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Adam Zagoria covers basketball at all levels. He is the author of two books and an award-winning journalist whose articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Sports Illustrated, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide.
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Thursday / March 28.
  • The Jeff Capel Era at Duke begins on Saturday against Boston College, and Capel has about a month to show he’s capable of one day succeeding arguably the greatest college basketball coach in the history of the game.

    No one knows when 69-year-old Mike Krzyzewski will coach his last game, but he won’t be on the sidelines forever.

    And Capel is the heir apparent to succeed Coach K once that day comes.

    Now with Coach K sidelined for about a month with back surgery, Capel has a golden opportunity — and a loaded roster — to show he deserves the job when that day does come.

    “I haven’t thought about it because I’ve never imagined the day of Coach [K] not coaching, of not being the head coach at Duke” Capel, 41, said Thursday on a conference call. “Since I started watching basketball, and really understanding basketball, he’s the only coach I’ve known at Duke. And so I’ve never thought about anything like that. I try to concentrate on doing my job and doing the best job I can for our program.”

    With high-flying shooting guard Hamidou Diallo set to announce his college choice on Saturday in New York, one of his AAU coaches is comparing him to some fellow high-flyers who starred in the NBA.

    “I definitely see it with his athleticism, I think he’s really unique,” Chris Alesi of the NY Rens said on The 4 Quarters Podcast. “I don’t think that there’s one guy that you can really point to, just because his game is different. But I definitely see Vince Carter, Dwyane Wade, guys who are just freakishly athletic.

    “But there’s a lot more to Hamidou Diallo. He can shoot the ball better than I’ve ever seen him shoot it. And I think the biggest thing with Hamidou, wherever he ends, he is a program-changer and I’ve seen that first-hand unfold with the Rens.”

    The 6-foot-6, 190-pound Diallo is expected to decide between Kentucky and UConn, with Arizona, Syracuse, Indiana and Kansas also having been on his list.

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