Duke Basketball: The power of the frontcourt

Marques Bolden’s commitment to Duke basketball caps their front court rotation.

College basketball fanatics everywhere expect Grayson Allen to lead the Blue Devils in scoring next year. They expect the backcourt to be lethal and they certainly expect the guards to lead the team on a long run in March.

This is college basketball after all. If your program doesn’t have great guards, it’s awfully tough to compete with the best of the best in the Big Dance.

And the Blue Devils support not just one of the best returning players in the nation but they will also return sharp shooter Luke Kennard, athletic point guard Frank Jackson and veteran Matt Jones. Add in small forward and five-star recruit Jayson Tatum, who dominates in the mid-range, and the Blue Devils are in business to have one of the best backcourts in America.

Duke will strike fear in opponents with their experience, depth, athleticism and length, but one area where they will be particularly loaded is in the frontcourt.

Duke landed one of the top recruits in the class of 2016 last week when five-star big man Marques Bolden decided to take his talents to Durham over Kentucky and TCU.

Bolden will provide the Blue Devils with a back-to-the-basket scorer who can use either hand and finish with ease at the rim. He can block shots defensively and pull down rebounds on both ends of the floor.

Bolden is a terrific addition, but he will likely start the season on the bench, which shows just how deep and imposing this front line will be.

Amile Jefferson, who received a hardship waiver, has been given a fifth year of eligibility by the NCAA and will start given his four years of experience, excellent communication defensively and consistency on the glass. Harry Giles, another five-star recruit, is projected to play alongside Jefferson because of his athletic prowess and ability to score in transition.

It doesn’t end there. In addition to Bolden, Duke can also bring second year forward Chase Jeter and four-star recruit Javin DeLaurier off the bench.

That’s a dangerous five-man rotation that can only truly be rivaled by the Kentucky Wildcats.

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The Blue Devils do have their fair share of questions on the interior though. How does Jefferson respond from his broken foot? Is Giles the same type of athlete who can impact the game on every play coming off a torn ACL? Is Jeter ready for the bright lights? Will DeLaurier provide 10-15 quality minutes a game?

And of course how do all five mesh?

Right now, the Blue Devils have just one big that can strike fear into an opponent on the perimeter (Giles). That could significantly limit their spacing and could restrict Allen’s opportunities to attack.

But they are so talented and dangerous that the positives completely outweigh the question marks. Giles, DeLaurier and Bolden can block shots, all five can be effective on the glass and the team even possesses the versatility to play Tatum at the four when spacing is desperately needed.

Mike Krzyzewski is one of the best coaches in the business, so you can count on the Blue Devils increasing Jeter’s confidence this offseason and the program getting Giles, DeLaurier and Bolden acclimated quickly.

Last season, Duke had issues in the painted area and lost critical games because of their lack of bodies up front.

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This season, that won’t be a concern.