Who’s Duke’s starting 5 this year? Here’s the full breakdown of the Blue Devils’ lineup
No. 9 Duke will begin the season ranked in the top 10 as usual and, while adding its usually strong freshman class, its veteran players have equally asserted themselves in preseason practices.
Senior guard Jordan Goldwire and sophomore forwards Matthew Hurt and Wendell Moore join freshmen Jalen Johnson and Jeremy Roach as the five players who have emerged as the starting five at this point.
Those five, and freshman forward Henry Coleman, made up the white team during the first period of the team’s initial preseason scrimmage in an otherwise empty Cameron Indoor Stadium last Friday night.
“We believe our veteran players, Jordan Goldwire, Wendell Moore and Matt Hurt, are really crucial in us going far,” Duke associate head coach Nate James told the News & Observer Monday. “Their leadership, their play. They have to show the younger guys what it means to wear the uniform and play in the ACC. We go against the best of the best each and every game, so it’s getting them to understand that.”
Those players looked good as a group in the 12-minute period they matched up with the Blue team in Friday’s scrimmage, jumping to a 17-4 lead and finishing the period up 24-15.
The players switched up sides over the final two 12-minute periods of scrimmage play.
Overall, Roach scored 22 points by making 6-of-9 shots from the field and all eight of his free throws. His five assists tied with Goldwire and freshman guard D.J. Steward for tops over the 36 minutes of play.
Roach has quickly proven he’s adept at scoring and running the offense.
“It’s fun,” he said during a Zoom news conference last month. “Just to play fast and to know you’ve got guys on the wing and the bigs that you can kick to, you can dump off to and they’ll make plays, too. You’ve got guys like Jalen Johnson, Wendell Moore Jr. and Matt Hurt on the wing. It’s just crazy to play with guys like that and it’s fun to play with that kind of talent.”
James likes Roach’s play-making ability.
“He’s such a dynamic guard,” James said. “He controls the game. He’s terrific in the ball screen. That’s something that we really haven’t had in a while. Just him having the ball and allowing him to make plays, he’s really separated himself from that aspect. He’s also shooting the ball at a high clip.”
The 6-foot-7 Coleman and Patrick Tapé, the 6-foot-9 Charlotte native who came to Duke as a graduate transfer from Columbia earlier this year, were both solid inside and are pushing for playing time. Coleman had 17 points and 10 rebounds, while Tapé finished with 14 points and 10 rebounds.
“I thought Henry Coleman gave us some positive minutes,” James said. “You really feel him out on the court with his energy, his effort, his defense. And that same goes for Patrick. Big Pat has really established himself as a defender, rebounder and is terrific in the ball screen defense. He’s trying to do everything we ask him to do.”
Among the expected starters, Hurt and Johnson will be counted on for points and rebounds inside while they also have the ability to make things happen on the perimeter.
Hurt averaged 9.7 points and 3.8 rebounds as a freshman last season, playing in 22 games with 31 starts. But his play was inconsistent.
He’s added 20 pounds to his frame in the offseason and, now at 235 pounds, he’s playing with more confidence.
“I feel like it’s going to impact a big part of my game because a knock on me was I was a little lighter,” Hurt said last month. “Guarding the four (power forward), people would try to take advantage of me down low, but I feel like this year, especially on defense but also on offense, just attacking it, being stronger with the ball and taking contact and finishing over taller defenders.”
At 6-foot-9 and 220 pounds, Johnson arrived at Duke from Milwaukee rated as the nation’s No. 13 overall incoming player in his class by ESPN.
Duke’s coaches are finding Hurt and Johnson can play together well, with Hurt’s ability to play inside and out and Johnson’s play-making skills.
“Matt is a pretty good interior post scorer himself,” James said. “He won’t be just shooting 3s and floating on the perimeter. He’s probably our best post guy. So we’ll look to get him the ball some (inside) but obviously his biggest weapon is beyond the arc. We believe he and Jalen can play together because Jalen really wants to pass the ball. He’s great at creating and driving and dishing. So to have those two playing off each other, we think that could be an explosive combo.”
Duke’s schedule is set to be announced Tuesday morning when the ACC reveals its full schedule. The Blue Devils are expected to open the season at home on Nov. 25 in nonconference play.
Getting the team accustomed to playing in Cameron with no screaming fans behind them due to the coronavirus pandemic is a big challenge the players and coaches are working through.
“It’s very foreign and an unusual thing to do,” James said, “to be excited and pumped up for a performance and there’s no one in the stands.”
This story was originally published November 9, 2020 at 7:33 PM with the headline "Who’s Duke’s starting 5 this year? Here’s the full breakdown of the Blue Devils’ lineup."