Duke Basketball: Kyrie Irving and the 11 Best Duke Point Guards of All Time
Duke Basketball has had a decorated history. They have 18 ACC regular season titles, 18 ACC Tournament titles, 15 Division I Final Four appearances, and four National Championships.
Their all-time records in scoring (2769 by J.J. Redick), rebounding (1262 by Shelden Williams), and more are among the best in college basketball.
Duke has been a great program for a long time, and as such, they have become the most hated school in all of college basketball.
This program has produced a lot of good players, most of whom have been coached by Mike Krzyzewski.
Because a point guard has to lead the team and bring the ball up, it is is arguably the most important position. A point guard has to be able to score when necessary, create for others, and, most importantly, lead their team.
Duke has produced a number of excellent players over its history, which has recently broken the century-mark.
This list counts down the top point guards in Duke's extensive history, with an importance on the three major characteristics of a point guard list above. Let's begin.
11. Kyrie Irving
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Kyrie Irving may have played less than one full season for the Duke Blue Devils, but he made his mark.
Irving was an athletic point guard, who could dish out assists with the best point guards in the game. In his 11 games with the Blue Devils, Irving averaged 4.3 assists per game, despite only playing a little over 25 minutes per game.
Irving definitely had the ability to score whenever it was needed. In big games Irving would shine, scoring more than one-third of the team's points twice, and having his best scoring outputs in four big games.
Against then-top-10-ranked Michigan State, Irving scored 31 of Duke's 84 points, shooting 8-for-12 from the floor, and 13-for-16 from the line.
In their final game against the Arizona Wildcats, Irving seemed to be the only player who could score, going for 28 of Duke's 77 points in only 31 minutes. Irving went 9-for-15 from the floor, and 8-for-9 from the line.
Irving proved his worth in his 11 games, and while it would have been nice to seem him play for Duke for three more years (or even just one full season), he makes this list, and he probably would have been number one if he played all four years.
10. Nolan Smith
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Nolan Smith played his first season with the Blue Devils in the 2007-08 campaign, averaging just under six points per game, and 1.3 assists per game.
Over his four years at Duke, Smith developed into a great player. Smith's points per game were 5.9 and 8.4 his first two seasons. His average then jumped up to 17.4 in his junior year, and then 20.6 his senior year.
Smith's senior season was almost worthy of National Player of the Year. He averaged 5.1 assists and 4.5 rebounds to go with his 20.6 points per game, and he became a full-time point guard while Kyrie Irving was injured.
During his senior year, Smith was the Player of the Game a team record 20 times, and he was the ACC Player of the Year.
Smith became one of the best point guards in school history because of his determination, and ability to lead the team, and he will be remembered as having one of the best seasons in Duke history.
9. Quin Snyder
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Quin Snyder was one of the winningest point guards in Duke history. Snyder made it to three Final Fours, in 1986, 1988 and 1989.
Snyder took over the starting role in his sophomore year, and he started just about every game in his last three seasons.
Playing that much gives you a lot of time to prove yourself, and Snyder did just that. His mark of 575 career assists is good enough for fifth on the all-time Duke assists list.
Snyder averaged a total of 6.2 points and 4.3 assists per game in his four seasons, including 6.5 assists per game in his senior year.
Snyder was a great distributor, but he is not higher because he was not the best scorer, and his leadership skills were not outstanding.
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8. Steve Wojciechowski
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Steve Wojciechowski was a truly great point guard in his four seasons at Duke, leaving his name in the record books, and now coaching for the Blue Devils.
"Wojo" recorded 505 assists and 203 assists, both good enough for eighth on their respective all-time lists. He also won National Defensive Player of the Year in 1998, just the fourth time in school history.
Wojciechowski made a big impact in only two seasons, but his heart, and determination were unmatched. His floor-slapping leadership and do-whatever-it-takes-to-win mentality made him a favorite among Duke fans, and one of the most hated players in the country.
While his stats over his four seasons are not going to blow you away (5.4 points and 3.9 rebounds per game), he is still one of the best.
7. Jim Spanarkel
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Jim Spanarkel was a good point guard, who had the ability to score whenever called upon.
During his time at Duke, Spanarkel became the first player to reach 2,000 points, and he was the first ACC Rookie of the Year in Duke history.
Spanarkel became a First Team Acclaim All American and a First Team All-ACC player during his time at Duke. He also won an ACC Tournament and made it to the Final Four in 1978. He was named Duke's team MVP for his final three seasons, 1977-79. Spanarkel was also team captain in his junior and senior years, and was announced the East Regional Most Outstanding Player in 1978.
Spanarkel was a great player, and while his passing skills were not the best, his heart, leadership, and ability to score land him the number seven spot on this list.
6. Chris Duhon
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There were high expectations for Chris Duhon when he came to Duke, and it looks like he lived up to them.
Duhon was voted Mr. Basketball in the state of Louisiana, was a McDonald's All-American, and won the McDonald's Three Point Shootout before coming to Duke.
In his freshman year he was a vital role player, backing up point guard Jason Williams, and eventually becoming the starting point guard when Carlos Boozer got hurt, and Williams was moved to shooting guard. Duhon fit in well, and the team won the 2001 National Championship against the Arizona Wildcats.
In Jason Williams' final season at Duke, Duhon played in the backcourt with him, and he was great, averaging about six assists and two-and-a-half steals per game. Duhon then became a full-time starter and star when Jason Williams left, leading Duke to a Sweet Sixteen appearance despite their being very young in his junior year, and then to the Final Four in his senior year.
Duhon finished his career at Duke with the 2001 ACC Rookie of the Year (the school's fourth), 819 assists (good enough for second in school history), and the record for steals with the team at 300, 34 more than the next closest, Shane Battier.
It's also worth noting that Duhon's final shot with the Blue Devils was a shot from past half-court at the buzzer against the UConn Huskies, that cut their deficit to one, even though they still lost. He also ran the length of the floor and made a reverse lay-up at the buzzer to beat rival North Carolina in a regular season game while down one to beat the Tar Heels.
Duhon's skill, leadership and determination land him the number six spot on this list.
5. Tommy Amaker
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Known as the head coach of Harvard basketball, Tommy Amaker has had an extensive career in college basketball, but it all started at Duke for four years during his playing days.
Amaker was a great point guard for the Blue Devils, and at the time, he was their best ever.
Amaker broke records for career assists (708), career steals (259), and miscellaneous others, which were broken by later point guards.
Amaker was also named the NABC Defensive Player of the Year in 1987, and his defensive pressure was unmatched by previous players.
Amaker was a leader, creating for others, and only lacking the ability to score himself when necessary.
4. Dick Groat
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Dick Groat was one of the best point guards in Duke history, but he decided to play baseball instead of basketball.
With Duke, Groat played basketball for the Blue Devils from 1950-1952 averaging 23 points per game in his career.
Groat's stats show that he averaged three assists per game, but that stat is skewed. Groat was actually a terrific passer and floor-general.
A National Player of the Year, Groat was a great player, not just a scorer, and his No. 10 jersey is now retired.
3. Johnny Dawkins
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Having the sixth most assists (555) in Duke history, and being an assistant coach for the Blue Devils, Johnny Dawkins knew how to assist others (sorry, this was just too much to pass up).
Currently the head coach at Stanford, and previous assistant coach at Duke, Johnny Dawkins' emergence in college hoops started with Duke in his playing days.
Dawkins was a great player, and he led the team to the 1986 title game. Dawkins never averaged less than 18 points or three assists in his four seasons with Duke, and he averaged 19.2 points, 4.2 assists and 3.9 rebounds per game in his career.
As previously stated, Dawkins is sixth on the all-time assists list, and he is also second on the scoring list, behind only J.J. Redick. Dawkins was the Naismith Player of the Year in 1986, and his No. 24 jersey is hanging from the rafters in Cameron Indoor Stadium.
2. Jason Williams
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Jason Williams entered a shooting guard, then developed into a point guard, back to a shooting guard alongside the aforementioned Chris Duhon, and finished the second best point guard in school history.
Williams only played three seasons for the Blue Devils, but he was a National Player of the Year twice (2001-02), and he was a First Team All-American in those same years.
In only three years at Duke, Williams cemented his place in history. Williams is tied for ninth in career points with Gene Banks at 2,079. He is also fourth in assists (644) and fifth in steals (235).
If Williams had played his senior year he would have gone down as the best point guard (perhaps the best player) in Duke history.
His career line is as follows: 19.2 PPG, 6.0 APG, 3.7 RPG, 2.2 SPG.
Williams' No. 22 jersey is now retired by the Blue Devils.
1. Bobby Hurley
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Who else could take this spot as the best point guard in Duke history? Bobby Hurley is the best true point guard Duke has ever seen.
Hurley was an outstanding passer, and he still holds the NCAA record for career assists, at 1,076, one of only three players to make it to 1,000 assists, the other two being Ed Cota and Chris Corchiani. Hurley also holds the Duke record for assists in one game with 16.
Hurley had stellar defense, and he is ninth in Duke history with 202 career steals.
Hurley was easily one of the most hated figures in Duke history because he was so good. Hurley led Duke to two straight titles in 1991 and 1992, and was an All-American in 1991.
Hurley's career line is unbelievable: 12.4 PPG, 7.7 APG, 1.5 SPG.
Needless to say, Hurley's jersey is now retired.
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