One of the biggest perks for Duke fans - or twists of cruel fate, depending on your outlook on life - of Cameron Boozer being selected by the Memphis Grizzlies with the No. 3 pick on Tuesday night is who one of his teammates will be in the Bluff City.
In last year's lottery, the Grizzlies selected Cedric Coward out of Washington State. That name is familiar to fans of the Blue Devils because Coward was once upon a time committed to play for Duke.
Coward was one of the biggest prizes of the Transfer Portal a year ago, ultimately picking Duke over Alabama. But Coward went through the NBA Draft process, blew up, and the rest was history. He elected to stay in the draft, and that decision might have been the difference between Duke winning the national championship or not.
Following a productive rookie season, he and Boozer - along with former Purdue star center Zach Edey - will make up the cornerstones of the rebuild in Memphis.
Cameron Boozer will get to team up with Cedric Coward one year too late for Duke fans
Duke fans will have to live vicariously through the Grizzlies to see what could have been last season with Boozer and Coward. Maybe they'll further twist the knife by drafting Isaiah Evans later, too.
Coward had an impactful rookie season in Memphis, averaging 13.6 points per game. Duke had a major need for more scoring on the wing to assist Evans, and Coward would have certainly been that.
It would have been interesting to see, however, if Duke could have still landed Dame Sarr had they brought in Coward, too. There would have been a lot fewer minutes available for Sarr as a freshman, and while Coward would have represented a clear upgrade this season over Sarr, that could have had ill effects on next season's Blue Devils team with Sarr expected to play a significant role on a title-contending team.
Coward's decision to stay in the draft last season was a tough blow for Jon Scheyer, but it taught him a valuable lesson that saved him from going down the same path with Santa Clara's Allen Graves this year. Graves was considered a top target for Duke, but Scheyer and company didn't pursue him as fervently as they did Coward for fear of him sticking in the draft, which he ultimately did.
Instead, Duke focused its attention on Wisconsin's John Blackwell, who was testing the draft process too, but was never a real threat to stick.
Perhaps Coward's decision last year was the catalyst for what will ultimately lead to Scheyer's first title team at Duke.
And one year later, Coward will get to play with Boozer after all. Perhaps all is well that ends well, after all.
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