Duke basketball coaches, players, and fans all want to see Zion Williamson return to action, but they also want him to be 100 percent when he does; he’s apparently not quite there yet.
Without him, the Duke basketball team is still solid with a chance to be great. With him, though, the squad is on its way to entering the conversation of the greatest teams in program history — not until a win on April 8, of course.
Unfortunately, that latter version is not quite yet ready to reappear.
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The No. 3 Blue Devils (24-3; 12-2 in ACC) will remain without the services of Zion Williamson on the court for at least one more game. Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski told reporters during his weekly teleconference on Monday that the freshman forward is going through four steps of rehab, and the process apparently won’t be complete in time for the Blue Devils’ 7 p.m. game on Tuesday at No. 20 Virginia Tech (21-6; 10-5 in ACC).
Williamson suffered a Grade 1 knee sprain less than a minute into then-No. 1 Duke’s 88-72 home loss to then-No. 8 UNC last Wednesday. Averaging 21.8 points, 8.8 rebounds, 2.2 steals, and 1.8 blocks while shooting 68.3 percent from the field for the season, the 6-foot-7, 280-pound native of Spartanburg, S.C., could — and should — be the Naismith National Player of the Year, the Naismith National Defensive Player of the Year, and the No. 1 pick in the 2019 NBA Draft.
Without him, the Blue Devils were in shock against the Tar Heels, leading to the lopsided loss. However, with time to prepare to play without him, the group bounced back on the road Saturday night with a 75-65 win at Syracuse — thanks in large part to the continued excellence of freshman forward R.J. Barrett (30 points, seven rebounds, five assists) and a career night from sophomore guard Alex O’Connell (20 points, mostly from a 5-for-8 performance from beyond the arc).
The next possible chance for a Zion sighting on the court comes on Saturday when the Blue Devils host Miami at 4 p.m. (on CBS).