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The Impact of Zion Williamson for Duke Basketball

By Dimitri Quaglierini

DURHAM, NC - JANUARY 04: Head coach Mike Krzyzewski and asociate head coach Jeff Capel of the Duke Blue Devils watch their team during the game against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets at Cameron Indoor Stadium on January 4, 2017 in Durham, North Carolina. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images)
DURHAM, NC - JANUARY 04: Head coach Mike Krzyzewski and asociate head coach Jeff Capel of the Duke Blue Devils watch their team during the game against the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets at Cameron Indoor Stadium on January 4, 2017 in Durham, North Carolina. (Photo by Grant Halverson/Getty Images) /
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The wait for highly touted high school recruit Zion Williamson is officially over and he will be joining the Duke Blue Devils for the 2018 season. Williamson chose Duke over the likes of Clemson, Kentucky, North Carolina, and South Carolina. This decision will certainly simmer for South Carolina and Clemson fans alike as Williamson is a Spartanburg, SC native, but he now joins a very talented recruiting class for this Duke team.

Williamson is rated as the number three prospect in the 2018 class and his versatility is an intriguing factor and one that will certainly be advantageous to Coach K’s system. Williamson possesses a Charles Barkley/Julius Randle type hybrid player as he can play the frontcourt positions if Duke wants to go with a small lineup, but also has the ability to handle the ball well. This will allow his teammates to help space the floor and create a nightmare for opposing defenses, especially in the expected stacked ACC.

Fans across the world have witnessed videos of Williamson, but he currently is ailing with a foot injury. Although he is nursing this nagging injury, his primary goal is to be at full health for Duke come summer 2018 in time for training camp. Duke now boasts arguably its most talented recruiting class of all time. For the first time in program history, Coach K has landed the top three recruits in the country led by R.J. Barrett, Cam Reddish, and now Williamson. In addition, Duke also has a commit from highly respected point guard Tre Jones, whose older brother, Tyus, once played for the Blue Devils. The younger Jones is rated as the 8th best prospect in the country which means Duke has secured four players in the top ten of the 2018 recruiting class.

Fast forwarding to next year, Williamson can be inserted into a variety of lineup settings. He has the ability of playing either on or off the ball, which bodes well for Duke as an offense. An interesting sense to look forward to is how these four talented prospects will play with one another on the court. Coach K is not a fan of playing all freshman at once, so I expect DeLaurier and O’Connell to be valuable pieces to pair with these four incoming freshman. All four of these highly touted recruits must learn to play on and off the ball and creating space for one another. Coach K is certainly the focal point in making these Duke teams go and I have full confidence in this team next year amidst its large group of incoming freshman.

Next: Zion Williamson Commits to Duke

Williamson will have the unique ability to play in a system that fits his style while learning to not always be the center of an offense. We have certainly seen similar dynamics with the now Golden State Warriors in the NBA and although different, this Duke team has the talent and ability to do the same. Duke will once again be crowned as the early favorites for the 2018-2019 season to host another NCAA title, but only time will tell. Until then, fans and Coach K alike must focus on the season at hand while continuing to develop and groom their young players.

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