Duke basketball coach Jon Scheyer moving on from the Coach K era

he was named Coach K’s successor the offseason before last year’s Final Four run.

But the first official practice with his first team?

“That was a big deal,” Scheyer said Tuesday. “I don’t know if I pinched myself or didn’t believe it, I believed it for sure. It felt like a great day, but I just focus on the next day, and I know there are a lot of other firsts and hopefully a lot of great ones to come.”

It was a moment the young coach had circled on his calendar — the beginning of a new chapter at Duke with a team of fresh faces not tethered by last year’s overwhelming expectations.

Of course, winning will always be the expectation at Duke.

Illinois graduate transfer Jacob Grandison remembers discussing the pressure of playing at Duke with Scheyer when he first arrived on campus.

Dereck Lively II, 6-6 small forward Dariq Whitehead and 6-foot-11 forward Kyle Flipowski. He added four-star point guard Tyrese Proctor after the freshman from Sydney, Australia, reclassified in June and will have the veteran leadership of junior guard Jeremy Roach to anchor the young talent.Scheyer plans to keep Duke in title form after Coach K era

INJURY NEWS:Duke basketball gives status of prized recruit Dariq Whitehead

“Obviously, last year was magnified because it was Coach K’s last year,” said Roach, who emerged as a star during Duke’s NCAA tournament run before falling to North Carolina in the Final Four. “But every year, Duke is always a target.”

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