NCAA Basketball: Ranking the 10 best head coaching hires of 2022 offseason
By Joey Loose
4. Jon Scheyer (Duke)
No matter who you are and no matter what you’ve done, it’s hard to replace a legend, and that’s exactly what Scheyer has to do at Duke, taking over as head coach and succeeding Mike Krzyzewski. Coach K accomplished a lot in his 42 years as head coach, with this year’s run to the Final Four a final cherry on top. After five national titles and decades of success, the Blue Devils turned in a new direction, sticking with someone they know real well.
Scheyer grew up just north of Chicago and played for the Blue Devils between 2006 and 2010, culminating in an NCAA title in his senior year. After a brief international playing career, Scheyer joined the Duke bench as a special assistant in 2013, earning promotions to assistant coach in 2014 and associate head coach in 2018. He was already named Coach K’s successor last offseason.
Scheyer has been on hand for the recruiting in recent years and clearly, things aren’t going to massively change for the Blue Devils under his watch. It’s going to take some time to see exactly how Scheyer fares calling the shots, but initial returns are good. Duke’s brought in a ton of high-level recruits and transfers for next season; Scheyer will have a talented roster, but it’ll be interesting to see what he does with all that talent in his first season as a head coach.