Duke Basketball: Frank Jackson to be Blue Devils’ March savior?

By Carmine Carcieri | Mar 1, 2017

Feb 28, 2017; Durham, NC, USA; Duke Blue Devils guard Frank Jackson (15) passes the ball around Florida State Seminoles guard CJ Walker (2) in the second half at Cameron Indoor Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Mark Dolejs-USA TODAY Sports /

Duke basketball point guard Frank Jackson is maturing by the day, and that’s good news before March Madness.

With multiple potential lottery picks on their bench and Grayson Allen, Luke Kennard, and Jayson Tatum in their starting lineup, Duke is one of the most talented teams in the nation. That’s why despite all their issues, you can never count out the Blue Devils when it comes to cutting down the nets at the beginning of April.

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The reason I feel even more comfortable picking Duke to do major damage in both the ACC Tournament in Brooklyn and the NCAA Tournament is the fact that their biggest weakness may slowly become somewhat of a strength.

A lack of a true point guard has been a concern for two years. Last season, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, Duke nearly lost to UNC Wilmington because the Seahawks’ pressure flustered the Blue Devils’ backcourt and turned them over. This year, it took Duke nearly three months to find their chemistry on the offensive end, something that would’ve been easier if they had a table-setter from the get-go.

So has Duke finally found a way to ease those concerns?

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I’d say yes as the answer is Frank Jackson. Jackson isn’t a pure point guard — he likes to look to score first — but it seems as if the offense has more flow and synergy with him on the floor.

When Jackson is in the game, Allen doesn’t have to worry about bringing the ball up and initiating the offense. This is beneficial because the one-guard is not the Preseason National Player of the Year’s primary position. He operates more effectively when he is on the wing as he has more space to operate on dribble drives and can spot up from beyond the arc when Jackson or any of his teammates penetrate into the lane.

Duke can spread the floor with ease with Jackson at the one because opponents have to account for the shooting of not only Jackson but Allen, Kennard, and Tatum. That four-out lineup (with Amile Jefferson or Harry Giles at the five) creates match-up problems for defenses as it’s difficult to key into just one particular player.

As long as he continues to get better defensively — Matt Jones is certainly a better player on that end of the floor at this point — Duke will be a much better team with Jackson playing more minutes.

Over his last five games, Jackson is averaging 10.8 points per game, including 19 points per game over his last two outings. The 6’3″ freshman from Utah was impressive in a loss to Miami (16 points, six rebounds and three assists) but was even better in Duke’s win over Florida State last night at Cameron. The guard dropped 22 points, grabbed four rebounds and dished out an assist in the Blue Devils’ payback win over the ‘Noles.

Jackson also has only had five turnovers in his last five games, showing impressive skills to secure the ball.

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I’m not saying that Jackson is going to be a star in March or emerge as the team’s leading scorer. That’s not how this will all turn out. However, what I am saying is that Jackson might be the team’s most important player because of his scoring ability and his developing maturity that helps get Duke into their sets. The rest of college basketball should be concerned: Duke is coming once again.

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