Duke Basketball overachieved in Year 1 under head coach Jon Scheyer, going 27-9 and winning the ACC Tournament Championship on their way to a No. 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament. Their early second-round exit 65-52 to Tennessee certainly stung, but redemption is on the horizon. It was the Blue Devils’ first second-round exit in the NCAA Tournament since 2017.
In Year 2 under head coach Jon Scheyer, the Blue Devils return last year’s ACC Rookie of the Year Kyle Filipowski, and high-profile floor general Jeremy Roach. Tyrese Proctor and Mark Mitchell have a lot more playing time on the horizon after making their debut in 2022-23.
With Proctor and Mitchell looking to prove themselves and another talented crop of freshman prospects on his hands, Coach Scheyer should have an exciting time finding playing time for his roster this upcoming season.
They’ll lose just three key contributors from a season ago but they’ll add a ton of shooting with the additions of freshmen Caleb Foster and Jared McCain. Insert their other two freshmen Sean Stewart and T.J. Power and Dariq Whitehead instantly becomes an afterthought.
Duke is easily a National Championship favorite given the potential their rotation possesses. They’ve got experience, they’ve got some talented young players and they did it all without needing to add one player out of the transfer portal.
Depth shouldn’t be an issue for Duke but finding playing time for everybody could get a bit tough. Take a look at their projected starting lineup and depth chart for 2023-24.
Point Guard
Starter – Jeremy Roach (30 mpg)
Jeremy Roach returns looking to lead the Blue Devils backcourt at the lead guard role. His return to Durham this past offseason after testing the NBA Draft waters gave fans a ton of encouragement. He showed he could remain consistent as a rebounder and distributor while raising his career-high scoring average to 13.6 ppg while shooting a career-high 34.3 percent from behind the arc. He also put up 3.1 apg and 2.5 rpg, he’ll just need to apply himself on the defensive end to turn the corner.
Roach really got hot in the Blue Devils final three games, shooting 46.1 percent (6/13) while scoring 19.7 ppg to close out the season. He’ll look to continue to improve those numbers as he looks to lead Duke to a title in Year 4. He logged a career-high 33.2 mpg in 2022-23, so look for his minutes to steady out around that number this season. There’s a ton of talent to play!
Bench – Jared McCain (10 mpg)
Jared McCain emerges as the early favorite to backup Roach. He’s got good size at 6-foot-3 with a knack for scoring with a lot more volume from deep. He should get solid experience learning/competing with Roach in practice and drills this year.
Shooting Guard
Starter – Tyrese Proctor (20 mpg)
Tyrese Proctor returns after putting together solid production as a freshman in 2022-23. He was an ACC-All Freshman selection in his debut season, averaging 9.4 ppg, 3.3 apg and 3.1 rpg on 32 percent from 3-point range.
He played an average of 29.4 minutes per contest this past season, but look for that number to dip given they’ve got some depth in the backcourt this upcoming season. He’ll need to improve his 3-point shooting as well or he could find those behind him getting more favorable minutes.
Bench – Caleb Foster (10 mpg), Jared McCain (10 mpg)
Caleb Foster has already made some early waves given his ability to knock down shots from behind the arc. He plays with a ton of energy on the floor at the 2-spot and can put the ball down on the floor and make shots in the halfcourt.
McCain has an opportunity to share minutes at the point guard and shooting guard spot but with Roach playing a ton of minutes, look for him to replace Proctor some as well.
It wouldn’t be a surprise to see Foster and McCain battle for minutes at the backup shooting guard spot. McCain can also handle the ball and play the point guard spot, making him expendable should Foster catch fire from deep off the bench.
Small Forward/Wing
Starter – T.J. Power (20 mpg)
The 3-spot is the wildcard role right now for the Duke Blue Devils. This past season, Coach Scheyer used a 3-forward attack in the starting lineup with Derrick Lively/Mark Mitchell/Kyle Filipowski. It wouldn’t be a terrible thing for them to put T.J. Power in their starting 3-role. He’s a 6-oot-9 forward that’s shown he can knock down shots on the perimeter and defend with his mobility.
Power has shown he can space the floor and knock down shots on the perimeter as a top prospect out of the state of Massachusetts. He’s an underrated name that could catch fire with Duke in the ACC.
Bench – Caleb Foster (10 mpg), Tyrese Proctor (10 mpg)
Foster is another prospect that could find himself as the backup or even a starting role by season’s end at the wing spot. Depending on matchups, he’s a problem to defend against on the wing at 6-foot-5. He’ll give them another shooter and playmaker on the wing, though he’ll have to defend bigger players at the 3-spot.
Proctor won’t play the entire game at the shooting guard role but he could replace whoever starts when they need a breather or if they get in foul trouble. The 3-spot certainly leaves room for the Blue Devils to get a bit creative with rotations.
Power Forward
Starter – Mark Mitchell (24 mpg)
Mark Mitchell looks ready to break out in the Blue Devils’ rotation following his debut season. He put up 9.1 ppg, 4.5 rpg and 1.2 apg on 46.9 percent shooting from the field and 35.2 percent from 3-point range.
He’s finding his way as an inside-out presence in their lineup and things certainly open up for him with the departure of Derrick Lively Jr. He’ll just need to turn things up defensively. He finished with a defensive rating of 100.0, good for 15th in the ACC this past season.
Bench – Sean Stewart (12 mpg), T.J. Power (4 mpg)
Sean Stewart will look to find minutes here at the power forward role just as well as the center role behind Kyle Filipowski, though he’ll have some competition at the center spot to get on the floor. Stewart is the third player out of Montverde Academy to attend Duke and looks to keep the legacy going with a strong debut season. He’s a prospect that can fly around both ends of the floor making plays.
There’s room for T.J. Power to act as their third power forward in the rotation. He’ll certainly look to make a splash in practice this offseason as he competes for minutes on the hardwood at various roles.
Center
Starter – Kyle Filipowski (25 mpg)
Kyle Filipowski returns at the starting center role looking to pick up where he left off in 2022-23. He was the ACC Rookie of the Year as well as the ACC Tournament MVP after posting 15.1 ppg, 9.0 rpg, 1.6 apg and 1.3 spg on 44.1 percent shooting from the floor.
He’ll need to improve his efficiency as a perimeter threat but, don’t hold it against him considering 2022-23 was his debut season. He tested the NBA Draft waters and returns looking to improve on the feedback received and emerges as an early favorite for ACC Player of the Year.
Bench – Ryan Young (10 mpg), Christian Reeves (5 mpg)
Ryan Young will be indispensable at the backup center role. He appeared in all 36 contests for Duke this past season while averaging 17.6 minutes per contest. Look for that number to dip a bit with younger talent available for Coach Scheyer.
Christian Reeves could see an uptick in his minutes from 3.2 this past season, but he’ll certainly have his work cut out for him competing in practice at the center spot.