Duke basketball: Blue Devils should hold out Marvin Bagley III longer
Marvin Bagley III is missing his fourth consecutive game on Wednesday night. For the Duke Blue Devils, it shouldn’t stop there.
Stop if you’ve heard this one before: a Duke Blue Devils star is struggling with injury as the postseason nears. This time around, freshman Marvin Bagley III is the subject.
Sound familiar? Duke’s been there before.
A few hours prior to tip-off against the Louisville Cardinals on Wednesday night, the Blue Devils ruled their star out – again. It’s the fourth consecutive contest the team played without him.
NEWS: Freshman forward Marvin Bagley III will miss today's game vs. Louisville as he continues to recover from a mild right knee sprain.
— Duke Men’s Basketball (@DukeMBB) February 21, 2018
If Duke knew what was good for them, he’d miss the next three games as well.
This isn’t about the team’s past performance in Bagley’s absence. Sure, the team has reeled off three straight victories over Georgia Tech, Virginia Tech, and Clemson, soaring back into the top five of the AP poll. Times are good in Durham.
But instead, this is about projecting the future for Duke – both the immediate and the long-term.
For starters, Bagley is unquestionably the most important player on the Blue Devils. He’s one of college basketball’s best players. Duke is going to the NCAA Tournament no matter what happens over the next three weeks – there’s no need to risk further injury to Bagley to win a couple of games, even for the sake of seeding.
Duke already proved they can succeed with him leading them on the court. This isn’t a scenario where Bagley needs to be reintegrated into the system before the meaningful games begin. That can happen during the ACC Tournament, anyways.
Not that Mike Krzyzewski needs the help, but resting Bagley could also paying dividends on the recruiting trail. Keeping the star freshman – likely bound for the NBA in a couple of months – out of the lineup to recovery shows that the program has players’ best interests in mind. Parents gravitate towards that message, as well as Duke’s prestige on the court and in the classroom.
Fans will clamor to see Bagley by the Tobacco Road rivalry season finale, which is well and good if the freshman is healthy.
Keeping him off the court is the best move for all involved, though.