Three Duke basketball names for Matthew Hurt to study this offseason

True, Matthew Hurt needs several years, not months, to have any hope of mastering the intricacies that made Danny Ferry the only Duke basketball player in history to join all three of the 2,000-point, 1,000-rebound, and 500-assist clubs. Taking in Ferry’s masterpiece moments as a Blue Devil, though, sure can’t hurt.

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Hurt should pay attention to how the three-time Final Four attendee always secured the ball as if it was a Fabergé egg. He should pay attention to how the two-time ACC Player of the Year was decisive upon receiving the rock. He should pay attention to how the 6-foot-10, 230-pound top-ranked recruit out of Dematha Catholic (Md.) overcame his own athletic limitations in part by instantly pulling up for short-range jumpers — on a dime and without a tell — on his way to hanging No. 35 in Cameron Indoor Stadium’s rafters.

And when it comes to this particular study session, Hurt needs only to look at one grainy YouTube video that shows all 58 of Ferry’s program-record points in a game at Miami in 1988:

Crisp yet buttery. Confident yet humble. Poised yet aggressive. Floor burns to prove his tenacity. That was Ferry. But by devoting enough time with the optimal mindset, all that could also describe Hurt one day.

In short, Hurt has a reasonable shot at becoming an All-ACC performer as soon as next season. In fact, the list of necessary ingredients to do so is quite short: muscles plus a few sprinkles of Kelly, Singler, and Ferry. Voila!

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