When five-star center Marques Bolden committed to Duke in May, for many he was seen as a luxury—not a necessity.
Blue Devil fans have been spoiled lately, and as the last of four five-star prospects to commit to Duke, Bolden was a bit of an unknown when the freshmen arrived on campus this summer.
But fast forward six months, and the Blue Devils’ rookie class looks very different—now Bolden may prove to be the most valuable freshman this year.
As the third highly-touted center to arrive in Durham in as many years, he has shown glimpses in the preseason that his impact on the team may be closer to Jahlil Okafor’s in 2014-15 than Chase Jeter’s was last season. With Jeter as the only other true big man on the roster, Bolden is making the most of his opportunities.
Duke’s offense revolved around Okafor during its last national championship year, but Bolden may be at his best on the defensive end of the floor. The 6-foot-11, 245-pound big man had five blocks in the Blue Devils’ first exhibition against Virginia State, and could arguably be Duke’s most effective rim protector since National Defensive Player of the Year Shelden Williams more than 10 years ago.
“Marques is the biggest guy on the team,” head coach Mike Krzyzewski said at the team’s media day in early October. “He’s going to be a really good low post scorer and shot-blocker.”
As a true center, the DeSoto, Texas, native’s presence under the basket will make the game easier for the rest of his teammates. One of the biggest changes is that forward Amile Jefferson can now step out and play on the wing this season with Bolden securing the paint.
The Blue Devils relied on Jefferson to crash the boards last year before his season-ending foot injury, but he can be more of a facilitator this season with another consistent double-double threat as a teammate.
“Me and [Marques] are getting a good relationship down where I know where to find him for easy scores,” Jefferson said. “For me, it’s just getting him in position where I can throw him easy lobs and get him easy baskets.”
Although Bolden and Jefferson appear to be the top big men on the depth chart, Jeter is also set to be a major contributor after a disappointing freshman campaign.
The 6-foot-10 sophomore averaged just 1.9 points and 1.9 rebounds per game last season. He committed 59 fouls and had just nine blocks all year in 7.9 minutes per game.
“A lot of people doubted, and I was cool with that because I knew that I’m the type of guy that might take a second to learn,” Jeter said. “Now, it’s a completely different game. It’s slowed down tremendously for me.”
Jeter’s renewed confidence was hard to detect in last Friday’s exhibition, when he shot 1-for-5 from the field with a few misses from point-blank range. Although he blocked two shots and calmly shot 6-of-8 from the free-throw line, the Las Vegas native will need to be more consistent to maintain a major role before Duke’s sleeping giant returns from the sidelines.
Bolden, Jefferson and Jeter would make a very capable frontcourt, but freshman Harry Giles is the wild card that could take the Blue Devil unit to another level. The Winston-Salem, N.C., native has not played since he tore his ACL last November, and he underwent an unrelated knee scope at the start of October that kept him off the court again.
There is no timetable for his return, and Krzyzewski cautioned at ACC media day last week that it may not be simple for Giles, who has been unable to practice, to develop chemistry with his teammates if he is healthy enough to enter the rotation.
“The team will be at a different phase, so Harry has to go blend into that phase,” Krzyzewski said. “He may add a dimension that we don’t have. I don’t what that is—rebounding, energy or whatever, and then all of a sudden, that will give him the confidence to blend more.”
If Giles can be the same player that averaged 23.9 points and 12.5 rebounds per game as a high school junior, his versatility could complement Bolden’s more defined role as a true center well.
“They’re both so athletic, especially Harry. Marques is really skilled down low,” Jeter said. “Having a skilled big and an athletic big, that tandem works well together.”
There are still question marks surrounding Giles’ availability, but even without him, the Blue Devils will still look inside more frequently on offense than they did last year.
Starting center Marshall Plumlee was a good defender and played hard in a breakout season—which was enough to get him an NBA contract with the Knicks this year—but he was hardly a threat to score on anything other than a dunk in the post. Although Jefferson averaged a double-double when he played, he was sidelined after nine games.
With the Philadelphia native back and Bolden entering the fold, it will likely be a different story this year, lifting the burden that was placed on Duke’s backcourt last year to create a shot on nearly every possession.
“At a big position, it’s all about working hard. It’s all about being physical, about fighting,” Jefferson said. “For me, it’s just about showing them what it means to come in every day, put your hard hat on, and bang it out down low.”
Sameer Pandhare and Amrith Ramkumar contributed reporting.
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