Duke basketball confesses: Blue Devils stole script from Hollywood

One Duke basketball freshman evidently learned a move or two from growing up near Hollywood and has now convinced a fellow freshman to join him in reenacting movie scenes on the court.

Two minutes before halftime of an 87-52 blowout over Cal on Thursday night, Duke basketball center Vernon Carey Jr. and shooting guard Cassius Stanley channeled their inner Jackie Moon and Scootsie Doubleday, respectively.

In doing so, the two freshmen pulled off in real life the exact same result — two points in the paint — as Moon (Will Ferrell) and Doubleday (Jay Phillips) pulled off in the 2008 sports comedy Semi-Pro. Granted, the Blue Devils required a half dozen or so fewer repetitive feeds to the post on their version of the play.

Plus, unlike Moon, Carey Jr. — on his way to becoming the first Duke basketball player under Mike Krzyzewski to total more than 30 points and 10 rebounds for a game in less than 30 minutes of action — was able to pull off his turnaround five-footer after consecutive passes from Stanley (a Los Angeles native) without needing blind-to-traveling refs.

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Regardless of the less-exaggerated version of the attack from Carey Jr. and Stanley, the Twitter account of SportsChannel8 questioned where the duo received inspiration for the extended game of catch between the guard and big man:

With the evidence clear as day — the spot on the floor made it a dead giveaway — the official Duke basketball Twitter account came across the insinuated accusation that the Blue Devils stole a script from Hollywood and chose to come clean about what was evidently supposed to be a secret:

Joking aside, Duke’s version of the play was quick, smooth, effective, and a promising sign of chemistry between the team’s two most prolific freshmen through a 5-0 start to the season. Carey Jr. is now averaging a team-high 18.0 points and 9.0 rebounds while Stanley is the second-leading rebounder at 4.8 per game and trails only Carey Jr. and sophomore point guard Tre Jones in points with 12.6 per game.

ALSO READ: Better decathlete, Cassius Stanley or Zion Williamson?

And considering Carey Jr.’s 8-for-9 clip from the foul line against Cal, should the championship game of the 2K Empire Classic from Madison Square Garden at 7:30 p.m. on Friday night (on ESPN2) between No. 1 Duke and Georgetown (4-1) come down to the final possession, the big fella — though only hitting 65.5 percent of his freebies for the season — might would be the best option to get the ball if the Blue Devils were to need a score to tie or win the title.

Ideally, though, if Ferrell — oops, Carey Jr. — was to end up on the charity stripe and then miss the second free throw, Stanley would find a way to channel his inner Manix (Woody Harrelson):

Though nothing resembling a Mega Bowl is yet at stake for the Blue Devils, their No. 1 ranking is now at stake every game and makes them an even bigger target every time they take the court. But so long as they don’t seek too much advice from Moon — “Everybody panic!” — they should be OK.

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