Duke women's basketball lost its two centers last season — Kennedy Brown and Camilla Emsbo — after their eligibility expired. The team's freshman phenom Arianna Roberson suffered an offseason injury that will keep her out for the 2024-25 campaign. Two of The Chronicle's women's basketball beats are here to discuss what that means for the team:
Point: Duke’s lack of a true center will hurt the team come March.
Heading into her fifth year as Duke women’s basketball’s coach, Kara Lawson leads perhaps her strongest squad yet. In the AP preseason poll, the Blue Devils were ranked 11th — third-best in the ACC and their highest since February 2023. But before they could even get going, the Sisterhood was hit with devastating news that center Arianna Roberson had suffered a season-ending knee injury in FIBA play. After the departures of Camilla Emsbo and Kennedy Brown, Duke was already thin at the center position; now, it’s almost out of options.
Luckily, if recent memory has taught us anything, it’s that the 3-point revolution has reached women’s college basketball, à la Caitlin Clark and others. With these sport-wide changes in scheme, the game will be played more outside-in, meaning a strong interior presence might not be necessary … right? Unfortunately for Kara Lawson and her Blue Devils, that isn’t necessarily true.
While an increasing amount of 3-pointers are being attempted every season, the best teams are still the ones that excel in the paint. Last year, six of the Elite Eight squads were within the top 50 in rebounds per game — including reigning-champion South Carolina at No. 3. For reference, Duke ranked 97th, and the absence of a traditional center doesn’t exactly help for improving that number.
But, the Blue Devils still return most of last year’s top rebounders — a group which includes Delaney Thomas, the 6-foot 3 sophomore forward. In her freshman season, Thomas showcased an aptitude for controlling the glass, snatching 3.5 rebounds in only 16.8 minutes per game. The Charles Town, W.Va., native also brings a new dynamic to the Duke offense with her ability to space the floor at the five position; as a first-year, she shot 38.5% from deep, albeit on extremely limited volume.
Given Thomas’ versatility, she may remedy many of the Blue Devils’ potential painted-area woes, although that aspect of the game will never be a strength. To win in March, the best always have a leg up on everyone else. For the Gamecocks, that advantage was simply Kamilla Cardoso and her brilliance at the rim on both ends of the court; for Iowa, it was the human flamethrower Clark.
So, if dominating inside the key doesn’t project to be this team’s style, why not bury opponents from beyond the arc? For that to happen, Lawson’s squad will need to have taken significant strides in 3 three-point accuracy and volume. In the 2023-24 campaign, Duke shot 31.7% on 17.9 attempts from deep — 145th and 210th respectively across Division I. Now, without size on the floor, quality looks may be even harder to create, as defenders won’t need to over-help on drives or in the post.
On defense, the lack of size leaves many questions for Lawson and her staff to find the answers to; this season will mark the first time Lawson has managed a rotation without a player 6-feet-4 inches or taller available. So, while her teams have traditionally prided themselves on their stout defense, Lawson will have no choice but to experiment with scheme and lineups.
With all this being said, it is beyond an overreaction to declare the Blue Devils’ aspirations for a March Madness run already dead. To count any team out — much less the No. 11 team in the country — before a game has been played is ridiculous. But, the worry here is well warranted.
To live up to their own expectations, The Sisterhood will need to figure out their on-court identity sooner rather than later. -Alex Min
Counterpoint: Small ball, athleticism and Lawson’s defensive schemes can make up for a missing center.
With the departure of last season’s towering duo of Kennedy Brown and Camilla Emsbo, the Blue Devils were left centerless. Emsbo and Brown stand at 6-foot-5 and 6-foot-6, respectively, and the pair’s height served a crucial role in head coach Kara Lawson’s scheme last season. As soon as Brown would come out of the game to seemingly relieve the opponent’s comparative lack of height, Emsbo would step in to ensure Duke’s height advantage was maintained. Luckily for the Blue Devils, 19th-ranked incoming freshman Arianna Roberson decided to take her talents — and 6-foot-4-inch frame — to Durham, N.C., to play under Lawson. But she will not play this season after her knee injury.
So what’s next? Duke's star-studded center is out for the season and now the Blue Devils lack the height that they utilized for so much of last season. I’m here to tell you that not all hope is lost.
Obviously, Lawson wasn’t going to bank her entire season on Roberson. The freshman is talented without a doubt, but Roberson is, after all, a freshman. Certainly, Lawson didn’t expect the center to immediately fill in the hole that Brown and Emsbo left. Over the course of the season, Roberson was expected to gain confidence and possibly be the starting center in March, but even then, the Blue Devils would need to come up with plans to put players in the post when Roberson was out of the game.
Standing at the same height as the freshman recruit is sophomore forward Jordan Wood. While Wood brings the height, the Carmel Catholic product only played in 14 games last season, averaging just under five minutes a game.
So the next option to start at center is sophomore Delaney Thomas. The 6-foot-3-inch sophomore played in 33 of the 34 games last season, averaging five points per game. And while Thomas didn’t start in a single contest last season, she certainly had her moments. The Charles Town, W.Va., native exploded for a 19-point career high in Duke’s overtime win against North Carolina. Additionally, she recorded 14 and 13 point performances against ranked teams in Stanford and South Carolina. In fact, of Thomas’ five scoring performances in the double digits last season, three were against top 25 opponents. Thomas has proved that she can rise to occasion and I believe that she can develop into the center role that Lawson’s squad so desperately needs during her sophomore season.
In a worse-case scenario, if Thomas can’t match up with centers on the teams towards the upper-echelon of the ACC, will the remainder of the Duke roster be able to make up for the mismatch in the post? It always seems like coach Lawson has an effective defensive scheme up her sleeve, and I believe that this season will be no different. Whether it be the Blue Devils' 16-point comeback against No. 2-seed Ohio State in the Round of 32 or their heartbreaking overtime loss to then-No. 6 Stanford, Lawson knows how to limit her opponent’s scoring opportunities and make upsets happen. I’d bet on Lawson having answers to this year’s lack of height on defense too. Scoring shouldn’t be a problem either. Last season, the top four scorers for the Blue Devils were guards, and all four of those top scorers return this season.
Additionally, wherever the Blue Devils lack in size, they make up for in athleticism. Dare I reemphasize the fact that freshman Toby Fournier can cleanly dunk at 6-foot-2? Fournier, ranked No. 10 in ESPN’s 2024 HoopGurlz recruiting rankings, certainly isn’t challenged in her vertical range. Additionally, Jadyn Donovan – who stands at 6-foot – recorded 40 blocks last season, the third most on the team behind centers Brown and Emsbo. Donovan also recorded the second most rebounds on the team last season behind none other than 5-foot-10-inch guard Oluchi Okananwa. Including Donovan and Okananwa, four of the top five rebounders on the Blue Devils roster last season are returning for the 2024-2025 season.
With rebounding covered, Lawson’s defensive scheme considered and the bulk of Blue Devil field goals coming from the guards on the Duke roster, Thomas should be able to manage her assignments at the five. This is the highest ranked recruiting class Duke women’s basketball has had in years, and if we’ve learned anything from Lawson’s time with The Sisterhood, it’s that she can find ways to win with the cards she’s dealt. -Colton Schwabe
Editor’s note: This piece is one of many in The Chronicle’s 2024-25 Duke women’s basketball preview. Check out the rest here.
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