Five, count 'em, five Dukies heard their names called on Thursday night at the NBA Draft. It is a record number for Duke and included Paolo Banchero becoming the record 5th Dukie to be picked #1 overall by the NBA. The DBR Podcast gang has plenty to say about who got taken where and how each of our Duke heroes fit with their new teams. One intriguing aspect of all this is the number of new Dukies who will be joining older Dukies already on NBA rosters, including at least 2 guys who figure to be ...
Jun 24, 2022•51 min
The NBA Draft is this week, and we conclude our preview of the 5 Duke Blue Devils whose names we expect to be called on Episode 429! We welcome back the Czar of the Bilastrator, Jay Bilas, to discuss both Wendell Moore and Trevor Keels, from what they accomplished in college to how they can have long pro careers. Of course, we talk about their strengths and deficiencies as well as how their game will translate to the NBA level. Donald and Jason react to Jay’s comments on both players and give th...
Jun 19, 2022•1 hr 13 min
Time for a deep dive into what Duke's newest recruit, "old man" Jacob Grandison means for the 2022-23 Blue Devils. The DBR Podcast crew has plenty to say about how his experience, defensive leadership, and shooting will impact all those freshmen surrounding him. You will really love some of the cool stats the podcast guys found to back up their assertion that Grandison is the perfect missing piece to the puzzle being constructed by Jon Scheyer. Plus, the podcast guys continue their look at the N...
Jun 16, 2022•55 min
It was supposed to be a quiet few days for the DBR Podcast crew. The guys were all set to do a few NBA draft preview episodes and just enjoy the early days of summer... and then Jon Scheyer went out and did it again. The new Duke coach landed another huge piece for the 2022-23 Blue Devils bringing in transfer wing Jacob Grandison, formerly of the Fighting Illini. The podcast guys plan to do a deep dive into what Jacob means for next year's team in coming days but they do have a few initial thoug...
Jun 12, 2022•44 min
We are back with Episode 426 of the DBR Podcast, and we begin a 5-part series on each of the Duke Blue Devils that hope to hear their names called in this month’s NBA Draft. For that, we call in Friend of the Podcast and ESPN analyst Jay Bilas to begin our series with Paolo Banchero! However, before we start on the series, we discuss the news yesterday of the hiring of Rachel Baker, who will serve in a new role as General Manger of Duke Men’s Basketball. We discuss the role and how Baker will he...
Jun 08, 2022•40 min
Of course, we come out with an episode after a 2-week break, and more news comes that we gotta jump back on and talk about! Tyrese Proctor, a 6’4” guard from Australia, decided to reclassify to the Class of 2022 and play for the Duke Blue Devils this upcoming season, and we discuss it quickly on Episode 425! Proctor’s reclassification gives him a guaranteed year in Durham, as he will be eligible to enter the 2023 NBA Draft. Donald, Jason, and Sam discuss how Proctor will fit next to returning po...
Jun 03, 2022•21 min
It's been a bit of a long layoff for the Duke Basketball Report Podcast, owing in equal parts to the lack of Duke Basketball news and the relative inaccessibility of your hosts. Today, however, we are back, with the NBA draft removal deadline having passed. We start, then, with the news that Trevor Keels is remaining in the draft, so he will definitely not be returning to Duke and Durham in the fall for his sophomore season. AJ Green, former Northern Iowa guard who visited Duke a few weeks ago, ...
Jun 02, 2022•49 min
It came as a shock on Wednesday when it was announced that Joey Baker had entered the transfer portal and would be looking elsewhere for his final year of college basketball. Just weeks ago, Joey had confirmed to the world that he planned to finish his career as a Blue Devil. So, what made him change his mind? The DBR Podcast gang have a few theories, one of which is that Duke appears to be homing in on a big time transfer who could play big minutes on the wing next season. That transfer is shar...
May 19, 2022•44 min
Donald, Jason, and Sam dive into the mailbag for some questions to ponder about the future of Duke basketball. Up first, a question about how Jon Scheyer will be different from Coach K. The DBR Podcast gang also dive into some rival teams and answer the question, "which team in college basketball would you hate to be a fan of?" The guys also discuss which Dukie from history would you count on to get a bucket, grab a rebound, make 2 FTs, and other key aspects of winning a game. This episode of th...
May 11, 2022•59 min
On this episode of the DBR Podcast, we are drafting one-and-done teams from Duke history, and we have a special guest to help evaluate our picks. That guest is Mitch Davis, one of the winners of the DBR bracket challenge this year. Mitch won that crown by picking Kansas over Duke in the championship game, and he comes armed with great Duke Basketball and other college basketball stories that you won't want to miss. The eligible players for this draft are guys who went to Duke for one freshman se...
May 03, 2022•1 hr 9 min
On this episode of the DBR Podcast, we're breaking down two new members of the Duke Basketball family: assistant coach Jai Lucas, who joins Duke from a similar role at Kentucky, and senior transfer Ryan Young, who comes to Duke from Chris Collins and Northwestern. Lucas is the big headline for us, though, as Duke has added an assistant without any Duke ties for the first time in almost 30 years. Lucas brings playing success, coaching success, and an impressive pedigree to Durham, where his fathe...
May 01, 2022•54 min
There's a new Dukie in town and his name is Kale Catchings. While not the impact player that some folks are eager to get out of the transfer portal, there is a lot to like about what this former Harvard player brings to Durham. The DBR Podcast crew is here to break it down and also look at some of the other names to watch out for as Coach Scheyer looks to use the transfer portal to fill out the 2022-23 Blue Devil roster. After a quick break, the podcast guys also reflect back on the career of AJ...
Apr 27, 2022•44 min
The Duke Blue Devils have had some more players decide to head to the NBA Draft, and we discuss it on Episode 418. But first, we discuss the announcement that Jeremy Roach will return to Duke for his junior season. We’re very excited at Roach returning to be a leader on the court and provide that veteran presence that a young team will need. We also discuss the departures of Trevor Keels and Wendell Moore to the NBA Draft. Keels’ announcement had more intrigue given the talk that he was consider...
Apr 24, 2022•1 hr
The DBR Podcast gang pays tribute to the great 2021-22 Dukies who have ended their time in Durham and are now headed into the NBA Draft. First of all, the guys debate where Paolo Banchero stands in the ranks of the all-time great Duke one-and-done players and then they talk a bit about Mark Williams compared to the great defensive centers ever at Duke. The conversation then shifts to a couple guys who think may be back in Durham next year, Jeremy Roach and Trevor Keels, and we look at bit at how...
Apr 21, 2022•56 min
The off-season means roster construction and the DBR Podcast crew is here to chat about the latest moves that will make up the 2022-23 Duke Blue Devils. They start with this week's announcement that Joey Baker is coming back to Durham for his "super senior" 5th year in the program. Though there was a lot of speculation that Joey would not play for Duke next season, the podcast guys are very excited at what his three-point stroke and leadership bring to next year's team. And while we await NBA Dr...
Apr 17, 2022•56 min
On this episode of the DBR Podcast, we're giddy over Duke's two most recent commitments, a pair of juniors in the 2023 class, who both declared for Duke late last week. First, we dive into Tyrese Proctor, an Australian who will play on the wing for Duke. Proctor should be an impact player from the start in Durham, given his ranking and his ability to score. Then, we talk about Mackenzie Mgbako, who could become the top pick in the 2024 draft if things go his way. Mgbako is a big, long scorer, an...
Apr 11, 2022•55 min
Now that the Duke season is over, we get to find out the winner of the Stats Game on Episode 414! Jason, Donald, and Sam are back together to go through the results of the Stats Game, beginning with a quick discussion on a technicality. We then get into the different categories, from points per game to number of players to lead the team in scoring to number of 10-5-5 games for Wendell Moore. Jason is the defending champion of the Stats Game...will he defend his title this year, or did Sam or Don...
Apr 07, 2022•1 hr 9 min
The national championship was played last night, but the first topic on this edition of the Duke Basketball Report Podcast is the expected departure of Nolan Smith to become the lead assistant coach at Louisville. We are so sad to see Nolan leave, but we also understand why he is making this move. The DBR Podcast has some "inside" knowledge of what led Nolan to make this choice and there is a lot of logic behind it. Plus, the podcast gang dives into the national championship game between Kansas ...
Apr 05, 2022•54 min
The 2021-2022 season is over for the Duke Blue Devils, as it ends at the Final Four with a 81-77 loss to the North Carolina Tar Heels. We react to the game on Episode 412. Jason and Sam were in the building in New Orleans, while Donald endured a 15-hour flight from Qatar to get back to DC in time to watch with friends. Donald hosts as Jason and Sam, live from a coffee shop in Mobile, describes the scene at the Caesars Superdome. We get to the headlines, starting with some of the cool ones that w...
Apr 03, 2022•1 hr 10 min
With less than 48 hours to go until the huge game with the Tar Heels, the Duke Basketball Report Podcast ventures into enemy territory. We invite on Al Hood from the SB Nation website Tar Heel Blog to tell us what the Carolina community is saying about playing Duke in the Final Four. Al has some surprising notions about what Carolina needs to do to compete with Duke and even gives us his somewhat surprising prediction for the game. Then, after a commercial break, DBR Podcast host Jason Evans has...
Apr 01, 2022•31 min
On this episode of the DBR Podcast, the crew are all back together to do our official game preview for Duke's Final Four matchup against UNC in New Orleans on Saturday. Before we get into it, though, Jason and Sam have to talk a bit about their travel plans for this weekend. Duke and UNC are more similar in team makeup than our respective fanbases may care to admit, and we're here to break down all of the metrics. UNC's tournament run has featured a short rotation, much stronger defense, and bet...
Mar 30, 2022•46 min
The moment the Duke Basketball Report Podcast crew realized that Duke would be facing their hated rivals from down the road in the Final Four, the guys knew they had to talk to Jay Bilas about it. Jay watches as much ACC hoops as anyone and has a close relationship with the players and coaches on both sides. Plus, he has one of the best analytical minds around when it comes to college hoops. Listen in as Jay breaks down what Duke and UNC are doing today that they were not doing just a few weeks ...
Mar 29, 2022•35 min
They did it! The Blue Devils made it to the Final Four as their offense again proved to be more than enough to foil one of the best defenses in the nation. DBR Podcast hosts Jason, Sam, and Donald got together just moments after the game ended to discus how Duke dismantled Arkansas 78-69. The podcast crew has plenty of praise for Duke's big men and for some clutch shooting from the Duke guards. And the guys also reflect on how unlikely and amazing it is that the team is doing this in Coach K's f...
Mar 27, 2022•41 min
Wowowowowow! The Blue Devils win a nail-biter against Texas Tech and the DBR Podcast gang jump on line to give their immediate reaction. The story of the game was Jeremy Roach's amazing drives into the lane, something that was supposed to be impossible to do against Tech... either that or the story was Paolo Banchero raining threes down on the Red Raiders and showing more offensive versatility than we have seen from him all year... or it was Mark Williams patrolling the paint and forcing Texas T...
Mar 25, 2022•46 min
After hours of research and video study, the DBR Podcast crew is ready to give you all you need to know about Duke's Sweet 16 opponent, Texas Tech. And it all starts with their vaunted "No Middle" defense, a scheme that has allowed the Red Raiders to post the best defensive efficiency ratings in all of college basketball. Jason, Sam, and Donald tell you what Duke needs to do to succeed against it and what traps Duke could fall into they aren't careful. Then, after a break, the podcast gang looks...
Mar 23, 2022•50 min
During a thrilling opening weekend of the NCAA tournament, Duke and Michigan State delivered another classic matchup between longtime rivals Mike Krzyzewski and Tom Izzo. The DBR Podcast is back to tell you how Coach K pulled off another win over the Spartans, this time an 85-76 victory in Greenville that allows Duke to advance to a Sweet Sixteen matchup against Texas Tech on Thursday night. We continue to get a ton of great headlines from the listeners, so we have to share those and our own cre...
Mar 21, 2022•57 min
The NCAA Tournament has begun, and the Duke Blue Devils got off to a good start with a victory over Cal State Fullerton. The DBR Podcast crew is here to recap that game on Episode 404! Survive and Advance is the name of the game in the Big Dance, and the Blue Devils were able to make easy work of the Titans. We review the headlines, the good, and the things that could have been better. Notable performances by Jeremy Roach and Mark Williams lead the way, along with noting the shooting struggles o...
Mar 19, 2022•1 hr 17 min
The DBR Podcast gang has spent the last 24 hours pouring over brackets and advanced metrics to bring you a Duke-centric look at the NCAA field. They guys start with a deep dive into Cal State-Fullerton, Duke's first round opponent. They have a very experienced roster but not many guys who have competed with teams loaded with NBA talent like Duke. After that, the podcast spends some time analyzing the rest of the West region, including several interesting notes about the team's in Duke's path -- ...
Mar 15, 2022•59 min
On this episode of the DBR Podcast, we break down Duke's performance in the ACC tournament, where the Blue Devils lost in the final to Virginia Tech, and Duke's placement in the NCAA tournament, where they are the #2 seed in Gonzaga's West region. We start with the bracket. Duke begins its quest for a sixth national championship against Cal State Fullerton on Friday in Greenville, and should Duke get by Fullerton, the winner of Michigan State and Davidson awaits. We're excited and a bit relieved...
Mar 14, 2022•59 min
Thank goodness for the veterans! It is March and every team in the nation is living by the "survive and advance" mantra. And Duke did survive against Syracuse thanks to a huge game from sophs Mark Williams and Jeremy Roach as well as junior captain Wendell Moore, Jr. The three guys who have the most minutes playing in a Duke uniform led the way with a dominant second half both inside and out. And full credit to Syracuse for playing their butts off. This was nothing like the two easy victories Du...
Mar 10, 2022•18 min
