Duke doesn’t play in Chicago—like it will Tuesday night against No. 5 Kansas—as often as it does in New York, but the program's connections to the Second City are stronger than they are with any other.
Head coach Mike Krzyzewski hails from Chicago, as do current special assistant Jon Scheyer and freshman Jabari Parker. Scheyer was recruited to Duke by Krzyzewski and Chris Collins, who went to the same high school as Scheyer and returned to his home area this year to become the head coach at Northwestern.
The list doesn’t end there, and it’s no coincidence.
“It’s a way for Coach K to kind of be humanized,” said Collins, who won his first game as a head coach this weekend against Eastern Illinois. “When he’d call me in recruiting he’d talk about things in Chicago: where he grew up, places he liked to go, sports teams he followed. It made the transition to humanizing him in the relationship a lot better, knowing he’s a normal guy who grew up in Chicago just like me, and he just happens to be the best coach who has ever done it.”
Collins played one game at the United Center as a Blue Devil, his first game back junior year after beginning the season injured. He scored five points in 12 minutes, a homecoming that was outdone by his protégé, Scheyer.
Scheyer, who said he maintains a close relationship with Collins and that the Northwestern head coach wished him good luck on his first game as an assistant, scored 31 points at the United Center during in his senior year. Scheyer didn’t get the chance to go back to Chicago for most of last year while he played professionally in Spain, so his return visits now have added meaning.
Now Krzyzewski and Scheyer get to bond over their shared roots with Parker, who Collins described as a Chicago legend. Whereas Scheyer had to wait until his senior year to play in Chicago—something Collins said the staff promised him during recruiting—Parker’s return home comes in just his second collegiate game.
Parker is looking forward to it, even the cold temperatures. Flurries started falling in Chicago after the team arrived Monday afternoon.
“The weather, it’ll feel like home being there, get on my ground. It’s going to be a blessing,” he said. “It was something we always talk about, me and Coach. He doesn’t forget where he comes from. We’ll get a chance to be around our family, get a chance to be on our home grounds for once and hopefully bring out a win.”
There are tough parts to homecomings, too. Parker said he only gets four tickets for family and friends, and it’s expensive to get more. The average ticket on the secondary market for Tuesday’s Champions Classic costs $366, said Will Flaherty, director of communications for SeatGeek.com. Parker also lamented that he probably won’t get a chance to see the South Side on the trip.
As early as it may be in the season, Krzyzewski said that these tough realities are important lessons for postseason play.
“As far as Jabari going back, I think he’ll handle everything well,” Krzyzewski said. “I think one of the main things is tickets—friends calling, stuff like that. I think it’s amazing preparation for postseason on Nov. 12. People are going to call you. You have new friends, you have old friends, you have cousins, and how do you handle all of that?”
And that pressure doesn’t even touch on the highly anticipated showdown between the nation’s top two recruits: Parker and Kansas’ Andrew Wiggins.
“It’s just team for team—my guys versus their guys. I’m not looking for any individual matchup,” Parker said. “I don’t want to get distracted.”
Keeping that focus will be key for Parker, as the hyped showdown against Wiggins only adds to the potential distractions that coming home brings.
“People want to come into the hotel and see you, talk to you, and a lot of times it’s your close friends and family, but you have to be disciplined and say, ‘Look, I want to see everyone too but I’m here to win a game,’” Collins said. “You have to get your rest, and you can’t use up too much emotion before the game so that you’re just exhausted once it starts.”
Other than getting to see the Bulls play the Cleveland Cavaliers in a game that featured four former Blue Devils Monday night, Parker said the trip will just be “basketball, sleeping and eating.”
Carlos Boozer, Luol Deng and Mike Dunleavy are three of many Blue Devils to play for the Bulls, a list that also includes Elton Brand, Chris Duhon and Jay Williams in recent memory. Scheyer said it’s no surprise Blue Devils in the pros have flocked to Chicago because of the way the organization values defense and intelligence on the court.
In terms of eating, Chicago is most famous for its deep-dish style pizza. Scheyer recommended famous chains Lou Malnati’s and Giordano’s. Collins said, “it’s all in the crust” with what you prefer, and that’s what makes Gino’s East Parker’s favorite.
“The cornbread crust,” he said.
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