After two exhibition games, Duke basketball finally takes the court Friday night, hosting Georgia State at Cameron Indoor Stadium. The Blue Devils are expected to start Mason Plumlee, Ryan Kelly, Rasheed Sulaimon, Seth Curry and Quinn Cook for the season opener.
Read our preview: Duke basketball vs. Georgia State
With the first official action of the 2012-2013 season just hours away, here are the three things to watch out for:
Is 'Sheed ready for the starting role?
If Rasheed Sulaimon plays anything like he did in the two preseason games, the answer is yes. Although Duke fans knew he'd be good, he wowed everybody with 18 points in the first half against Western Washington in the first exhibition. But regular season games bring a different level of intensity and competition against higher-quality foes. And don't expect Duke basketball head coach Mike Krzyzewski to be patient on day one. Alex Murphy and fellow freshman Amile Jefferson are both on the bench and would bring more size to a Blue Devil lineup, so if Sulaimon isn't producing there could be some changes early. At least 20 minutes of action seem like they are in the cards for 'Sheed, but what he makes of that time could determine his role going forward.
Can Mason dominate the boards?
In both preseason games, the Blue Devils gave up too many offensive rebounds, plain and simple. They gave up 18 to Western Washington and 19 to Winston-Salem State. No matter how good a team's defense is, if it gives up that many second chance opportunities, opponents will score. Fixing this problem falls on Mason Plumlee, who recorded double-doubles in both preseason contests. He is an elite rebounder and—fairly or unfairly—the pressure is on him to make up for the deficiencies of the rest of this team on the glass. Ryan Kelly joins him at forward, but Kelly is in there because he can stretch an offense, not because of what he can do on the boards.
What will the rotation be like?
Going into a season, it's always difficult to decipher what Coach K's rotations will be like. Sometimes he likes to go deep, other years he can stick to a seven-man unit. Sulaimon is starting, but it will be interesting to see how much Jefferson plays. Many people projected Jefferson to be a project and developmental player entering the season, but with what he flashed against Winston-Salem State, he could easily be in line for quality minutes. Murphy, on the other hand, started both preseason games and will likely come off the bench tonight. The other question, really, is with Tyler Thornton—how long does Quinn Cook have to run the offense at the start of the game? If Cook struggles in the first few minutes, will Duke have a floor general controversy?
Check back here for live analysis during the game and follow @dukebasketball on Twitter for the most up-to-date notes.
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