Projecting Duke’s starting lineup following Countdown to Craziness

DURHAM, NC — The Duke Blue Devils men’s basketball team hosted their annual Countdown to Craziness on Friday evening.

Countdown to Craziness is a preseason pep rally event that includes an array of entertainment leading up to the introduction of the latest Blue Devils basketball squad. Both teams split in half to host a scrimmage in front of the eager Cameron Crazies, playing in Cameron Indoor for the first time since their loss to North Carolina back in March.

In the scrimmage, Duke Blue defeated Duke White 41-26 in just 16 minutes of action. Freshman guard Tyrese Proctor led the way for Duke Blue with 10 points and 3 rebounds, playing the entire game. Junior guard Jeremy Roach led all scorers for Duke White with 12 points and 3 assists while shooting 3-for-3 from downtown.

Based on the Countdown to Craziness scrimmage as well as what we know so far, here’s who I think will be starting at each position for the Blue Devils to begin the year.

Point Guard: Jeremy Roach

Head Coach Jon Scheyer has a ton of reason to be excited with his guard play as his team captain Jeremy Roach is back for another year. In his sophomore campaign last season, Roach averaged 8.6 points and 3.2 assists as he came off the bench for most of the year.

Roach played a huge role in Duke’s Final Four run as he transitioned into the starting point guard for the Blue Devils during the NCAA Tournament. His ability to space the floor off the ball and run the offense as an initiator on the ball gives him all the tools to succeed in an offense full of elite rim finishers and shooters.

Look for Roach to be in the conversation to make an All-ACC team by the end of the year.

Shooting Guard: Tyrese Proctor

Duke was blessed with the No. 1 recruiting class in all of the NCAA following one of their best offseasons yet. One of their top recruits Tyrese Proctor, who initially was slated to enroll next year until his reclassification in June, has shown flashes of his potential all summer.

Proctor is a lengthy guard standing at 6-foot-5 and was one of the best two-way guards in the 2022 recruiting class. Proctor was one of the most highly touted shooters in the class. The five-star guard from Australia will serve as an excellent pairing next to Roach in the backcourt, giving the Blue Devils two stout defenders at the top of the key.

“Us in the backcourt together is really scary. At this point we know each other’s games pretty well,” Roach said after the scrimmage. “If he’s hitting, I’m going to keep feeding him and the same thing goes vice versa. The key for us is just feeding off each other’s energy.”

Small Forward: Dariq Whitehead

Coming off winning a national player of the year award in his senior year of high school, it should be no surprise that Dariq Whitehead is seen as Duke’s best player when healthy.

A year ago, Whitehead was the nation’s No. 1 recruit in the class of 2022 by Rivals.com. after averaging 17.1 points, 5.1 rebounds and 2.4 assists through 23 games at Montverde. The 6-foot-6 New Jersey native has a solid frame that includes a 6-foot-9 wingspan that implicates his ability to defend 1-4 at times.

Whitehead suffered a fractured foot at the end of August and will make his return “sometime in the fall” according to coach Scheyer. Upon his return expect the Blue Devils to be one of the best scoring teams in the country as Whitehead gears up for a season that already has projected him as a lottery pick in the 2023 NBA Draft.

Power Forward: Mark Mitchell

Despite the talented wing depth on this Blue Devils roster, Freshman forward Mark Mitchell has all the tools to make an impact as the starting power forward out the gate.

Now I know what you’re thinking: Why isn’t Kyle Filipowski listed here?

As appealing as it may be to some to run a dual 7-footer lineup, there are a few downsides that may make Filipowski the odd man out of the starting role. For starters, Filipowski will have to prove that he can handle defending in the pick-and-roll and in space. While he’s a strong interior defender, he struggles out on the perimeter switching to smaller defenders. As far as matchups go, I believe Mitchell is the better call to start at the four for the time being.

As a senior at Sunrise Christian a year ago, Mitchell averaged 17.6 points on nearly 50 percent shooting from the field with 6.3 rebounds a game. The 6-foot-8 four-star forward from Kansas City was named to Sports Illustrated’s All-America Second Team following his emergence last year. ESPN ranked Mitchell as the No. 3 power forward in the class of 2022.

Mitchell’s ability to slash at an elite level while also being able to hit a mid-range consistently will bode extremely well for Duke. Defensively Mitchell has the tools to take on big guards and forwards while getting on the glass with no problem. His ability to defend multiple positions and facilitate at a high level as well is what sets him apart from Kyle Filipowski in this offense in the starting unit.

Center: Dereck Lively

Dereck Lively was rated the No. 1 overall player in the ESPN 100 rankings for the class of 2022 a year ago.

In his senior year of high school, Lively averaged 14.0 points, 14.0 rebounds and 4.5 blocks per game. The five-star big man out of Westtown School in West Chester, Pa was a McDonald’s All-American and a first-team All-State honoree in his senior year.

Lively’s ability to stretch the floor on the offensive end while also being an elite interior presence on defense is the majority of the reason why he was such a highly-ranked recruit. He has the agility and mobility to guard in space and will be an even more impactful defender the more he can play in this system.

Lively suffered a calf muscle strain in practice last week and missed today’s scrimmage, but it appears he’ll be good to go for the Blue Devils’ opening night matchup against Jacksonville University on Nov. 7. Duke will face the Dolphins that night at 7 p.m. live on ACC Network in Cameron Indoor Stadium.