Changing of the guards for Duke women's basketball

Duke knows the importance of strong point guard play. After all, it was season-ending injuries to point guards Chelsea Gray and Alexis Jones injury that dashed the Blue Devils’ national title aspirations a year ago.

Just one year later, Duke finds itself in the same position—without Gray, now in the WNBA, and Jones, who transferred to Baylor following her ACL injury. But these Blue Devils are confident that a replacement for the former top-tier point guards lies on this year’s highly-touted roster.

“There’ll be different people at the point guard spot, no doubt,” head coach Joanne P. McCallie said. “Every one of them brings a different skill set to the point guard position.”

To once again contend for a national championship, Duke will need its floor generals to accomplish three main goals: feed All-American center Elizabeth Williams on offense, provide heavy on-ball pressure on defense and shoot consistently from the perimeter.

Luckily, the Blue Devils’ point guard platoon is composed of three players who promise to do just that.

Duke’s incumbent starter at the point guard position will be senior Ka’lia Johnson, who moved into the starting lineup to fill the void left by Jones during the ACC and NCAA tournaments last season. Johnson, a versatile guard who often played at the two and three positions last season, is best known for her high-energy plays and fearless mentality that provided a much-needed spark off the bench for the Blue Devils in years past.

Making the transition to point guard presents a new challenge for the Chester, Va., native, who used the offseason to get acclimated to the increased responsibilities she will hold this year.

“I think the main adjustment is that I’ll need to be in better shape,” Johnson said. “I worked on a lot of ball-handling and coming off screens and just knowing where my teammates like the ball.... I’m getting used to bringing the ball up the court and having the ball more than in the past.”

Perhaps the biggest benefit for Johnson coming into the season will be the extensive action she received after Jones’ injury. After only averaging 10.7 minutes per contest for the majority of the season, the point guard averaged 29.4 minutes per game in her five games as a starter. The key to Johnson’s success will undeniably be her ability to take care of the basketball. In her five games as the starting point guard, Johnson averaged two turnovers in Duke victories as opposed to 5.5 giveaways averaged in postseason losses to Notre Dame and DePaul.

Johnson will not be forced to carry the load alone. Late in the recruiting process, the Blue Devils uncovered a hidden gem in junior college transfer Mercedes Riggs. The point guard led Salt Lake Community College to a 45-19 record in her two years as a starter. Riggs’ court savvy and knowledge of the game have fueled her success at every level of basketball, dating back to her high school state championship. But the transition from the junior college level to Division-I will certainly not be easy.

“The talent level and athleticism [at Division I] is so much greater,” Riggs said. “It’s really important to learn how to develop the tempo of your game, and that’s the biggest adjustment I have been working on.”

In Riggs—who is expected to come off the bench and lead the second unit—Duke has a gritty, defensive-minded point guard who is on a mission to prove that she belongs on the bigger stage. At only 5-foot-7, Riggs’ stature makes her an ideal defender, able to apply pressure on opposing point guards on the perimeter.

“I’m a gritty, passionate player and defense is all about effort,” Riggs said. “You might be undersized and you might be weaker, but as long as you’re giving effort and playing smart, you’re always going to be able to play well on defense.”

In the Blue Devils’ early exhibitions and scrimmages, Riggs has appeared to be the vocal floor general that the young Duke bench needs in order to succeed. Although the group has made great strides early in the season, Riggs stressed that there remains room to improve.

“We’re not there yet. But we’re getting there. When I came in during the summer, it was really sporadic and everyone was trying to figure out everyone’s game,” Riggs said. “But we’ve really learned how each other plays and who works with who.”

Irrespective of whether Johnson or Riggs runs the point, both will have to learn to mesh with redshirt freshman Rebecca Greenwell. After coming to Durham as the fourth-ranked high school player in the country, the guard was forced to redshirt as she recovered from knee surgery. At 6-foot-1, Greenwell is more of a shooting guard, but figures to play at the point at times this season. Coming into the year, the Blue Devils expect Greenwell’s outside game to help her make an immediate impact.

“Rebecca is a fantastic player and she really plays beyond her years,” McCallie said. “She is a special player, but in order to be one of the best, she has to put in the whole game—including defense and rebounding.”

With Johnson’s experience running the offense, Riggs’ tenacious defense, and Greenwell’s deadly outside shot, Duke seems to have the perfect point guards to thrive with Williams down low. But, with a schedule that includes games against four of the top five teams in the country—Connecticut, South Carolina, Notre Dame and Texas A&M—and numerous other top 25 encounters, there is no doubt that the Duke point guards will be challenged throughout the season.

One thing is for sure. With Johnson at the helm, the Blue Devils will have a battle-tested veteran to lead one of the youngest rosters in recent memory.

“When anybody mentions pressure, I just remember that this is basketball and I’ve been playing since I was three years old,” Johnson said. “I don’t think there’s any pressure for this team. We’re just going to go out there and play our best every game ,and if we do that, we’ll have a very successful season.”