Duke basketball is suddenly shrouded in mystery.
Rumor had it that Pitt, after being turned down by Arizona’s Sean Miller and Rhode Island’s Danny Hurley, wanted to talk to Duke assistant coach Jon Scheyer, a second or third banana who is barely 30 years old. We thought the Panthers had come to that after an 0-18 ACC season and firing coach Kevin Stallings.
Then the news broke that Pitt had, indeed, hired a Duke assistant. But it was Jeff Capel III, the associate head coach to Mike Krzyzewski and supposedly the architect of the Blue Devils’ wholesale signing of one-and-done talent over the last decade.
Most speculation over who will succeed the 71 year-old Coach K when he retires pointed to Capel, not only for his recruiting success but also having spent nine years as a head coach, four at VCU in his 20s and five at Oklahoma in his 30s. So does this mean that Capel has been told he would not be next?
It will take Capel several years to rebuild the Pitt program, which has never been as strong in the ACC as it was in the Big East. And how long will Krzyzewski go at Duke anyway?
Is his retirement imminent, and he told Capel to get another job because he would not be the next Duke head coach? Did Capel get out of Dodge because more bad news about the eligibility of Marvin Bagley III and Wendell Carter Jr. is in the pipeline? Has Krzyzewski told athletic director Kevin White that he does not want to recommend one of his former assistants – from Tommy Amaker to Wojo – over another and that it will be White’s decision who takes over?
If Coach K retired today, Duke would likely go after the Boston Celtics’ Brad Stevens, who might enjoy the NBA and not want to return to college, whatever Duke could pay him. If so, White might hire Mike White, the AD’s son, who has been a successful head coach at Florida. Or Notre Dame’s Mike Brey, to keep it somewhat in the Duke family.
So, with three or four new one-and-dones coming in next season and without the main recruiter who lured them to Durham, the mystery surrounding Duke basketball has become delicious fodder for social media. The question beckons, is this the brink of the Coach K era?
Maybe Capel heard some news he wasn’t expecting, or is he leaving the king and his castle because the doormat of the ACC made him an offer he couldn’t refuse. I hardly think it’s the latter, but we won’t know until we know.
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