Duke Basketball: Blue Devils' Biggest Concerns Ahead of Conference Play

Duke comes back from a nine-day hiatus when it hosts Georgia Southern on Tuesday. It's one of just four games remaining for the Blue Devils before the calendar switches to 2016 and the schedule moves from nonconference action to ACC play.

The 8-1 start has provided plenty of evidence of what kind of team head coach Mike Krzyzewski has at his disposal. It's one that is different from the 2014-15 squad that won the national championship, but not so much that a successful title defense isn't possible.

Yet there are some concerns for the Blue Devils as nonconference play wraps up. We detail five things Duke might be worried about heading into the rigorous ACC slate in January.

Man-to-Man Defense

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Buffalo's Rodell Wigginton amid the Cameron Crazies on Dec. 5.

Duke's overall defensive intensity has perked up the last few games, resulting in holding three of the last four opponents to below 40 percent shooting. That's compared to the first five, who were a collective 46.9 percent from the field, the result of the inclusion of a 1-3-1 zone as well as better handling of one-on-one assignments.

It's still not to the level Krzyzewski would like, however. The remaining nonconference games will provide the last opportunities to get the kinks worked out before getting into the ACC, when there are a number of offenses that figure to score easily on Duke if it can't get better at individual defense.

Point Guard Play

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Derryck Thornton

Freshman Derryck Thornton is still not ready to handle the point guard job on his own, which means that sophomore Grayson Allen and junior Matt Jones will split most of the minutes at the 1 until this changes. For Duke to become a more well-rounded team, this needs to happen sooner rather than later.

The Blue Devils have no other true point guards on the roster besides Thornton, who should still be in high school had he not reclassified during the spring. That move made it seem like he was ready to step right in and run the offense like Tyus Jones did as a freshman last season, but this hasn't been the case.

Allen and Matt Jones have done well, though their values derive more from scoring than facilitating. As a result, Duke has only assisted on 110 of 261 made field goals. That 42.1 percent assist rate ranked 337th in Division I heading into Sunday, per Sports-Reference.com.

Frontcourt Depth

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Chase Jeter (No. 2) and Mike Krzyzewski

Amile Jefferson and Marshall Plumlee have done everything that's been asked of them this season—and then some. Career-long role players, the seniors have held down the starting frontcourt positions in every game and logged 498 of a possible 720 minutes, with Jefferson having a breakout year at 11.4 points and 10.3 rebounds per game.

Can this continue? Maybe, but it would help to have some assistance up front if/when Jefferson or Plumlee struggles, needs a breather or gets hurt. And that hasn't been the case yet.

Freshman forward Chase Jeter has played in seven games but for only 57 minutes, and Rice transfer Sean Obi has seen the court for all of five minutes. Brandon Ingram is a full-time starter, but his skill set is better served on the perimeter than banging around inside.

Duke is set to face Utah on Saturday in New York City, where it will deal with 7-footer Jakob Poeltl among others. It will be the first real chance to see how the Blue Devils hold up against a strong opposing front since the loss to Kentucky on Nov. 17.

UPDATE:On Monday, Duke announced Jefferson is out indefinitely with a right foot injury. 

Forward Foul Shooting

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DURHAM, NC - NOVEMBER 04: Marshall Plumlee #40 of the Duke Blue Devils concentrates at the free throw line against the Livingstone Blue Bears at Cameron Indoor Stadium on November 4, 2015 in Durham, North Carolina. Duke defeated Livingstone 119-54. (Photo

Since Duke isn't going to magically add any more players this season, it has to make due with those who are available. And that means being resigned to what the players can contribute, including (to this point) poor free-throw shooting from the forwards.

Ingram, Jefferson and Plumlee are a combined 65-of-115 from the line this season, which is a 56.5 percent clip. The four guards who get nearly all of the backcourt minutes shoot 87.1 percent from the line on 124 attempts.

That's quite a disparity between one set of players and another, and as the season progresses, that could mean the forwards will be the ones whom opponents try to foul as a strategic measure.

Lack of Road Experience

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Duke has played six of its games to this point in the friendly confines of Cameron Indoor Stadium, where it has defeated 122 consecutive nonconference opponents. It's where three of the remaining four non-league games are set for, along with Saturday's game against Utah in New York City.

The Blue Devils will end up playing nine home games and four neutral-site games in the preseason—one in Chicago (where they lost to Kentucky) and three in NYC. No road games.

That means the Jan. 2 ACC opener at Boston College will mark the first time Duke is in anything close to a hostile environment, since in every non-home game so far it has either had the majority of fans or a strong percentage of those in attendance on its side. BC will be the start of a two-game road trip, finishing up Jan. 6 at Wake Forest.

Last season, Duke played at Wisconsin and thrived in that scenario. The Blue Devils posted a victory over the Badgers that gave the first indication that Krzyzewski's team could handle adversity. The Kentucky loss in November did the same, but only to a point, unable to provide the same value as a true road win.

Follow Brian J. Pedersen on Twitter at @realBJP.