Had Taymon Domzalski's career flowed smoothly from the end of the 1995-96 season through the past few weeks, his recent play would have received little attention. Unfortunately for Domzalski, it's taken a long time to get from point A to B.
The wait is starting to seem more and more worth it.
Filling in for an injured Elton Brand and struggling Chris Burgess, the junior is starting to become almost a savior of sorts for the men's basketball team in the middle.
The road in-between his stellar freshman play and his recent resurgence has been winding at best.
As a freshman, Domzalski started 18 games, including the last nine, and was Duke's second-leading rebounder and fifth-leading scorer. In the Blue Devils' loss to Maryland in the quarterfinals of the Atlantic Coast Conference Tournament, Domzalski posted 14 points and seven rebounds.
Now fast-forward to this past Saturday, when Domzalski pulled down a career-high 10 rebounds and blanketed Harold Jamison on the tenuous final possession of Duke's win over Clemson.
It's almost hard to believe that this is the same Taymon Domzalski who, bothered by sore knees, struggled all of last season and just a month ago was buried near the bottom of the Blue Devils' deep bench.
But then Elton Brand went down in late December with a season-ending foot injury. At first, Chris Burgess appeared primed to take Brand's spot and started the next three games.
When Burgess started slumping, Mike Krzyzewski turned to his other true big man, and the 6-foot-10 New Mexico native was prepared.
"[The coaches told me to] be ready, and be ready for that opportunity, because when that door opens you've got to be ready to rush into it," Domzalski said. "The opportunity's a big thing. I think the opportunity was there as soon as we found out that Elton Brand wasn't going to be able to play the rest of the season.
"Elton was playing phenomenally for us, and that in itself, that was a huge opportunity for anybody. It created a big chasm offensively and defensively. He was boarding well and putting a lot of points up. We definitely needed to pick it up in different aspects, and we weren't just looking to one person. But there was an opportunity to have a big man gain a presence inside."
That presence didn't initially figure to be Domzalski's. After spending the summer in Durham and declaring himself focused and confident before this season began, Domzalski struggled out of the gates.
He pulled down nine rebounds in Duke's win over Chaminade in Maui, but never saw the court in the Blue Devils' close games against Arizona and Michigan in November and December. With Brand playing so well and Burgess backing him up, Domzalski was quickly becoming the odd man out.
Despite the setback, he refused to get frustrated. After all, he has been playing on a team that's been in the top three all season.
"I think it's attributed a lot not only to me and the things I was doing but also to the coaches and the players on the team," Domzalski said. "You just can't get down; you can't let not playing get you down because Elton Brand was a great player and Chris Burgess was a great player. You just have to keep your nose on the grindstone and keep your eyes on your goals and play hard."
Domzalski got his chance against Florida State 12 days ago. In what was likely one of Duke's toughest conference road games of the season, Krzyzewski inserted Domzalski into the starting lineup, a spot the junior hasn't relinquished since.
Though Domzalski's numbers have been modest, he has given the Blue Devils a strong defensive presence inside. On a team with plenty of players on the perimeter, someone will have to shut down the Antawn Jamisons and Raef LeFrentzes if Duke is to accomplish its ultimate goal in March.
"Taymon's shown great improvement," senior co-captain Steve Wojciechowski said. "It's real exciting. He's got a chance to really make a difference for us."
Domzalski feels his improved play is due more to confidence than anything else. He credits the intensity of his teammates in practice for pushing him even during tougher times earlier in the season.
Domzalski is also working to improve his achilles' heel, foul trouble. He fouled out nine times during his freshman season and twice last year. Recent play shows the improvement, as well as Domzalski's sudden importance to the team.
Against Clemson, Domzalski picked up his fourth foul early in the second half. When he left the game, the Tigers rallied. He returned late in the game and pulled down six of his 10 boards while avoiding his fifth foul. On the game's last play, Terrell McIntyre looked for Harold Jamison, who had previously been left alone inside for dunks. This time, though, Domzalski's 240-pound frame enveloped Jamison and forced McIntyre to take an off-balance jumper.
"He's been good," Krzyzewski said. "I think Taymon's defense is way ahead of his offense. Sometimes fouls come because he's aggressive playing on defense. We really missed his post play last year."
Taymon Domzalski will likely never lead the Blue Devils in scoring; that isn't necessary with teammates like Trajan Langdon and Roshown McLeod. If Duke is to avoid playing solely on the perimeter and truly overcome Brand's absence, though, it needs Domzalski to use his size and strength.
"[To contribute I feel I can] just play defense and rebound," Domzalski said. "If I get a chance, maybe some second-chance points. That's what I'm looking out for. Add a little enthusiasm, you know, whatever I can do to help the team. Playing defense and rebounding is really a good role for me right now.
"We have the scoring. But especially on our team, I think we need a defensive presence and a rebounder. If I can bring that every game, we'll do well."
Duke is already doing pretty well right now. How much better it gets may have a lot to do with how well Domzalski performs.
That's a statement Duke fans are a lot more comfortable with these days.
Get The Chronicle straight to your inbox
Signup for our weekly newsletter. Cancel at any time.