The Pain and the Paulus

We all know that Duke struggled last year in the low post, with only Josh McRoberts as their main, go-to guy. This year, assuming Taylor King does not get transformed into more of a physical player over the summer, the Blue Devils are going to be relying on our boy David McClure and Brian "The Walker" Zoubek.

Unfortunately, both of them are experiencing
injury difficulties. While Brian will hopefully be cleared for full-contact drills before practice officially begins, David is a bit further behind in his recovery. I think we'll get an idea of how truly genius the Duke coaching staff is if Brian Zoubek manages to move his feet AND dribble the ball at the same time this year, a task that proved nearly impossible for the Great White Giant last year.

I'm also including a link to a story about Greg Paulus and his brother and his coaches and his roommate, and well, lots and lots and lots of other stuff. This has got to be one of the longest stories I've ever read about a single player, and yet it says virtually nothing after the first three or four paragraphs. Amusing, anyway.

Go Duke.

Duke lands first commitment

Coach K landed his first 08-09 commitment from Reno power forward Olek Czyz. Czyz is a 6'7" power forward with tenacious defensive tendencies and the potential for strong, physical low post offensive play. Duke is still in the running for two top 20 recruits for the 08-09 season, to go with Kyle Singler, Nolan Smith, and Taylor King coming in for the upcoming season.

Keeping up with Josh (9/29)

Circumstances being what they are, I am a bit behind the times when it comes to breaking news. So, a person, could understand how shocked and dismayed I was to hear of Greg Oden's season-ending surgery, albeit 5 weeks after it was announced.

I like Greg, and I hope for him, personally, that this isn't a career-impacter in a negative way. What frustrates me the most, though, is the impact this will have on Josh McRoberts in Portland. Josh was a great fit, as long as there was a dominant big man for him to play with. Now, it's up in the air as to whether he'll find a groove that will allow him to stay with Portland until Oden returns.

Here's hoping.