue Devil history that many uninvolved with the Cameron Crazie fever see Duke as the ultimate college basketball bully — and this year, it’s trying to bring that attitude back. “No one felt bad for any of us last year and we’re taking that to heart,” Filipowski said at ACC Tipoff. Like his players, head coach Jon Scheyer walked away from that fateful Tennessee game feeling like his team had been beaten down and bullied. One of his takeaways from the loss, in keeping with Bilas, was “the toughness you have to have to win different kinds of games.” That’s the plan, then: More toughness, more “punking” from the Blue Devils. Embracing that on-the-court “bully” character Duke basketball has been known to play.

As former Blue Devil and current ESPN analyst Jay Bilas writes in his 2013 memoir, “Toughness,” “toughness isn’t physical. It has nothing to do with size, physical strength or athleticism. It’s an intangible, an attitude, a philosophy.” Sure, part of Duke’s determination to win a championship this year means it wants to One vision beef up a little, present a physical presence that can stand its ground a little stronger Ask any ACC basketball player what than last year’s roster did against Tennessee. his goal is for the season and the answer is Nobody wants to get hit in the eye or punched always the same: A national championship.

This camaraderie is shown in episode 10, when Filipowski took on the role of interviewer, turning the tables and forcing Young to answer questions — among them, his role and the importance of the Brotherhood in ensuring this season is a triumphant one. Young told Filipowski that it will be anything the team needs from him to be successful. In his sixth season of college basketball, Young does not put any individual accolades or recognition over the singular goal of winning. “I’ve been around college basketball enough and I’ve seen how effective glue guys and hustle guys can be for teams,” Young said to Filipowski. “There’s a lot of teams with a ton of talent, but if you don’t have a few guys willing to do the dirty work, be gritty guys and do whatever it takes, those teams can only get as far as they can without them.”

‘Paying it forward’

Duke has been vocal about its goal this season: to go all the way to the end and hang a sixth championship banner from the rafters of Cameron Indoor Stadium. Knowing the stakes, the tone of the podcast changed when talking about the upcoming season, turning dead serious. In particular, Scheyer, the guest on episode 12, emphasized that nothing is given, not even to a team that returns its four leading scorers. “Experience is only helpful if you take the lessons you learn and change them,” Scheyer told Young. The second-year head coach focused on the versatility of the team and talked about the growth possible with the number of returners. Young will be key to facilitating this growth, especially considering how far the sixth-year has come.

FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2023 | 19

Morgan Chu | Sports Photography Editor

Ryan Young takes a free throw during Countdown to Craziness. Throughout his collegiate career, Young has transformed from a freshman who didn’t see the court into a senior that averaged nine points per game, and then again into an important role player on a young team that needed guidance. Now, he shares those lessons and the lessons of others via his podcast. “Something that has had a big impact on me and my career, especially when I was younger, I was fortunate enough to be around older guys in the locker room that were really impressive captains and helped mold me to the person and player I am today,” Young said at the team’s preseason media day. “So [being captain is] a sense of kind of paying it forward in my mind, but also just having the opportunity to have a positive impact on my teammates.”

Morgan Chu | Sports Photography Editor

Duke huddles up after its loss to Tennessee in the second round of the NCAA tournament. That’s what everyone, in every college sport, wants to achieve. It didn’t come as much of a surprise, then, when Filipowski said at ACC Tipoff that the “team goal for sure is a national championship.” This season, though, that answer is more than just words. Filipowski did not hesitate when asked what Duke is looking for: He answered the question assuredly, a look of feisty dedication in his eyes. “Anybody can talk,” Bilas writes. “Not anybody can be tough.” There are a couple of things different about this year’s team — things that lead the Blue Devils to believe they can win the national title. Four freshmen have joined the roster as a tight-knit unit, bringing closeness and chemistry to the court. Many of last year’s most productive players have come back to Durham. Scheyer has a year as head coach

tucked under his belt. Duke has learned a lesson in toughness from the Volunteers. The Blue Devils wear blue rubber wristbands with their team catchphrase, “One Vision,” branded in bold block letters to make sure they all stay on the same page. There’s really only one thing that vision could be. “It’s important that you have a clear view of where you want to go together,” Scheyer said at media day. “That’s what [those] guys came back for. That’s why [those] guys are here. That’s why I’m here. Let’s go for it.” “There’s no question about it, nothing else,” Filipowski said on winning it all. “This is our year to do that. There are no excuses to not do it.” On the wall of Duke’s film room hangs a photograph of the basketball court inside State Farm Arena in Phoenix. The Blue Devils walk by that picture every day, determined to see it in person in April.

20 | FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2023

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