Incoming freshmen recruits Ryan Kelly and Mason Plumlee are practically identical in terms of height, weight and their position on the court, but by no means should Cameron Indoor Stadium's newest arrivals be considered the same player.

The five-star prospects from North Carolina each bring a unique style of play to the Blue Devils, and head coach Mike Krzyzewski believes they will both make an impact right away.

"One or both of them could start games," he said. "They will obviously be in a rotation, but we are going to depend on those two guys."

Kelly and Plumlee, rated the fourth-best and sixth-best power forwards in their class by scout.com, respectively, do possess many of the same skills.

"I think both of them are really good players," Krzyzewski said. "They can both shoot, play inside and outside, they are great workers and they are ahead of their age."

At the same time, Dave Telep, National Recruiting Director for scout.com, thinks it would be a mistake to say that the two play an identical brand of basketball.

The 6-foot-11 Plumlee-who will join his brother Miles, a sophomore, on the hardwood in Durham-gives Duke a big man with athleticism as well as size.

"He runs the floor, dunks and can dribble and bring the ball up the court," Telep said.

While Kelly may not possess Plumlee's speed, rebounding and leaping ability, he has no problem finding ways to put the ball in the basket.

He averaged 25.2 points per game as a senior and was named Gatorade Player of the Year for North Carolina.

Krzyzewski likens the 6-foot-10 Kelly to a European-style big man because of his excellent perimeter shooting, high basketball IQ and ability to put the ball on the floor and get to the rim.

Telep agreed, comparing him to perennial NBA All-Star Dirk Nowitzki, the Dallas Mavericks' German power forward.

"Ryan brings a scorer's touch to the power forward position," he said.

That scorer's touch was on display when Kelly won the McDonald's All-American three-point shootout on March 30. Plumlee made his presence felt as well, placing second in the dunk contest.

That wasn't the first time the two players met as seniors-Plumlee's Christ School defeated Kelly's Ravenscroft twice during the season, including in the North Carolina state finals.

In that championship game, Kelly scored 14 points to lead the Ravens, but Plumlee's 19 led Christ School to its third straight state title.

When the two big men finally play on the same team, though, Krzyzewski hopes they can add another dimension to Duke's perimeter-oriented motion offense.

"A thing we haven't had in a few years is inside-outside action," he said. "It would be neat to have [strong perimeter play] and people who can score inside, and we believe we have people who can score. What that does to a defense is it makes it go in and out, and that's where the relocation pass, the cuts come."

Assuming Plumlee and Kelly can be effective down low, Krzyzewski expects junior Kyle Singler-who led the Blue Devils in scoring, along with Gerald Henderson, and rebounding last season-to move back to his natural position and play primarily small forward.

For that to happen, though, both Kelly and Plumlee will need to continue to get stronger in order to bang down low with the ACC's bulkier, more physical big men including Clemson's Trevor Booker, Virginia Tech's Jeff Allen, Miami's Dwayne Collins and North Carolina's Ed Davis.

That combination of size on the perimeter and in the paint would radically alter Duke's style of play, which in recent years has keyed on perimeter shooting.

Whether or not the freshmen will immediately provide a solution to Duke's inconsistent low post play remains to be seen, but Telep believes the team will benefit from their presence regardless of the amount of playing time they receive.

"They will push the established players on the roster," he said. "Everybody will get better as a result."