When discussing Duke's offseason, the talk has largely been around the addition of Wisconsin star transfer John Blackwell, and then one of the nation's top recruiting classes led by composite 5-stars Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje, Cameron Williams, and Deron Rippey Jr.
There's no better example of Jon Scheyer's roster-building ability, however, than the addition of Belmont's Drew Scharnowski out of the Transfer Portal.
Scharnowski doesn't bring the star power of Blackwell, but he's expected to be Duke's replacement for 2nd-round pick Maliq Brown, who was the ACC's Defensive Player of the Year this past season.
Scharnowski was a top portal player out of the mid-major ranks at Belmont. He averaged 10.7 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 1.3 blocked shots per game for the Bruins last season. He had plenty of suitors in the portal, a lot of whom could offer a starting role.
Duke couldn't. But Scheyer's recruiting ability was on full display with his ability to sell Scharnowski on a role off the bench for the Blue Devils. That was discussed in a recent article by CBS Sports' Isaac Trotter, with a nice dig at North Carolina in there.
"Scharnowski was one of the best mid-major big men in the portal," Trotter writes. "His combination of size, athleticism, nastiness, and playmaking was very attractive, and he had a sterling market. But when Duke swooped in, it was a wrap. Duke was able to convince Scharnowski to buy into an off-the-bench role instead of taking a starting center gig at numerous other high-major schools.
"...Duke now has constructed one of the deepest and best frontcourts in the country, while forcing numerous other programs to go back to the drawing board in the overpriced big man market. Ironically, Duke's backup center would start for arch-rival North Carolina."
CBS writer believes Duke backup Drew Scharnowski would start for North Carolina
There's perhaps no better indication of the chasm that has developed between Duke and North Carolina than the fact that the Blue Devils landed a player of Scharnowski's caliber as a backup. He would be the best big on Michael Malone's first UNC roster.
Scheyer went head-to-head with Malone for 5-star Boumtje Boumtje, and despite a more obvious and immediate role being available in Chapel Hill, Boumtje Boumtje trusted the process and development in Durham.
Scharnowski was a luxury addition for Duke, but he could ultimately be one of Duke's most important pieces. He gives Scheyer an insurance policy on the oft-injured Patrick Ngongba. We saw last season how problematic Duke's frontcourt was with Ngongba out.
Scharnowski will prevent that from being an issue while alleviating the burden of freshmen like Boumtje Boumtje or Williams having to log a bunch of minutes at the five.
So while Blackwell got all the publicity - and rightfully so - Scharnowski's addition might only fly under the radar until Duke hits the hardwood. His impact will be obvious, and it will be immediate.
Add us as a preferred source on Google