Duke Basketball: Frontcourt Controls Destiny for Blue Devils This Season

The 2009-2010 version of the Duke Blue Devils is unlike any other from the previous few seasons in Durham: They have size in the interior, and lots of it.

Consisting of big men Brian Zoubek, Miles and Mason Plumlee, Lance Thomas, and Ryan Kelly, the Duke roster is filled with a variety of different post players.

Each big man on this Duke team has something special that he brings to the table every night, but unless the low-post players work together each game, they come off as unreliable.

Can one or two players on this Duke team stand out as consistent performers on a nightly basis, or will the five-man post-player rotation continue to bring the Devils down and be detrimental down the road?

Zoubek is one of the tallest players in college basketball, towering over opponents at a staggering 7'1". Although he has the size to overpower opponents, he rarely uses his height to score on the offensive end.

Though he is Duke's best rebounder, Zoubek also needs to be a more consistent scorer for Coach K and his staff. He also needs to develop into a player who can dunk on opposing teams with ease, not turn to the basket looking to be fouled or simply laying the ball in the rim. 

Perhaps the most consistent interior player Duke has at the moment is Miles Plumlee. Yes, his scoring average has dropped since the beginning of the season, and he has continued to get into foul trouble early in games, but he has continually strived to improve his rebounding and post game throughout the week in practice.

Miles leads the team in dunks, and by a wide margin. He also gets most of his points on lay-ups and put-backs, but has displayed a 10-foot jump shot that was not in his repertoire last season.

He has shown signs of improvement throughout the year, but if Miles gets into foul trouble early in games, he will see less and less time on the floor, thus lowering his dependability over time.

Miles' younger brother, Mason, is probably the best athletic big man that Duke can throw out at opposing teams. The younger Plumlee can handle the ball much like a guard, he has shown that he can knock down the three-point shot if left open, and has continued to work on his offensive game throughout the past few weeks.

Fracturing his left wrist early in the season, Mason has slowly been adjusting to the faster-paced, up-tempo style that college has to offer. Over the last few games, Mason has been a force down low, continually getting better.

At this point in the season, Duke has shown that they have a trio of scoring threats in Jon Scheyer, Nolan Smith, and Kyle Singler. If Mason can continue to mature and improve as the season progresses, he has the possibility of adding his name to the scoring threats for Duke to give them a legitimate quadruple-attack.

Lance Thomas is the "do-it-all" player for the Blue Devils this season. Named captain in his final year in Durham, Thomas has lived up to the hype, dishing out assists, grabbing crucial rebounds, and scoring easy points down low.

Although he's listed as a forward, he has the capability to defend a guard on the defensive end, disrupting opposing perimeter players with his long reach. He won't put up huge numbers over the course of the season, but he will be noted for his hustle plays and great on-ball defense.

Ryan Kelly is by far the biggest disappointment of this season's recruiting class. He has seen limited action on the court, and hasn't had the opportunity to showcase his entire offensive arsenal at this point in the season; however, he has adapted to his role nicely, grabbing rebounds and kicking the ball out to guards on the perimeter.

Kelly has yet to play any significant minutes in close games for the Blue Devils this year, but near the end of the season will most likely see his minutes go up. He is a deadly three-point shooter as well, winning the McDonald's High School All-American Game Three-Point contest before the season began.

You may believe that this five-man rotation has paid dividends for Duke early in the year, but in fact they have been the Devils' main weakness. Thomas, Kelly, and Zoubek have yet to get several shot attempts in a game this year.

The Plumlee brothers have provided a spark in the interior for Coach K, but neither has consistently put up big numbers from game to game as yet. With confusion over who is going to be the primary big man for Duke this season, none of the players have been able to adjust to their positions.

To make the point that the interior players have been the Blue Devils' biggest weakness up to this point in the season, take their game from tonight against Boston College, for example.

During the first half, Boston College had their way in the lane against the Duke post players, scoring 30 of their 35 first-half points in the paint. With Zoubek, Thomas, and the Plumlees constantly being shuffled in and out of the game, Duke never gained the advantage on the defensive end.

The help-defense was horrendous for Duke in the first half as well, giving Boston College open looks in the lane and easy dunks. The Eagles were patient with the ball, as made evident by the perimeter players taking time off the clock, then dumping the ball into the post and letting their big men do the rest.

On the other side of the floor, however, Miles Plumlee stepped up, scoring 10 points and making all four of his shot attempts. He has adjusted his offensive game from earlier in the year, using his left hand to keep the ball away from the defense to go up strong for easier baskets.

While Miles was firing on all cylinders, the other big men struggled to find their range, with Mason missing several open lay-up attempts and Zoubek failing to capitalize on several different occasions close to the rim.

Bob Knight said it best during the game: "One of the things that Duke's inside kids have to do is go up strong with the ball, not like 'Hey, may I take this shot?'"

The Duke big men were inconsistent on the defensive side of the floor, thus giving the Blue Devils only a three-point advantage heading into the locker room. Granted, Scheyer struggled with his shots, but inconsistent play in the post could prove deadly over the long run for Duke.

The second half opened with a 22-6 run by Duke, giving the Blue Devils a 60-41 lead with just over 10 minutes left in the game. The Blue Devils' interior players denied the Eagles' big men good position in the lane, forcing them into either bad shots or turnovers.

The Duke big men proved to be the difference in the second half, both by preventing Boston College from getting into the rhythm they had been in during the first half and by making easy baskets close to the rim. Nolan Smith finished with 24 points, tying his career high, which he set early in the year against Gonzaga.

Believe it or not, the Duke big men will determine how far the Blue Devils are capable of going in the tournament in March. They struggled during the first half of tonight's game, and Duke was only up by three at the break.

When the post players stepped up their game and made adjustments in the second half, however, Duke took off and never looked back, winning the game 79-59.

Later on in the season, Duke will have to get consistent scoring from the post, if they want to have any chance of making a run in the NCAA Tournament.

Although the Blue Devil big men are the biggest weakness at this moment for Duke, they also control the destiny for this year's team, come postseason time. The game against Boston College reflects that perfectly.

Let's just hope that the Duke frontline comes out and plays each remaining game with the same intensity as they showed in the second half against the Eagles.