Stat Chat: Catch Me if You Can

Over the course of my career writing this column, there has been one offensive strategy that I have analyzed countless times: the drive and kick. Ladies and gentlemen, while this offensive scheme will still be used, it is no longer the primary strategy of the Duke men's basketball team. Let me be the first to welcome you to what may be the fastest Blue Devil team in the storied history of the program. The points in transition era has begun at Duke University.

Since 2002, successful Blue Devil squads have surrounded strong interior players with sharpshooters. For every Shelden Williams, there was a JJ Redick. For every I'll-play-up-to-my-potential-the-second-half-of-senior-year Brian Zoubek, there was a Jon Scheyer. For every Mason Plumlee, there was a Seth Curry. However, you may notice that this Duke team, ranked No. 4 in the preseason USA Today Coaches Poll, lacks any kind of dominant big man. This squad is better served not to have a big man.

Let's break it down statistically. Athletic teams can usually be broken down by two primary categories: field goals attempted per game and points in transition. Other statistics, such as points per game and forced turnovers, can be connected and almost intertwined with each of these two categories respectively. Over the past few years, more and more teams have adopted the speedy, small-ball strategy. Look no further than the Miami Heat to see how a team with versatile players can not only win, but dominate their competition. No, Duke doesn't have LeBron James, but rest assured, the Blue Devils will improve in each category significantly this year.

Teams that are more athletic inevitably will play at a faster pace than the average team. However, the question is how fast will Duke play. Last season, the Blue Devils averaged 77.13 points per game on 56.39 field goal attempts per game, shooting an impressive 47.3 percent from the field. These numbers came in an offense that was largely ran in a half court set, with several shots coming 15-20 seconds into the shot clock. This season, I'll be introducing the Mike D'Antoni statistic: shots within the first seven seconds of the shot clock. Simple math—the more shots early in the shot clock, the more overall shot attempts per game.

Scoring quickly also means more points in transition. As a team, Duke averaged 13.89 assists per game, but look for the team to average closer to 18 assists this season. Quinn Cook's natural ability to create plays in transition will increase his individual assist numbers and allow a slew of athletic wing players to score at ease. When you account for the versatility of players like Jabari Parker and Rodney Hood, no individual player may be competing for most assists per game; however, as a team, the Blue Devils will be right up there in the ACC.

The small sample size of one exhibition game is in no way enough to justify my predictions, which is why I did not use this past weekend's game against Bowie State as an example. However, I truly believe this team will average the most points, field goal attempts, forced turnovers and points in transition per game since Jay Williams ran the show in Durham in the early 2000s. Fast, flashy and fun, Duke will be entertaining to say the least this season.