How Jon Scheyer intends to create his own legacy with Duke basketball as Coach K's replacement
DURHAM – The stark reality of Mike Krzyzewski’s departure from Duke basketball became clear as his successor strolled into Tuesday’s news conference at Cameron Indoor Stadium and took a seat behind a podium that had been reserved for the past 42 years.
Thirty-one days after a devastating 81-77 loss to North Carolina in the national semifinal ended Krzyzewski’s Hall of Fame coaching career, it was the 34-year-old Jon Scheyer – named Coach K’s replacement before the beginning of last season – who answered questions about the future of a blue-blooded program that know rests on his young shoulders.
More: 'He does everything with his heart:' Duke's Coach K makes final bow about his team
“It’s been 11 months since I found out I was going to be the next head coach, and my goal from the beginning was to think about October 2022 and to feel like we’re in a position to pursue a national championship,” Scheyer said. “I think we’re on our way there.”
Scheyer might be 1,202 wins and five national titles behind his predecessor, but in the month since taking over as Duke’s basketball coach, Scheyer has continued to collect wins on the recruiting trail.
He recently put the finishing touches on the No. 1 recruiting class for 2022, which includes three top 10 prospects in Dereck Lively II (No. 1), Dariq Whitehead (No. 2) and Kyle Flipowski (No. 7).
The Blue Devils will return junior point guard Jeremy Roach, senior captain Joey Baker and reserve Jaylen Blakes on scholarship and await the decision of 6-foot-4 freshman guard Trevor Keels, who has yet to decide if he’ll return for his sophomore season or enter the NBA Draft.
More: Duke's Trevor Keels enters NBA draft without hiring agent; Durham return still possible
After winning an ACC regular-season title and going 32-7 last season, Duke lost four players – ACC freshman of the year Paolo Banchero, AJ Griffin, ACC defensive player of the year Mark Williams and junior Wendell Moore – to the NBA Draft, as well as graduate transfers Bates Jones and Theo John.
Scheyer added Northwestern 6-10 center Ryan Young from the transfer portal on Saturday for a Duke squad that will have no returning big men but will add the 7-1 Lively and 6-11 Flipowski. Players report to campus on June 27.
More: Duke's Paolo Banchero will enter the NBA Draft
More: Duke's Wendell Moore announces he's entering the NBA Draft
“Jon is built for this,” associate head coach Chris Carrawell said. “Since I got on staff in 2018, you know, he’s been a guy that you knew was going to be a head coach, you just didn’t know it would be here. But he’s done an incredible job. He’s taken it up another level.”
That level may also include a different direction than his former boss.
Scheyer completed his coaching staff this week with the hire of Jai Lucas, 33, a Kentucky assistant with no affiliation with the Duke program but a reputation as one of the best young recruiters in the game. Lucas, 33, is the first Duke basketball hire this century without a playing career that went through Durham.
The two played against each other in high school (Scheyer was quick to remind Lucas that his team won), and although Lucas grew up in Texas – playing for Florida and then Texas before becoming an assistant under Rick Barnes in Austin – he has deep roots in the triangle.
His father, John Lucas II, is a Durham native who starred at Hillside High School and in college at Maryland before his 14-year NBA career. He’s currently an assistant coach with the Houston Rockets.
Lucas called Scheyer “genuine” as the two shared the podium Tuesday, adding that he respected Scheyer’s honest approach toward recruits.
“It’s just the understanding of who he is and him being authentic,” Lucas said. “People attract people, you know what I mean? So, you know real when you see it, and I felt that way when we first started talking.
Lucas joins Carrawell, 44, and recently-promoted assistant coach Amile Jefferson, 28, on staff, as well as former Elon coach Mike Schrage, 46, who joined Duke earlier this month as a special assistant.
More: Kentucky's Jai Lucas to join Duke basketball as assistant coach
The average age of Duke’s staff is 37. Krzyzewski was 75 when he retired last month.
“It wasn’t like I was looking for a former head coach and an up-and-coming coach,” Scheyer said. “It was the best people we could get, and I really feel like we could not have done better.”
David Thompson is an award-winning reporter for the USA Today Network covering NC State and Duke athletics. He can be reached at dthompson1@gannett.com, at 828-231-1747, or on Twitter at @daveth89.
This article originally appeared on The Fayetteville Observer: Jon Scheyer: Duke basketball coach expectations on replacing Coach K
