Duke Basketball: Projected rotation and minutes for 2022-23 season

Power forward

Projected starter: Kyle Filipowski (13 mpg)

Full disclosure, I’m not comfortable having Filipowski at the four-spot but I can’t remember the last time a consensus top-5 overall prospect started a season off the bench. One has to assume that he and Dereck Lively have bought into playing together on the court inside for Duke Basketball.

Between the two, Filipowski is more capable of playing the four-spot and can also stretch the floor. Not necessarily at an elite rate but just enough to keep opponents honest. And at 6’11 and over 230 pounds, the incoming big man can be a problem inside on both ends and create his own size advantages at that position.

Reserve: Ryan Young (17 mpg) Mark Mitchell (10 mpg)

Just like how Marquette transfer Theo John was able to carve out a role as a veteran big man, I think Ryan Young can do the same, mainly from an offensive point of view. He averaged 9.0 ppg off the bench in 17 mpg at Northwestern and showed he can provide some offense in limited minutes. For a Duke team that doesn’t usually use its bench, having a capable scorer from the frontcourt when foul trouble or even injuries hit will be important.

For Young and even Mitchell’s minutes, it also comes down to how effective not only Filipowski is at power forward but also Proctor and Grandison are on the wings. If one of them falls to the bench, that opens up more minutes for the others and on the wing. Mitchell’s versatility makes him an ideal 6th man but I can see him starting sooner than later if the two-big lineup fails