If you come to Duke, you're embracing development. For both Cameron Williams and Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje, that's certainly the case.
The 5-star forwards could have gone anywhere. Many other programs may have offered quicker paths to significant roles and playing time. That never comes easy at Duke.
But the grind and the journey will be worth it. Because when they leave Durham to make their NBA leaps, whenever that may be, they'll be better for it. The competition they face every day in practice will make them better basketball players, perhaps even more so than game-day opportunities.
Paolo Banchero understood that then, and certainly understands it even better now in retrospect.
The former Duke superstar turned Orlando Magic No. 1 pick sat down with Boumtje Boumtje and Williams recently for an episode of Duke Blue Planet. The wisdom he shared with the elite freshmen should resonate.
"If you wanna be what you say you wanna be, if you want to be the No. 1 pick, if you want to go to the NBA and accomplish what great players accomplish, there's nowhere else you should go, there's no one else you should play for," Banchero said.
"I feel like when I left, I was 10 times the player I was when I got here."
Paolo Banchero tells Joaquim Boumtje Boumtje and Cameron Williams Duke made him 10 times better
The message that Banchero delivered to Boumtje Boumtje and Williams is important.
They have to embrace the development. They have to love the grind.
Because their freshman seasons will be filled with ups and downs. It's not going to be a seamless transition for either. They are used to being the best player on every court they step onto. That won't be the case anymore.
They're going to get knocked around. They're going to spend more time on the bench than they ever have in their careers to date. That can be difficult to deal with for guys who were as highly regarded as they are.
Boumtje Boumtje has seemingly already embraced the developmental path in Durham. He had more guaranteed opportunities at places like North Carolina, where he would have been a plug-and-play starter right away as a 17-year-old. But he put his trust in Jon Scheyer, knowing he was going to be here for two years.
Williams is staring down a potentially much different role than he might've otherwise seen before Boumtje Boumtje came on board. He looked like the obvious starter at the four at one point, but is now competing with Boumtje Boumtje for that spot. Most assume Williams will lose that battle and ultimately come off the bench for the Blue Devils.
He'll have a role regardless, but Williams, along with all the new freshmen in Durham, should heed Banchero's advice and embrace the day-to-day grind. No program is churning out and developing pro players like Duke. This is the place to be, even in a limited role.
It's worth the wait, even if the wait might be frustrating.
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