Duke came in with high expectations and deservingly so, as they came in with one of the top recruiting classes and also return a ton of talent from last season in which they finished with a 25-11 record.
Coming into this season, the freshmen were the talk of the town along with guard Grayson Allen, as he came back from a season in which he averaged 21.6 points and was one of the top guards in the country. He was named to several watch lists early on this season but another sophomore guard may be the most important piece for Duke early on and for the rest of the season.
Luke Kennard, a sophomore guard, has risen to the occasion this season, averaging over 20 points per game, 6.1 rebounds, and 3.3 assists for Duke and many may think that he has carried the Blue Devils early on this season due to the struggles of Allen and injuries at times.
One can even look at last night's game against Tennessee State, a game that the Blue Devil's eventually broke open in the second half. Kennard went 7-for-10 from the field last night for 24 points and three rebounds in the Duke win; a game in which the team struggled overall offensively.
Kennard has already secured six 20+ games and has answered the bell in big-time games. Against Kansas, Kennard finished with 22 points, against Rhode Island, he scored 24, against Michigan State he had 20, and against Florida, he finished with 29.
Furthermore, he has been simply unstoppable with his ability to shoot the ball, shooting 52 percent from the floor and almost 41 percent from three.
For me, I just become more comfortable with ball, just with every situation and the game of basketball," Kennard said after the game. "The game has really slowed down for me a lot and throughout the summer, I worked my butt off and it has paid off. They guys have been great with accepting the way we have become as a group, but the game has really down for me and I'm really excited to keep this journey going."
Allen still has been posting solid numbers (17.7ppg) this season and will be a focal point in this offense down the road. But one could say with Kennard's ability to knock down shots early on this seaosn, he deserves to be the one mentioned in the All-American discussion for the Blue Devils.
