Duke Basketball

Duke Blue Devils freshman Zion Williamson suffered a knee injury in the first minute of Wednesday's game against the North Carolina Tar Heels, and the team announced he was ruled out for the remainder of the contest.

He went down with the injury after his left shoe ripped as he planted with the ball. He immediately grabbed the back of his knee as he fell to the floor:

Zion's shoe: destroyed 😳 pic.twitter.com/LqQ2te0Jay

— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) February 21, 2019

After the game, Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski told reporters Williamson had a mild knee sprain. He said the big man's knee was "stable," although he noted the team wouldn't have a timeline for his return until Thursday.

Twitter user CJ Fogler shared a picture of Williamson's blown-out shoe:

Zion's blown out shoe pic.twitter.com/QmYDRa2bIg

— CJ Fogler 🫡 (@cjzero) February 21, 2019

Los Angeles Lakers All-Star LeBron James weighed in on the injury:

Hope young fella is ok! Literally blew thru his 👟. 🙏🏾

— LeBron James (@KingJames) February 21, 2019

Even former President Barack Obama sent his sympathy to the superstar:

Zion Williamson seems like an outstanding young man as well as an outstanding basketball player. Wishing him a speedy recovery.

— Barack Obama (@BarackObama) February 21, 2019

Although Williamson headed to the locker room under his own power, he was walking with a notable limp on his way. Adam Rowe of 247Sports noted Williamson's stepfather and mother went to the locker room, which he called "not a good sign."

Any long-term injury to Williamson would be a severe blow to Duke's national championship hopes, as the presumed No. 1 pick in the upcoming NBA draft is one of the best college basketball players in years. Entering Wednesday, he was averaging 22.4 points, 9.2 rebounds and 1.9 blocks per game this season while shooting 68.3 percent from the field.

The Blue Devils are not in action again until Saturday against the Syracuse Orange, so Williamson will have a few days to recover before he has to miss any time.

Duke Blue Devils freshman sensation Zion Williamson said he gained 100 pounds across two years in high school, and he was surprised it didn't cause him to lose any of his athleticism.

On Wednesday, Devin Gordon of GQ provided comments from the Naismith College Player of the Year favorite about his rapid growth during his time at Spartanburg Day School in South Carolina:

"I didn't pick up all this weight until junior year. Freshman year, I was small. I was 6'3", 175—like, I was small. And over the course of about two years I picked up a hundred pounds. I mean, I wouldn't look at myself and go, 'Wow, I'm 250!' I wouldn't know I was 250 until I stepped on the scale, and then I'm like, 'Oh. I'm 250? I don't feel 250. I don't feel slow.' Like, with all that weight just came more athleticism and finding myself able to do new things. People always say you have to grow into your body, but for me, it wasn't even growing into my body—the more weight came, it didn't phase me. It made me faster, stronger. It helped me become a more versatile player."

Williamson now checks in at 6'7'' and 285 pounds.

Although he arrived at the Blue Devils as part of a loaded recruiting class with RJ Barrett, Cam Reddish and Tre Jones, he's managed to stand out in large part because there are few basketball players on the planet with his combination of size, quickness and power.

He's not just a human highlight reel, though. He provides plenty of substance to the tune of 22.4 points, 9.2 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 2.3 steals and 1.9 blocks per game while shooting 68.3 percent from the field.

His success is a key reason Duke will be the team to beat in March Madness, and he's the top candidate to go first overall in the 2019 NBA draft.  

Duke and North Carolina's two yearly meetings—and sometimes more—are the biggest games on the men's college basketball calendar and two of the biggest dates on the sports calendar, period.

This year, the stakes are only raised, with the nation's most exciting player, Zion Williamson, lining up for the loaded Blue Devils. And if you want to watch the No. 1 Blue Devils host the No. 8 Tar Heels in this ACC matchup on Wednesday night at Cameron Indoor Stadium, well, you might not be able to pay rent for a few months.

Seriously, the tickets are selling for astronomical levels:

So, who is getting me tickets for tomorrow's game?! 😆 pic.twitter.com/f3FXjh9V0y

— Ryan Lommen (@TheDukeNation) February 19, 2019

The cheapest ticket for UNC vs. Duke is $2,990.

The reason? Zion Williamson.

The freshman sensation has set the online ticket resale market on fire: https://t.co/mtLhgaqUK4 pic.twitter.com/EopAq7D5lS

— The Sporting News (@sportingnews) February 19, 2019

Duke vs. North Carolina is a regular-season college basketball game featuring amateur players. To put these prices into perspective, Super Bowl tickets are generally sold in that range.

As SeatGeek.com noted: "Generally speaking, the average Super Bowl ticket costs between $2,500 and $3,000, but that price varies depending on the particular matchup and when the tickets are purchased. Super Bowl XLIX between the Seahawks and the Patriots was an exception to this rule, with tickets averaging $4,314."   

 

The No. 2 Duke Blue Devils won their ninth game in a row Saturday, as they defeated the NC State Wolfpack 94-78 at Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, North Carolina.

Ahead of Wednesday's highly anticipated encounter against the No. 8 North Carolina Tar Heels, Duke improved to 23-2 on the season with an 11-1 mark in ACC play. Meanwhile, NC State fell to 18-8 with a 6-7 record in conference.

Freshman sensation Zion Williamson led the way for Duke with 32 points, six rebounds and three steals. Fellow freshman RJ Barrett also had a strong game with 23 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists, giving him the fourth triple-double in school history.

The Blue Devils didn't overwhelm NC State from the field, as they shot 53 percent, but they did plenty of damage from the free-throw line, making 21 of 28 attempts. Williamson was especially adept at getting to the charity stripe Saturday, and he finished with eight makes on his 13 tries.

NC State shot 50 percent in a losing effort, and the Wolfpack were led by senior guard Torin Dorn, who registered 17 points and four rebounds on the night.

Duke led by as much as 14 in the first half, but NC State did manage to whittle the deficit down to eight by halftime.

The Blue Devils came out firing in the second half by scoring the first six points of the half, however, and they managed to pull away en route to victory.

     

Williamson Pulling Away in National Player of the Year Race

While there are several compelling candidates to be named the Naismith National Player of the Year, Williamson showed once again Saturday why he is the overwhelming favorite heading toward the stretch run of the 2018-19 season.

Williamson had 19 points at halftime alone, and much of his production came courtesy of drives to the basket that likely terrified NC State defenders, such as this one:

"HE'S A RUNAWAY FREIGHT TRAIN!" 🚂 pic.twitter.com/ZjPZ2LiFBs

— ESPN (@espn) February 16, 2019

Zion deferred to Barrett at times and got himself into foul trouble in the second half, but there is no denying the overwhelming impact he had on the game.

Williamson worked over NC State in the first half and early in the second, and he drew several fouls that resulted in the Wolfpack having to play less aggressively on the defensive end.

Bleacher Report's Jonathan Wasserman attempted to quantify just how physically dominant Williamson is in the following tweet:

Been trying to find the right words to articulate Zion's athleticism, and think I'm good with this:

His level of power/quickness/explosiveness creates an advantage unlike any other players' athleticism. Reminds of how Westbrook's propels him.

— Jonathan Wasserman (@NBADraftWass) February 16, 2019

NC State could not match up with Williamson, and the Wolfpack's only reprieve came when Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski had to rest him for a stretch in the second half because of foul trouble. Even with Williamson sitting for a spell, he still managed to finish close to his yearly per-game averages.

Perhaps no player in college basketball does more damage with less volume than Williamson, and that was apparent against NC State.

As pointed out by Wasserman, Williamson continues to put up huge numbers despite almost always getting surpassed by Barrett in attempts from the field:

Just another absurd Zion stat—only once all season has he led Duke in field-goals attempted. He's averaging 22 points.

— Jonathan Wasserman (@NBADraftWass) February 16, 2019

Barrett's volume may help secure him some support for National Player of the Year honors—and with good reason—but he typically doesn't impact games as profoundly as Williamson does.

If not for Zion wearing down the NC State front line in the early going and racking up uncontested points at the free-throw line, NC State may have had a fighting chance. The Wolfpack never truly threatened the Blue Devils, though, and much of that can be attributed to Williamson's overall dominance.

     

NC State No Longer an NCAA Tournament Lock Amid Recent Struggles

It wasn't long ago that NC State looked like a fairly sure bet to make the NCAA tournament, but that is no longer the case after yet another loss.

The Wolfpack managed to hang tough against Duke for long stretches despite being overmatched from an overall talent perspective; however, it was nowhere near enough to get the signature win they desperately needed.

NC State has now lost five of its past eight games, and it is 5-7 over its last 12. During that stretch, the only win that might turn heads to any degree is a 73-58 home victory over Syracuse, which handed Duke its only ACC loss to date.

The Wolfpack lost to unranked Wake Forest, and despite having numerous occasions to knock off ranked teams such as North Carolina, Louisville, Virginia and Virginia Tech, they have continually fallen short.

NC State's only win over a team that was ranked at the time it faced them was a 78-71 win over then-No. 7 Auburn in December, but the Tigers are no longer ranked. The Wolfpack have been only average since then, and in a recent loss to Virginia Tech, they scored just 24 points.

The Wolfpack looked better against a loaded Duke team at times, but as noted by Joe Giglio of the News & Observer, head coach Kevin Keatts didn't do nearly enough to combat the Blue Devils' athleticism advantage:

NC State's lack of offensive structure on full display here. Trying to beat superior athletes off the dribble and then taking contested 2s is a bad formula

— Joe Giglio (@giglio_OG) February 16, 2019

NC State plays in arguably the best conference in all of college basketball, and it can be argued that the Wolfpack would have a better record in almost any other conference.

Even so, NC State didn't play an overly high level of competition in non-conference play, and it has squandered multiple opportunities to score big wins against ACC opponents as well. Because of that, it is far from a lock to reach the NCAA tournament.

The Wolfpack do have a favorable scheduled down the stretch with four of their final five games coming against unranked opponents and the other coming against No. 17 Florida State.

A win over FSU or over a ranked opponent in the ACC tournament may be enough to earn the Wolfpack an NCAA tournament berth, but based on how they have performed lately, there is no indication that they'll be able to pull that off.

     

What's Next?

Duke will look to continue its impressive streak Wednesday in one of its biggest games of the season against rival UNC.

NC State will also be back in action Wednesday when it hosts Boston College and attempts to strengthen its case for an NCAA tournament at-large bid.

Add Dallas Mavericks rookie Luka Doncic to the constantly growing list of people amazed by what Zion Williamson can do on a basketball court. 

Doncic told reporters Saturday that Duke's freshman phenom is a "monster" who is "not from this world."

2019 ROY favorite Luke Doncic on 2020 ROY favorite Zion Williamson: “He’s a monster. He’s not from this world.” pic.twitter.com/NxPLp3HpOq

— Ben Golliver (@BenGolliver) February 16, 2019

Williamson has been one of the biggest stars in basketball dating back to his time as a social media star on Instagram in high school. He's carried that over and shown the full spectrum of his game at Duke, averaging 22.0 points, 9.3 rebounds per game and seemingly providing at least one highlight-reel moment every night. 

Doncic certainly knows what it's like to be a phenom before arriving in the NBA. He was the youngest EuroLeague MVP at 19 years old with Real Madrid in 2017-18. 

The Mavs have been happy to see Doncic bring that success to the United States so far. He's become one of the NBA's brightest young stars with an average of 20.7 points, 7.2 rebounds and 5.6 assists in 55 games.   

If there's anyone who could assume LeBron James' throne as the NBA's best player over a prolonged stretch, it might be Duke forward Zion Williamson, who is averaging 22.0 points on 68.0 percent shooting for the No. 2 Blue Devils.

James was on hand to watch Williamson stuff the stat sheet with 18 points, five assists, five rebounds, three steals and three blocks in Duke's 81-71 win at Virginia last Saturday.

On Friday, Dave McMenamin of ESPN.com released an interview with James regarding his appearance at the Duke-UVA matchup and his thoughts on Williamson's game.

"What strikes me? His agility and his quickness," James said. "For his size, how strong he is, to be able to move like the way he moves, he's very impressive. I mean, everybody can see the athleticism. That's obviously, that's ridiculous. But the speed and the quickness that he moves (with) at that size is very impressive."

James also said Williamson "seems like he has great intangibles and seems like a great kid."

The 6'7", 285-pound big man, who is also posting 9.3 rebounds, 2.3 steals and 2.0 blocks per game, can overpower any defense. Josh Planos of FiveThirtyEight called him the best college basketball player in at least a decade, and Williamson's 42.3 player efficiency rating is the highest mark in D-I men's hoops in at least 10 years, per Sports Reference.

James took in the game with his agent, Rich Paul, as well as teammates Rajon Rondo and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope. The Paul appearance caused some recruitment speculation, including comments from Darren Rovell of the Action Network.

Both James and Paul denied any recruiting took place.

"A recruiting trip? I didn't talk to anybody," James said. "They're only saying that because it's Rich. When Shaq came to see me play in high school, when A.I. came to see me play in high school, they weren't saying it was a recruiting trip then. But because it's Rich Paul and LeBron, now it's a recruitment trip.

"Now Rich is a threat to everybody and they look at it and they want to keep trying to jab my agent and jab my friend. And what is he doing that's wrong? They don't say that about no other agent when other guys go see (players). They don't say that about no other agent but my guy because he's a threat."

James also mentioned that Paul could be receiving more scrutiny because he's African American. Paul added his own remarks, noting that his group was "just enjoying a basketball game" and did not speak with anyone. He also discussed the "coded language"—McMenamin's phrase—that he's been targeted with during his career.

Williamson is sure to be one of the most coveted prospects in recent basketball history when he officially declares for the NBA draft. Paul and Klutch Sports will likely hope to land Williamson as their client, and the same probably goes for any other certified NBA agent.

Ultimately, the James-Paul group's appearance at the game seems much ado about nothing. The biggest takeaway is that one of the sport's all-time greats showered Williamson with praise, adding to the player's lore.

As for now, Williamson is looking to help lead the Blue Devils to a national championship. They are the clear favorites to take it at 9-5, per Vegas Insider, with Gonzaga in second at 7-1.

From one Duke legend to the program's current superstar, Jay Williams thinks Zion Williamson could receive an endorsement deal on par with what LeBron James received coming out of high school.  

Speaking to TMZ Sports, Williams believes the Blue Devils freshman sensation has all the necessary skills to receive a nine-figure shoe deal. 

"He has that marketability," Williams said. "That smile. And who else is 6'7", 285 [pounds] with a 43-inch vertical that can entertain you like that? Nobody."

On the day of the NBA draft lottery in May 2003, James agreed to a seven-year, $90 million pact with Nike. 

Williamson has been one of the biggest basketball stars in this country going back to his time in high school. He hit 1 million followers on Instagram in November 2017, one year before he arrived at Duke. 

Because of Williamson's rapidly growing fan base as the Blue Devils pursue a national title this season will almost certainly make him a very rich man before the 2019 NBA draft in June if he decides to leave college. 

No. 2 Duke was down 23 points with over nine minutes remaining in its NCAA men's basketball matchup at No. 16 Louisville on Tuesday.

However, the Blue Devils roared back with a 35-10 run to defeat the Cardinals 71-69.

Zion Williamson led Duke with 27 points and 12 rebounds. After the game, he revealed a motivational line from Blue Devils head coach Mike Krzyzewski in his interview on ESPN:

"He said he don't coach losers, only coach winners."

Zion shared how Coach K got his team to rally back from a 23-point deficit. pic.twitter.com/EtCtEzJTET

— ESPN (@espn) February 13, 2019

Duke hasn't been a losing team since the 1982-83 season, which was Krzyzewski's third year at the university. The Blue Devils have been a winning team with him on the sidelines ever since minus the 1994-95 season, when the coach missed 19 games to take care of his health.

A five-time national champion, Krzyzewski looks on pace to lead the Blue Devils to a sixth title during his tenure. Duke still hasn't lost a road game, and it has now beaten seven teams in the Top 16.

The road doesn't get much easier until the ACC tournament, though.

Duke still has two games with North Carolina before a rematch with Syracuse, who beat the Blue Devils at Cameron Indoor Stadium, at the Carrier Dome in Central New York.

Still, Duke is the clear favorite to win the title. Per Action Network, they have 7-4 odds to win it all, well above second-ranked Gonzaga at 7-1.

A woman accused former NBA swingman Corey Maggette of raping her when he was a member of the Duke Blue Devils, according to the New York Times' Kevin Draper, Stephanie Saul and Marc Tracy.

Nancy Erika Smith, who is representing Meredith Watson, had said Friday her client was assaulted by a Duke basketball player and that she notified a university dean of the situation. Smith said the dean "discouraged her from pursuing the claim further."

Maggette spent one season with the Blue Devils and appeared in 39 games during the 1998-99 campaign.

A spokesman for Maggette issued a statement to deny the allegations: "It has only been through media accounts and a statement from Meredith Watson's lawyer that I first learned or heard of anything about these sexual assault allegations. I have never sexually assaulted anyone in my life and I completely and categorically deny any such charge."

ESPN.com's Myron Medcalf reported Duke was opening an investigation to examine the allegations.

Blue Devils head coach Mike Krzyzewski told reporters he hadn't been made aware of the allegations until Friday night and would leave things in the hands of the university.

Watson has also accused Virginia Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax of raping her in 2000 when they both attended Duke. According to Medcalf, Fairfax was among those whom Watson had told about the Maggette allegation.

The showdown between No. 2 Duke and No. 3 Virginia brought one of basketball's biggest stars to Charlottesville, Virginia, on Saturday, but Blue Devils star Zion Williamson apparently didn't know about it.

ESPN cameras found Los Angeles Lakers teammates LeBron James and Rajon Rondo sitting along the baseline:

LeBron and Rondo in the house for Duke-Virginia. pic.twitter.com/bFgHG5rBxQ

— ESPN (@espn) February 9, 2019

When James was mentioned during his postgame media session, the freshman star said he was unaware of the four-time NBA MVP's presence.

"LeBron was out there?" Williamson said after he dropped 18 points in an 81-71 victory, according to ESPN's Myron Medcalf. "I didn't see LeBron."

It's possible Williamson didn't see James, but it's also possible he was doing his best to not give the media anything to feed on. Unfortunately for the freshman star, one of his teammates suggested the Blue Devils were indeed aware James was in the building.

"I mean, we noticed, but you definitely still got a game to win, so we're focused," Duke forward RJ Barrett said, per Medcalf.

Duke coach Mike Krzyzewski revealed that James gave him a heads-up that he might make his way to the game. Coach K noted that it was a "cool" move by the NBA star.

The Blue Devils did an outstanding job of maintaining their focus despite the buzz surrounding both the contest and the celebrity appearance. Barrett (contest-high 26 points) and fellow freshman Cam Reddish (17) were on top of their games, as they combined for 11 triples.

Duke shot an impressive 57.8 percent (26-of-45) from the field and 61.9 percent (13-of-21) from three-point range against a Cavaliers program known for its defense.

Zion with the steal and the two-handed jam! 😮

(📍 @sonicdrivein) pic.twitter.com/PyVIo9Z6th

— ESPN (@espn) February 9, 2019

Most notably, the freshman quartet of Williamson, Barrett, Reddish and Tre Jones were not intimidated by the spotlight. They combined for all but seven of the Blue Devils' 81 points.

It was just Virginia's second loss of the season, and both have come against Krzyzewski's team.

While James wanted to get a firsthand look at Duke, it may not be long before he is sharing a court with the Blue Devils stars. According to Bleacher Report draft analyst Jonathan Wasserman, Williamson (No. 1), Barrett (No. 2), Reddish (No. 4) and Jones (No. 17) are among the top prospects for the 2019 NBA draft.