Josh, Dustin, and Raul react to Duke's 86-35 blowout win over Wofford. Topics discussed include:

• The debut of Patrick Ngongba
• What he can bring to the team going forward
• Improved backcourt play from Caleb Foster and Tyrese Proctor
• Proctor's 3pt shooting and off-ball movement
• Sion James's positive impact
• A return to high 3pt volume
• Cooper Flagg's struggles shooting from behind the arc
• Ways for the team to generate more free throw attempts
• Whether Isaiah Evans has earned more minutes

Then they preview Friday's big matchup against Arizona. They talk about the most interesting player matchups, such as Tyrese Proctor vs. Caleb Foster and Khaman Maluach vs. Tobe Awaka. They discuss the key factors to a Duke win (defensive rebounding, 3pt shooting, and keeping Arizona off the free throw line). How confident are they heading into this matchup?

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Josh, Dustin, and Raul react to Duke's 77-72 loss to Kentucky in their first big test of the season. Topics discussed include:

• What Duke did right to have a 46-37 lead at halftime
• What went wrong in the 2nd half that led to Duke being outscored by 14 and shooting only 29%
• Defensive miscommunications
• The impact of the injuries to Sion James and Khaman Maluach
• Whether Duke should have played Isaiah Evans or Darren Harris to help offset the injuries
• Concerns about the play of the backcourt
• The need to maintain good offensive process even in close games
• What this loss means for Duke going forward
• The importance of this season for Coach Scheyer

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Josh, Dustin, and Raul recap Duke's win over Army. Topics discussed include:

• The cold 3pt shooting start
• Army's multiple defensive looks
• Cooper Flagg's cramping issues
• The sustainability of Kon Knueppel's scoring
• The unselfishness of Duke's elite recruits (particularly Flagg and Maluach)
• Khaman Maluach's touch and rebounding
• Tyrese Proctor's off-ball impact
• Duke's stifling 1st half defense
• The steadiness of Sion James

Then they preview Duke's matchup against Kentucky, and discuss key factors to the game. Who will win the 3pt shooting battle? How does Duke guard Kentucky's transition attack? They also look at the history of the Duke-Kentucky rivalry and discuss what this game would mean as a measuring stick for Duke going forward.

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Josh, Dustin, and Raul are joined by John Watson of thedevilsden.com to react to Duke's first official win of the season, a 96-62 victory over Maine. Topics discussed include:

• Cooper Flagg's passing
• Khaman Maluach's offensive improvements
• The collective understanding of spacing and shooting gravity
• The high IQ of the transfer portal players
• The soft spot in the middle of the defense that drop coverage leave, and how a player like Maliq Brown can offset that
• Concerns with the defensive rebounding and box out responsibilities
• Kon Knueppel's footwork on drives
• Sion James as a freight train in the lane
• How the end-of-bench freshmen will handle smaller roles than in high school

Then they dive into recruiting news. They talk about the four commitments Duke has recently added to their 2025 class. They discuss possible additions still to come in the 2025 class, which is now ranked #1 overall, as well as some heavy Duke leans in 2026. They praise Jon Scheyer's adaptability to the changing landscape and assess how that will play out over next offseason. Who will return to Duke? Who will leave? What kind of contingency plans are in place? How much will high school recruiting be used to build rosters versus the portal?

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Josh, Dustin, and Raul prepare you for the Duke Men's Basketball 2024-25 season with the longest The Devil's Den podcast episode ever released. In part one of the pod, they get together with Brian Geisinger, writer for 247Sports and cohost of the Buzz Beat podcast. They talk about what Brian has seen over the first couple exhibitions. Topics include:

• Screening actions for the teams multitude of shooters, especially Kon Knueppel
• How Duke is creating 5-out offense by having their bigs camp outside the 3pt line
• The value of Khaman's rim gravity in making this work
• Maliq Brown's defensive versatility
• The sustainability of the 3pt volume against better competition
• The need for dribble penetration, and the best candidates to provide that
• Whether Duke will be able play at a fast pace
• How many players Duke will be playing by the end of the season
• Biggest story lines Brian will be tracking
• The matchups Brian is most looking forward to

Then in part two of the pod (timestamp - 1:10:59), Josh, Dustin, and Raul preview the season in more detail. They predict wins and losses, leaders in various stat categories, and make some over/under picks. They look at the schedule in detail and talk about the most difficult or exciting stretches. They also give their own story lines they'll be monitoring.

You can find Brian Geisinger's work at: https://briangeisinger.substack.com/ or https://247sports.com/college/north-carolina-state/user/briangeisinger/.

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Josh, Dustin, and Raul react to Duke's dominant 103-47 exhibition win over Arizona State in the Brotherhood Run. Topics include:

• Bobby Hurley's legacy
• Duke's defense in the 1st half
• Duke's efforts to involve Khaman Maluach early in the offense
• Maliq Brown's foul trouble
• The 2nd half three-point shooting barrage
• Screening actions being run for Kon Knueppel and Duke's other shooters
• Duke's improved ability to go on runs
• Caleb Foster's increased aggression and pace of play
• Mason Gillis as a high-level 3-and-D role player
• Khaman Maluach's rebounding and rim deterrence
• Duke's 3pt attempt rate
• The place of Darren Harris and Isaiah Evans in the rotation

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Josh, Dustin, and Raul are joined by friend of the pod Kaleb Hilliard to react to Duke's 107-56 exhibition win over Lincoln. Topics discussed include:

• Cooper Flagg's debut
• An unexpected starting lineup
• Some first half defensive issues that allowed Lincoln to stay close for 12 minutes
• The high volume of spot-up 3pt attempts
• The two-man game between Flagg and Kon Knueppel
• Knueppel's deceptive athleticism
• Tyrese Proctor's aggression
• Areas for improvement in Caleb Foster's approach
• Khaman Maluach's rebounding
• Maliq Brown's grit and defensive versatility

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Josh, Dustin, and Raul start the episode by reacting to the commitment of Cayden and Cameron Boozer to Duke. They talk about whether Miami was ever truly the favorite, plus what it means for Jon Scheyer to land legacy recruits. They also look at how the Boozers will impact next year's Duke team.

Then they get into the episode proper, featuring special guest John Watson of thedevilsden.com. First they recap Dustin's experience at ACC Media Day. They listen to quotes from Jon Scheyer about 3pt shooting and Tyrese Proctor about the impact of Khaman Maluach.

Then John Watson shares his experiences attending a Duke Men's Basketball practice. He gives his thoughts on the team's overall ceiling, and the roles of various players. Who was running point guard between Foster and Proctor? What is impressing people so much about Knueppel? How does Cooper impact the game regardless of how much he scores?

After that, they touch base about various recruiting targets. Note: because this section of the podcast was recorded before the Boozers' commitment, their potential commitment is discussed in more hypothetical terms.

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Josh, Dustin, and Raul react to Countdown to Craziness – the kickoff to the 2024-25 Duke Men's Basketball season. Topics discussed include:

• Favorite player intros
• The new scrimmage format
• The aggressive play of Caleb Foster
• Tyrese Proctor's shooting struggles
• The battle for the third wing spot between Knueppel, James, Evans, and Harris
• Cooper Flagg's quiet productivity
• Khaman Maluach and Maliq Brown's role in a perimeter-focused offense
• Maluach's room for growth as a screen setter
• The need for the guards to recognize Maluach's presence as a rim protector
• The overall emphasis on spot-up 3pt shooting
• Starting lineup predictions

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Josh, Dustin, and Raul are joined by 247Sports National Basketball Analyst Travis Branham for a discussion on the national recruiting landscape as a whole and Duke recruiting specifically.

Topics include:

• The impact of NIL and the transfer portal on the timing of player commitments
• How the top programs targeting smaller classes will impact the distribution of talent across college basketball
• Patterns in the type of players Coach Scheyer has chosen to recruit
• The freshman outside of Cooper Flagg likely to have the most impact at Duke
• Kon Knueppel's NBA draft stock and player comps
• Cooper Flagg's potential impact at Duke
• Flagg's best role on offense
• Which school leads in the recruitment of the Boozer twins
• Where Duke might pivot if they don't land the Boozers
• How long Cayden Boozer will likely stay in college
• Cam Boozer vs. Paolo Banchero
• The fit of other Duke recruits alongside the Boozers
• How to achieve greater roster stability in college basketball going forward
• The possibility of multiyear NIL contracts for players

Travis Branham can be found on Twitter as @TravisBranham or on 247Sports at https://247sports.com/user/Travis%20Branham/

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Josh, Dustin, and Raul are joined by Jordan Hofeditz of SMU Athletics and Jackson Moore of 247Sports to discuss the new additions to the ACC -- Cal, Stanford, and SMU. Jordan and Jackson give their perspective of what joining the ACC means to these teams. Topics discussed include:

• Recent coaching hires at all of these programs
• Strengths and weaknesses of incoming rosters
• Feelings about leaving previous conference
• The dissolution of a historic conference like the Pac-12
• SMU's longtime struggles to find conference stability
• Loss of traditional rivalries
• Impact of travel schedules, particularly on non-revenue sports
• Potential new rivalries
• Venues Jordan and Jackson are most excited to see the teams they cover visit
• Impact of joining the ACC on athletic budgets and NIL funding

Jordan Hofeditz can be found on Twitter @jhofeditz. Jackson Moore's writing about various West Coast programs can be found here: https://247sports.com/college/fresno-state/user/JacksonMoore/

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