Throughout Marshall Plumlee's career, the 7-footer has had to live up to the legacies of older brothers Mason and Miles, former Blue Devil standouts now in the NBA.
Friday the youngest brother took a step out of the large shadow cast by his brothers by doing something very unexpected for a basketball player in a top-tier program—contractually agreeing to serve in the U.S. Army.
Plumlee signed his Army ROTC contract before practice Friday, which means that the Warsaw, Ind., native is admitted to the Advanced Course and can work toward becoming an officer. Lt. Col. Keirya Langkamp, the chair of the Duke NCCU Army ROTC program, swore Plumlee in at Cameron Indoor Stadium as his teammates, coaches and the Duke basketball staff watched before continuing their preparation for their upcoming game Sunday against St. John's in New York.
Although the redshirt junior center joined a much bigger and more impactful team Friday afternoon, he said after practice that he still wants to focus on balancing basketball and the Army in pursuit of his ultimate goal.
"At the end of next year, I would commission as an officer and the plan as of right now would be to become a Reserve officer and pursue a career in professional basketball," Plumlee said. "My dream is to play in the NBA. That's a dream that's still possible and I can still serve as a Reserve officer and coordinate with the Army."
For the former McDonald's All-American, Friday's ceremony was the culmination of two years of hard work. Because of his strenuous basketball schedule, Plumlee revealed that he has often been unable to take regular ROTC classes with other cadets, and instead has been forced to do more independent studying with his cadre to acquire the necessary skills to join the Army.
“This is a pretty historical moment,” Langkamp said in a press release. “Things like this don’t happen very often. It’s magical when you get someone of [Plumlee’s] caliber, that’s part of such an extraordinary team, the Duke basketball team. He’s already part of an amazing group of men. Now he’s part of something bigger.”
Because he is approximately four inches beyond the U.S. Army's 80-inch maxiumum height requirement, Plumlee had to get a special waiver approved to move forward with his contracting ceremony. But despite the many obstacles he has had to deal with, Plumlee has made the scheduling work in large part due to his head coach.
A West Point graduate and strong supporter of the military, head coach Mike Krzyzewski has helped one of his few veteran players achieve something extraordinary off the basketball court.
Plumlee said he plans to begin graduate school next year, in addition to improving his leadership skills at a camp this summer and programs next spring all while balancing his commitment to basketball.
"He's been extremely supportive," Plumlee said of Krzyzewski. "Duke basketball is a full-time job, so schedule-wise, there has to be a lot of give and take and a lot of understanding both sides between Duke basketball and the Army. Coach K has helped me facilitate that, not only that, but Coach K knows just about everyone in the Army and has the whole support of the military, so that doesn't hurt either."
Krzyzewski's dedication to conditioning his players also helped Plumlee balance three major commitments—basketball, ROTC training and classes—because the Army did not require that the reserve center participate in its conditioning drills.
Plumlee also referred to Duke's 2012 visit to Fort Bragg, where the team hosted an open practice for military members, as a key moment of inspiration from his head coach. Although Plumlee sat out due to a broken foot, the event increased the team's intensity to the point that Plumlee said they coined the term "Fort Bragg defense."
“Thankfully, [the Army] recognizes playing basketball for Coach K keeps me physically fit.” Plumlee said.
The man that first inspired Plumlee to think about joining the Army was Lieutenant General Robert Brown. Plumlee said the two met when Plumlee took a trip with USA Basketball his junior year of high school and the 6-foot-7 Brown—who played for Krzyzewski at Army and was a One-Star General when the two met—immediately befriended the big man when he was told of Plumlee's potential interest in the military.
Plumlee visited Brown at Fort Benning recently with Pat Thompson, Duke's director of basketball operations, and though he remembers Brown's continued support, Plumlee also has a few other vivid memories from the trip.
“I went paint-balling in Fort Benning with a bunch of higher-ups and I got lit up,” Plumlee said. “It goes without being said I’m a big target.”
Despite not having great success in paint ball, Plumlee cites Brown as one of the top reasons he ended up deciding to join the Army.
"The combination of him, Coach K and the whole passion I found on my own is what brought me to wanting to join the Army," he said.
To those who have spent countless hours in the gym with Plumlee, the opportunity to be on hand for the official ceremony provided a brief getaway during a hectic time in the team's schedule.
With all of the external attention surrounding the Blue Devils as they try to earn Krzyzewski's 1,000th career win, a reminder of the bigger picture and bond they share also could not have come at a better time.
“To know that when you get sworn in that you’re supposed to bring people that are your family, for him to without a doubt to say he wants us to be there, it was big,” junior captain Amile Jefferson said. “Me and [senior captain] Quinn [Cook], we held the flag while he was being sworn in, and I could see the excitement and the love he felt on his face. I’m extremely proud of him.”
Just as he does on the court, Plumlee faces certain limitations—mainly his size as a 7-foot, 255-pound center—that he will have to overcome to effectively serve in the Army. He listed not being able to fly the choppers he might want to or fit in tanks as a few obstacles Friday afternoon.
But many doubted whether Plumlee could figure out how to do the things that make a valuable center—rebound, block shots and knock down free throws—so as a contributor shooting 76.5 percent from the field and 81.8 percent from the line for the No. 5 team in the country, he likes his chances to eventually figure it out.
“I know there’s some way I can help serve,” Plumlee said.
Nick Martin contributed reporting.
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