Duke started 0-2 in ACC play with a loss at Georgia Tech last night. I haven’t watched the game yet, but I wasn’t suprised. This was a game I counted as a loss when I made my predictions earlier. It appears turnovers were, once again, a big problem (although Duke forced more than they made). Also, Tech shot 29 free throws to 11 for Duke. They made 12 more than Duke shot. And, Tech was 7-12 from 3-point range to 4-20 for Duke. I can’t say much more without seeing the game, but that says a lot.

One of Coach K’s comments was something about how you can’t expect to win just because you’re at Duke. You don’t inherit winning, you have to learn how, and this team hasn’t quite gotten there yet. They looked much better in the second half of December, but conference play (in any conference, but definitely the ACC) is another level, and it may take some more time to adjust again. Paulus’ play is still a concern, but he’s had, as Krzyzewski says, an “interuppted year”, with the preseason injury, then illness, and recently a dislocated finger. They need him to remain healthy. He may very well be the most important player on the team.

Leadership is something else I’ve been thinking about. They don’t have a Laettner, a Hurley, a Battier, or even a Redick. Paulus should be the floor leader of this team, but I have to wonder if he’s really there yet, and perhaps his inconsistent play is part of that, I don’t know. That’s not surprising, I suppose, for such a young team - the youngest ever at Duke under Coach K (I believe). Every transition year in the past 10 seasons has gone well because, even with a big freshman class, there were still some upperclassmen leaders around. In 2000 there were Carawell and Battier. In 2003 there was Chris Duhon and Dahntay Jones (although, like Paulus, Duhon struggled somewhat that season.) So far, it seems a young team that lost four seniors is still searching for someone.

“Revenge” is going to be a factor for this team this year. With such a young and vulnerable team, everyone is out for payback. Duke has dominated the ACC for 10 years. They’ve won an ACC regular season championship or an ACC tournament championship every year for the past 10 seasons (4 times they won both). I’ve also read that, since 1998, Duke has had a better ACC road record than any other ACC team’s home record with the exception of Maryland. That’s pretty good. This was part of last night’s loss, too, most likely. They had beaten Georgia Tech 20 of the last 21 times they played. Other teams are aware the gap has either narrowed or disappeared altogether. They’ll be ready for Duke, too.

Miami is up next, and again it’s on the road. Miami gave them some trouble last year, but lost some key players. They’re currently 9-8, and looking at their schedule, they’ve lost to the likes of Buffalo and Binghamton. That should give one hope. However, they’ve played two ranked teams and won both games - Georgia Tech and last night at Maryland (where they only shot 31% from the field and Maryland shot 22% from the field.) So, it’s difficult to know what might happen at Miami. I have to believe that Miami will come ready to play, though, and Duke must do likewise to avoid a 0-3 ACC start.

I still have hope for a good season, though. They’ve played two close games and probably will continue to play close games because of their defense. I don’t think it’s going to be 1995 all over again. If their offense can pick up and they slow down the turnovers, they’ll be fine. But this is somewhat of a transition year, and it was evident from day one that they are not going to win like they normally do. Hopefully whatever happens in the coming weeks will have a positive impact on the rest of the season and the coming years as well.

In other Duke news, Shelden Williams and J.J. Redick will have their jerseys retired later this season.