Michael Malone may be an upgrade over Hubert Davis at North Carolina. It remains to be seen, but it wouldn't take much to surpass where Carolina was trending under Davis. But that's no slam dunk, either, because of Malone's lack of experience at the college level.
Way too much is made of Malone's NBA Championship with the Denver Nuggets. He won that thanks to a transcendent and generational superstar in Nikola Jokic more so than his own coaching acumen, lest we all forget how his time in Denver ended (he was fired).
Malone was a desperation hire by the Tar Heels because they didn't want to miss the portal window by waiting on Billy Donovan. He wasn't their first or second or even third choice.
But the narrative machine is already trending toward trying to build up Malone and the Tar Heels into something they currently are not. Maybe things work out in Chapel Hill. Maybe they don't, but one thing is certain: Jeff Goodman's take on Duke's feelings about UNC right now is completely laughable:
"When you talk to the Duke staff, they were not scared of the previous head coach at North Carolina, Hubert Davis," Goodman said on The Field of 68 After Dark. "They are scared at whatever degree. Maybe not terrified, but they are worried about Michael Malone at Carolina. They've seen the work ethic, and they've also seen, obviously, he can sell something that even Duke and Scheyer cannot, which is, hey, see this ring; this ring was from the NBA, I won a title. So you know there are a few factors here that again instill that fear factor into Scheyer and Duke."
Jon Scheyer and Duke are in no way scared of Michael Malone and North Carolina
There is a chasm separating these two programs right now. Duke is so far ahead of UNC that they can't even see them in the rearview right now. Compare the rosters, and it's not even close. The first roster Malone has built at Carolina isn't fit for Duke's bench.
Scheyer already lockered Malone in the head-to-head recruitment of Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje, who turned down an obvious featured role in Chapel Hill to trust the process with Duke in Durham.
That, and the surprising NBA Draft departure of Henri Veesaar, left Malone scrambling for frontcourt help so much that the Tar Heels are currently pursuing an ineligible player who spent the last four years as a backup at Florida.
Perhaps Malone is a wildly successful hire at North Carolina. He could be. The Tar Heels certainly have the resources to pour into the program to make it top-tier.
But as things stand right now, there's no fear of Carolina or Malone from Scheyer. He has an elite roster, has consistently recruited better than anyone in college basketball, and is on the precipice of delivering Duke its first post-Mike Krzyzewski national title.
Scheyer and Duke are looking up at no one. They aren't scared of any team, much less the one down Tobacco Road with a mediocre roster and a brand-new head coach who is swimming upstream trying to catch the Blue Devils.
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