The Duke basketball team conducted its first practice of the season on Friday.
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The consensus top 5 team in the preseason rankings got underway in an intense practice, mostly focusing on the basic principles and fundamentals of basketball.
Here’s how some of the freshmen reacted to their first official practice as a Blue Devil:
“Practice was great,” freshman center Jahlil Okafor said. “We have a lot of talent and the great thing with this team is that we’re all focused on one thing and that’s winning. There’s going to be a lot of good things happening this year.”
Okafor stands at 6-foot-11 and weighs around 270 pounds. He hails from Chicago, Ill. He averaged 24.1 points and 11.3 rebounds per game his senior season.
“I wasn’t quite sure what to expect,” freshman forward Justise Winslow said. “We got out there, we competed, we worked hard. I think we got better today and that’s all that really matters. I was really excited. I was ready to get this first practice under my belt and just get out here and compete. I was really anxious. I was glad I survived and got through it.”
Winslow stands at 6-foot-6 and weighs around 225 pounds. He hails from Houston, Texas. Over his high school career he tallied 3,208 points and 1,708 rebounds. His game averages during his high school days were 23.9 points, 12.8 rebounds, 3.2 assists, 2.2 steals and 2.0 blocks per game.
“It was a lot of intensity, guys talking, a lot of hard work,” freshman guard Tyus Jones said. “It was just fun. It was my first one so I don’t really know what to expect.”
Jones stands at 6-foot-1 and weighs around 190 pounds. He hails from Apple Valley, Minn. Over his high school career, he tallied 2,909 points, 1,031 assists and 369 steals, all Apple Valley High School records.
Some of the upperclassmen weighed in too.
“We have a really good team and guys came in today with a lot of intensity,” junior forward Amile Jefferson said. “There was a lot of energy. It was great for the first day. I thought our young guys did exceptionally well. I worked a lot with Ja today. We did a lot of banging today and it was fun. We’re going to have a really good team. On any given day someone’s going to shine.
Jefferson stands at 6-foot-9 and weighs around 215 pounds. He’s currently one of the two captains. Last season, Jefferson grabbed 101 offensive boards. He averaged 6.5 points, 6.9 rebounds and 1.0 assists per game during his sophomore year.
“It was a great practice,” senior guard Quinn Cook said. “It was a great day. There was a lot of teaching mental things. Coach was applying defensive schemes, quick hitters and things like that. It was a good first day and I think we got better.”
Cook stands at 6-foot-2 and weighs around 185 pounds. He has averaged 9.4 points, 2.4 rebounds. 3.9 assists and 1.1 steals per game over his career at Duke.