Is Duke actually better without Tyrese Proctor?

The Sleepers join Riley Davis to discuss if Duke is actually better without Tyrese Proctor

Do we want to hit topic number two yeah yeah all right let’s get topic number two um Tyrese Proctor Ying Theory I tease this to y’all in a text but we’re looking at a Duke team that’s won three in a row now including a resounding victory in MSG over Baylor now part of

This I admit is me stoking the fire the Flames of rivalry as a as a Duke hater a UNCC fan but I am really curious like if you were John Shire how do you work Tyrese Proctor back into this rotation because Shy’s been hinting that he’s close to playing but in Proctor’s

Absence the offense has figured some things out they’re playing through Philip howski a lot more letting him play make I know he had a near triple double against hofra Caleb Foster and Jared McCain have both been playing a lot better recently especially McCain who went nuts against Baylor like what

If there’s a world where like Proctor’s the third or the fourth best guard on this team what do you do to work him back into this rotation you mind if I go first Greg I would love for you to go first I gave some of my

Thoughts on this on the recap with uh with Brian last night so you can lead I mean you know it’s to me I believe in John Shire as a coach to have the ability to do this because last season I thought he did a great job with adjustments and just throughout the

Season making adjustments with that Duke team to have them rolling towards the end of the season outside of kind of flaming out the tournament I think earlier than other people anticipated them to so just on the surface level I have faith that sh can do it and work

Him in but I’m staying strong and put with what I’ve been saying all season that tyres Proctor is the fourth best guard on this team I I just think he is um if I was John Shire I would go in my coach’s yellow book page like the

Coach’s directory which I feel like all them have I would get in contact with Greg guard and I’d ask him what he did with Conor Sean and I would do the austral brilliant version of that with Tyrese brocker I mean that’s a little harsh it is but I’m I’m a harsh type of

Guy Proctor’s been better than that though right like I want to do this toart I do but like can we can we like put him in an Ethan Morton role that’s like I I really want to do this with you but we have to like be a

Little bit honest about how we’re doing it like even in Proctor’s bad nights like he has like seven assists nights right so that that’s what makes Duke so good like Proctor is their fourth best guard play him feature him like the fourth best guard or third or third

Third or fourth I think that I think that roach should be the guy I do too but isn’t the problem this like why it’s clunky is that the best case version of all of these guys individually for roach is scoring for McCain is scoring for foster is scoring for Proctor it’s

Passing in theory Proctor should should be making all these other guys better Ro can really Ro R can lowkey really pass though I know I just like isn’t that the pro it’s almost like Proctor needs to be ball dominant for it to work because he needs to create for others right that’s the

Issue so I don’t know like Foster and roach both need the ball in their hands didn’t leave and just go get drafted Lottery when he could have yeah he would have been a first rounder last year that’s the real that’s the real issue he’s still G to be first rounder

Right I don’t think it’s like his stock that’s going to die here I think he’ll be a first rounder but like you don’t think Shy and Duke were like I mean we’re not getting a f we’re not getting a Sure Fire he probably would have went

Lottery to be honest with you or host a lottery last year some probably probably having some good workouts too and he didn’t go is he getting picked over jet Howard yeah I actually think yeah I think he would have too yeah I don’t think so I think I think they would they

See a six5 PG that like just started playing PG young has the length has the everything like they see aut passer can check actually not getting in workouts and shooting it like jet did like what’s what’s his NBA ready skill you tell me he’s getting in a scrimmage workout looking better than he

Does at Duke right now that he’s got a passport I don’t know like I don’t know I so I think in a in a workout he probably could have convinced some people like that he was a elite passer and he he’s had some really good

Bro KO we was top 10 on gon’s boards before the season stopped just because heares weak draft that’s why he’s still gonna get drafted there was no harm because this draft stinks right like Proctor still is like a top 11 pick and he’s barely even playing right now top

11 still seems like a lot like I don’t know I personally in my mind I just knock him because I expected him to be an Undisputed top 10 player in the sport and here we are talking about him not even being one of the five best players

On his own team can I ask you this did you actually see things last season that made you think this or did you just kind of buy into the collective hype speak of the offseason of like oh he’s gonna take the J like you watched him more than

Anybody I know you saw him person what did you see that was what I that was why I thought he was gonna be that guy like I I thought I was GNA be the only one being like no this dude might be an All-American and then everybody the

Almanac wanted to vote him a top five player and same with like Brian Ralph and Connor were talking about him as a top five player within my heat check circles and I was like wow this is nowhere near as original as I thought it would be cuz again it seemed like he

Could get to whatever spot he wanted to on the court uh he was a good Defender granted I think that whole Duke team looked a lot better defensively with Lively there and like a 710 wingspan cleaning everything up but yeah and then the pick and roll playmaking flashes

Like some of the live dribble passes he would nail were pretty special especially for a reclass guard okay in those games though like has there ever been a game that Tyrese Proctor’s been the best player on the floor I want to say he had some games in

ACC tournament where he was if I’m not mistaken yeah I think against Miami he probably yeah that’s the one I remember in my head there was one ACC Tournament game where I actually saw it I was like oh this guy can kind of go okay like I

Remember the flashes I just I I don’t maybe I missed the game truly because I I never came away from a game being like yeah that was Tyrese Proctor’s game I thought he was just like one of these promising dudes he had a really good stretch in that Tennessee game and then

Went cold down like the last five minutes or so like he had 16 points that game and that was he was hting some really timely shots that just kept them in it when uh your boy Olivier Kwa was giving them buckets and putting on the clamps on the other end love Olivier Kwa

For that but so just to be so Tyrese Proctor was the best player in a game that Duke lost by double digits that Olivier Kwa dominated and that’s Olivia com was definitely the best player in that game but Tyrese Proctor was nice for like should have seen we should have

Seen 30 minutes a little bit of a little bit of a red flag there um okay so my my honest thing back to your question of like what should they do how should they play this I do think that they could bring him back off the bench and I know

That sounds like bring the Detonator out and people are going to freak out at that uh I don’t think it’s nearly as crazy as it sounds I think like if if he’s not 100% I think you could still play him and work him back and even if

He is 100% you could lie to people and tell them that it’s cuz he’s not 100% he’s slowly working back um I think you owe it to guys like Jared McCain and guys like Jeremy roach who have looked fantastic in this stretch without him to just keep the momentum rolling like car

We’re talking about that with your team right now like even if you wanted to make drastic changes to the rotation you shouldn’t do it in the middle of Michigan State looking really good I feel the same about Duke right now like I I think this team has looked

Significantly better in the three games that they’ve played fully without Tyrese Proctor than when they were trying to make it all work with him and look he’s obviously a good player he he might be their second most talented player I don’t think there’s an argument he’s

More talented than flip at all as far as like a college basketball player goes Prospect wise sure you can make that argument um but to me like even the games that he was good earlier this season when he’s been good it’s almost like the ball stops while

He’s waiting to make a play for someone else like they off defense has less flow to it and it’s less natural movement and it’s less the ball finding the right guy and it’s more Tyrese Proctor is going to take 10 seconds to get himself ready to

Go create a shot for someone else at the end of the shot clock which is clunkier than just playing naturally through Jeremy roach or these other guys so I do think like he has to find it he has to be a part of this team for them to be National Championship good Tyrese

Proctor has to be a heavy heavy heavy portion of that um which is why for me you work him back in slowly you see if if the minutes that he comes in if he plays 15 20 minutes off the bench in his first game back what does he look like

In those minutes is the team better with him when he’s off the floor versus when he’s on it and John Shire is smart enough to evaluate that as he goes but if I were him I would owe it to the guys that have been playing really well to let them keep doing that

First I like agree completely with that I thought that’s very well worded as far as like how he gets his assists because I know I mentioned it was those playmaking flashes that really had me bind into the hype in the offseason but like you know I se seen

Him in person at the Arizona game watched most of Duke’s big games like even the games where he would have the big assist numbers it didn’t yeah like you said it didn’t feel like it was this free flowing gorgeous ball movement type of offense if they I don’t want to call

Them cheap assists but it felt a little bit like that um whereas you see what was their assist rate was something crazy there other night against Baylor where the ball is popping and has energy if we’re going to turn to some some coach speak um that’s one of my favorite coach speak

Isms these days like coaches love say the ball had energy uh the ball was really popping around the floor tonight but it’s true like Duke’s offense has look noticeably better with when the ball get when the ball has energy with in this current iteration of

It ball has energy all right so so we can we can we can pencil in tyres for 15 minutes a night deal final question final final question on this I’m gonna force you to answer the tough question is this team actually better without Tyrese Proctor yes or no

Carter is this team better with or without Tyrese Proctor that’s another way to twist the question but yeah that’s the question this team this team is better with Tyrese Proctor on the roster is it better with him in a starring role no Riley same two questions I think it’s def they’re

Definitely a better team with tyres Proctor in the rotation I don’t think he has to be a starter okay that feels like we’re taking the easy way out boys like that that feels that feels like we’re just like yeah of course he’s that important but yeah maybe maybe

Maybe he’s not like trying to take I mean that’s an that’s an obvious question yes he this team is better with him on the roster that’s I mean I guess like the same way the same way that Michigan is worse without jet Howard off the roster

Like we did this dance all last season of course Michigan’s worse without a top 15 pick on it at the same time centering your team around that player killed them like I I I think there’s a lot of comparisons here and Proctor’s better defensively and Proctor’s arguably

Better offensively than jet was but I’ll I’ll go there if you guys won’t I think this team is worse with Tyres Proctor and the more time they spend trying to Center things around tyres Proctor and getting him right is more time wasted towards what could be a really good

Season without it in that case I hope they keep toying with it until like February 10th just let me get just let me get that wi over Duke and the dean doome and then and then realize that you don’t need to be playing through tyres Proctor there we go we’ll see what

Happens all right