Mike Krzyzewski Issues Duke Fans a Warning: 'Let's Get Real'
When you recruit three of the top five high school players in the country and four of the top 15, that comes with expectations.
But Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski is telling Duke fans to ratchet down the hype surrounding his Fab 4 freshmen, R.J. Barrett, Cam Reddish, Zion Williamson and Tre Jones.
Good luck with that, Coach K.
The hype machine was no doubt fueled by an opening-game rout of perennial powerhouse Kentucky, 118-84. The Blue Devils then went on to rattle off four more wins in such impressive fashion that ESPN’s Paul Pierce declared the Devils could beat the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Considering Duke lost its next game to Gonzaga, 89-87, that prediction seems highly unlikely. Gonzaga (7-0) is now No. 1 in the country, while Duke (6-1) is ranked third.
Duke bounced back with a solid win Tuesday over a decent Indiana team, 90-69. The freshmen phenoms led the way with Williamson scoring 25 points, Barrett adding 22, Jones scoring 15, and Reddish adding 13.
After the game, Krzyzewski tamped down expectations.
Krzyzewski calls out Duke fans for being “spoiled.” Not pleased with the reaction to RJ Barrett/Gonzaga. pic.twitter.com/oUkbdRrLkm
— Brant Wilkerson-New (@BrantGNR) November 28, 2018
“Let’s get real about this whole thing,” Krzyzewski said, according to ESPN. “Let’s not get spoiled. We’ve got four 19-year-old kids that are busting their a– trying to learn how to play and have a lot of pressure on them.”
0:42 RJ Barrett missed Layup.
0:34 RJ Barrett missed Jumper.
0:13 RJ Barrett missed Layup.
0:01 RJ Barrett missed Layup.— Joelson T. (@Joelsoonafc) November 22, 2018
Coach K was also asked if Barrett had taken the Gonzaga loss hard after missing some shots down the stretch and getting denied on his game-tying layup attempt in the waning seconds.
Krzyzewski downplayed that notion but did say there were some fouls that the refs let go, including on that last play by Barrett.
“Jack White got fouled … R.J., his arm was grabbed at the last shot by their point guard and then he went up,” Krzyzewski said.
“We’re not going to complain about that or say the refs lost the game, but come on,” Krzyzewski said.”[Barrett] probably should’ve gone to the foul line. It doesn’t mean we’re going to win.”
As for Duke fans, he told them not to overreact.
“And Duke fans, just cut it out, man,” he said. “These kids aren’t perfect. [Barrett] wasn’t playing hero’s ball. He was playing winner’s ball. … I’ll go to war with my guys. He had the heart to do that. Jack White had the heart to get the rebound. We lose, I’ll lose with them.”
Duke doesn’t have another tough game on its schedule until it plays Texas Tech on Dec. 20, so expect to see a series of blowouts and a series of highlight-reel dunks by Zion Williamson over the next few games.
Zion Williamson 2020 Dunk Contest Winner. pic.twitter.com/vLIhsjw9Ng
— Skyline Sports (@SkylineSportPod) November 28, 2018
Expectations will no doubt stay high for Duke throughout the season, which the freshman and Coach K will have to deal with as they navigate the rest of the season.
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