Duke basketball sees another coaching staff change

The Duke basketball program made another change to its coaching staff. 

Perhaps the last change to the Duke basketball coaching staff has been made as Nolan Smith has been promoted to an assistant coaching role.

Smith was previously the Director of Basketball Operations and Player Development with the Blue Devils after joining the staff in 2016 as a special assistant to head coach Mike Krzyzewski.

Duke announced the promotion with a social media video highlighting the career achievements of Nolan Smith.

https://twitter.com/DukeMBB/status/1382695313371242502?s=20

A spot opened on the Duke bench after associate head coach Nate James left Durham to be the head coach at Austin Peay.

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Nolan Smith was a player at Duke from 2007-2011, winning the 2010 National Championship and eventually going on to be a first-round pick in the 2011 NBA Draft by the Portland Trail Blazers.

After a brief stint in the NBA, the 2011 ACC Player of the Year opted for an overseas route to play professional basketball before landing back in Durham.

There were rumors that Nolan Smith was planning to leave Duke last offseason and become an assistant coach with Penny Hardaway and the Memphis Tigers, but he ultimately turned down an offer to join the four-time NBA All-Star to remain in Durham.

Duke basketball gets praised for its decision

Many around the college basketball world have lauded Coach K for promoting Smith as he is viewed as a rising star in the coaching ranks.

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As an assistant coach, Smith will now have the opportunity to build his credibility as a recruiter alongside Jon Scheyer and Chris Carrawell. And given his personality and relationship with current and past players for Duke, the newly minted assistant coach should thrive in his new role.

Former Marquette head coach Steve Wojciechowski was a rumored candidate to join the Blue Devils once again in an assistant coaching role after his departure from the Golden Eagles this offseason.