Harry Giles with another knee surgery

[Steat]

That's great and all...but a UNC fan telling a Duke player to sit out a season isn't exactly an unbiased opinion.

We are talking about a kid that would have had 3 surgeries on his knees in the last 3 years. I would say the same thing if it was a UNC player. I'm a financial advisor in my day job. I see this from a different angle than many fans. Most of these kids don't care about an NCAA title. If this kid comes back a tears up his knee and ruins his NBA career, lets see how many of you support him financially for the rest of his life.

 

[DSouthr]

I think the kid takes a huge risk coming back this season, said that before news of this latest issue. If he plays before those knees are as sound as they can get,l if he has to have yet another major repair (this scoping seems minor IMO) then it could cost the kid his career. Why not sit out this year, I agree that at this point he may need to play a college season just to show his health can hold up, he can always play for duke the following season.

Personally, I prefer we play and beat teams at their strength, that way no excuses, wouldn't be able to say if we had Giles...

 

[Steat]

Duke is loaded without Giles. An argument could be made that they could win the title without him. I doubt rival fans were wishing that Kendall Marshall would have a miraculous recovery from his hand injury and lead the Heels to a title a few years ago. Injuries are part of the game and the Heels have had more than their share. Most of us are homers when it comes to rushing kids back from injuries, but some of us put winning before the kid's future NBA career. Not me.....never have and never will.

 

[BOOGIEMAN1914]

With or without Giles, duke IMO will be a tuff out. But it is not as if this duke team does not have questions, first and foremost to me is they really do not have a PG. That is a strange situation for duke, they have a couple of combos in Allen and Jackson that should be able to handle the PG role to an extent but it isn't what duke is used to.

Last season they had Thorton who gave them 25+ mins a game and Ingram grew up as a PG and was very comfortable putting the ball on the floor and distributing. Allen did spend a lot of time at the point last season but he looks to score more than distribute, he had the green light to score at will last season but guys like Tatum, Jackson, and Bolden, and Giles when he comes back, they need the ball. I don't think making those guys re-bounders as Allen skips and trips his way to drives to the basket as he falls down when someone breathes on him, not sure that is going to work so well this time out.

i dont think allen plays like last year...last year he and ingram had the ultimate green light...this year to many weapons to have to play like last year.....the world knows he can score and such....he will be auditioning pg skills imo....i expect all his numbers to drop and ast to increase

 

[mikeirbyusa]

Believe you are spot-on as to what he SHOULD do but we will see if he is willing or maybe he trips up.

 

[Coach325]

Wanted to thank you guys for the kind words for Giles. Certainly a set-back and disappointment for him and us Duke fans. I wish him all the best and really hope he is able to get back to a point where he can play 100% healthy again. If that's at Duke, great.......if he decides to sit out and try to recover and just move on to the NBA.........I wouldn't blame him. He has my support either way because he seems to be a great kid and to me his career is more important than a handful of games at Duke. IF he is cleared to play at Duke (and it appears he will) I hope the Duke staff eases him back into things. A young kid is going to want to go full throttle immediately and I hope that K and the medical staff step in and look out for his best interest. My prayers are with him.

 

[DSouthr]

i dont think allen plays like last year...last year he and ingram had the ultimate green light...this year to many weapons to have to play like last year.....the world knows he can score and such....he will be auditioning pg skills imo....i expect all his numbers to drop and ast to increase

I kinda thought his PG audition occurred last season and this would be more his act 2? My point being, with as much point as he played last season, are you expecting him to show off new PG skills this season that he may not have shown last season?

Also strikes me as odd that Jackson may not be as slotted to the PG role as Allen? I kinda get the tenor from many that Jackson has more ability as a PG than Allen, I know I would maybe hedge more toward Jackson being the point than Allen but very likely you have more depth on the players you guys have than me. So I am not saying you are wrong, just saying it isn't what we are used to from a K coached duke team, 2 combos being the PG rather than a true PG. Example, everyone talked about about Ochafor and Winslow but Ty Jones was the key IMO. Now K did have Schyer as his PG for that prior title run but just to me Scheyer seemed more a PG than Allen strikes me, just my opinion.

 

[HeelFan58]

Yep

well the Sixers will probably have a very good chance(weighted) at the 1st pick.

 

[BOOGIEMAN1914]

I kinda thought his PG audition occurred last season and this would be more his act 2? My point being, with as much point as he played last season, are you expecting him to show off new PG skills this season that he may not have shown last season?

Also strikes me as odd that Jackson may not be as slotted to the PG role as Allen? I kinda get the tenor from many that Jackson has more ability as a PG than Allen, I know I would maybe hedge more toward Jackson being the point than Allen but very likely you have more depth on the players you guys have than me. So I am not saying you are wrong, just saying it isn't what we are used to from a K coached duke team, 2 combos being the PG rather than a true PG. Example, everyone talked about about Ochafor and Winslow but Ty Jones was the key IMO. Now K did have Schyer as his PG for that prior title run but just to me Scheyer seemed more a PG than Allen strikes me, just my opinion.

he and ingram dominated the ball in iso a lot and yes he got assists while his intent to attack the rim and score, but with collapsed defenses he got a lot of assists through kick outs and dump offs at the rim...yes he is going to look to attack and score at times, but also the intent will be to get someone open imo.....last year a scorer, this year a bit more imo

 

[Steat]

well the Sixers will probably have a very good chance(weighted) at the 1st pick.

No way the Sixers pick Giles as their #1 pick with their history of #1 picks with injuries. They will probably have a lottery year again this year. Their last 4 picks (all in the top 3) have either had "major" injuries when drafted, before they played their first NBA game or during their first season. No way they pick Giles as their first pick, and this is probably a gross understatement.

 

[Hark_The_Sound_2010]

Believe you are spot-on as to what he SHOULD do but we will see if he is willing or maybe he trips up.

I see what you did there....

 

[mikeirbyusa]

I see what you did there....

 

[Archer2]

If Jackson starts, and I think he will, Allen will be the SG. I agree with Boogie that he won't be dominating the ball quite as much this year or let's put it this way, he shouldn't be dominating the ball as much. Not sure if his ego will allow him to give the ball up more often, he seemed loath to do so last year. But dook has more weapons this year, so we'll see. I know there are some OAD's coming in who are not going to be happy if he doesn't share the rock.

If I were Giles' parents, I would seriously consider shutting him down for the season and bring him back as a sophomore next year for a year of NBA tryouts.

 

[TPFKAPFS]

I would advise the Giles family to simply hire trainers to work him out and get his knee in the best shape possible. He needs to rest and rehab those knees and not take a chance on another injury. I don't think a red-shirt year is in his best interest since he would still risk injury and peeps will draft him in the first 3 picks regardless.

Allen has not shown one single instance of being willing to change his ways. After the 2nd trip, even the most die hard knucklehead would have changed, but....
He is a prima-donna, whiner and I would bet he has a greater chance of being a team cancer than a serviceable PG!

 

[dukephysics]

Not sure if his ego will allow him to give the ball up more often, he seemed loath to do so last year.

I'm not sure this is entirely fair.
Grayson shared the ball about as well as any player outside the PG position.
I looked at assists per game stats (not an absolute measure of "sharing the rock" but as good of one as we have that doesn't involve bias) for the ACC last year, and there were only 13 players in the conference with more APG than Grayson (and only one of those outscored him). Of those, nearly all were PGs. Those who weren't PGs: Miller-McIntyre (SF), Gbinije (PF), Jackson (SG/PG year before last), and Paige (SG). I got positions from the link below, so you may argue some of these, but I think the point stands.
Not my intention to blow up the thread - but I don't think the quote above is accurate.
FWIW, Wake and UNC were the only 2 teams with 2 players who had more APG than Grayson.

http://basketball.realgm.com/ncaa/conferences/Atlantic-Coast-Conference/1/home

 

[dadika13]

I'm not sure this is entirely fair.
Grayson shared the ball about as well as any player outside the PG position.
I looked at assists per game stats (not an absolute measure of "sharing the rock" but as good of one as we have that doesn't involve bias) for the ACC last year, and there were only 13 players in the conference with more APG than Grayson (and only one of those outscored him). Of those, nearly all were PGs. Those who weren't PGs: Miller-McIntyre (SF), Gbinije (PF), Jackson (SG/PG year before last), and Paige (SG). I got positions from the link below, so you may argue some of these, but I think the point stands.
Not my intention to blow up the thread - but I don't think the quote above is accurate.
FWIW, Wake and UNC were the only 2 teams with 2 players who had more APG than Grayson.

http://basketball.realgm.com/ncaa/conferences/Atlantic-Coast-Conference/1/home

Any per game stat is going to be seriously flawed when we're talking about the guy 3rd in the conference in minutes played.

 

[Archer2]

One could just as easily argue that he should have had more assists, considering he probably had the ball in his hands as much or more than any guy in the league.

He did lead the league in *TPG, and by a wide margin. In fact, he probably led the nation in that category.

* Trips Per Game

 

[dukephysics]

Any per game stat is going to be seriously flawed when we're talking about the guy 3rd in the conference in minutes played.

Fair enough.
And for the fans that hate him, I get it. I think most Duke fans were a little embarrassed by the tripping stuff.
I just didn't see a selfish player in regards to sharing the ball. He was on a very thin team (like 5-6 deep) and was the main scoring option. I think he did what he needed to in order to give his team a chance to win - and I think he did what K wanted him to do (not the tripping part). But I agree that he will have to be more facilitator this year than last. And if he doesn't do that, it will cause problems. I am just optimistic that he can do it because I think he was forced to be even more selfish (though I still wouldn't call it selfish) with the ball last year.

 

[dadika13]

I think most Duke fans were a little embarrassed by the tripping stuff.

A little?

 

[dukephysics]

A little?

I was a little embarrassed. I didn't trip anyone. I didn't have to talk to my mom about how I acted on the court. I did things playing games that I am not proud of and I'm a lot more embarrassed about those things (many years later) than something a kid I've never met did. So, yes, I for one was a little embarrassed.

 

[DSouthr]

Wanted to thank you guys for the kind words for Giles. Certainly a set-back and disappointment for him and us Duke fans. I wish him all the best and really hope he is able to get back to a point where he can play 100% healthy again. If that's at Duke, great.......if he decides to sit out and try to recover and just move on to the NBA.........I wouldn't blame him. He has my support either way because he seems to be a great kid and to me his career is more important than a handful of games at Duke. IF he is cleared to play at Duke (and it appears he will) I hope the Duke staff eases him back into things. A young kid is going to want to go full throttle immediately and I hope that K and the medical staff step in and look out for his best interest. My prayers are with him.

Not picking on you or suggesting anything negative but why do fans do that? By that I mean as in your thanking us for the kind words? I would understand it if it were your son or a close family member and no offense but have ya ever met Giles? Nothing negative toward ya, if it were one of our players one of our fans would do the very same thing. But doesn't it seem like an odd thing?

 

[Archer2]

The notion that his team was only 5-6 deep was a myth perpetrated by the LOM himself and readily swallowed by both the media and by dook fans. Just because he chose not to play Chase Jeter( a top 40 recruit) and Temple transfer Sean Obi(a 6-9, 265 lb center who averaged 11 points/9 boards(2nd nationally for freshmen) ) , doesn't mean he didn't have depth. He chose not to develop/utilize it.

 

[Steat]

The notion that his team was only 5-6 deep was a myth perpetrated by the LOM himself and readily swallowed by dook fans. Just because he chose not to play Chase Jeter( a top 40 recruit) and Temple transfer Sean Obi(a 6-9, 265 lb center who averaged 11 points/9 boards(2nd nationally for freshmen) ) , doesn't mean he didn't have depth. He chose not to develop/utilize it.

Not only that, but he left a healthy Amile Jefferson on the bench for the last few weeks in lieu of playing him down the stretch convincing him to redshirt for this season. The LOM is the most selfish coach in NCAA history. The LOM knew he had no chance of winning the title last year so he kept Jefferson out for the last few weeks.

 

[Coach325]

Not picking on you or suggesting anything negative but why do fans do that? By that I mean as in your thanking us for the kind words? I would understand it if it were your son or a close family member and no offense but have ya ever met Giles? Nothing negative toward ya, if it were one of our players one of our fans would do the very same thing. But doesn't it seem like an odd thing?

Was mainly speaking to the class being shown on this board. I love the rivalry as much as any Duke/UNC fan, but many people take it way too far at times. I just thought it was cool to see the rival fanbase expressing their well wishes to a Duke player? Keeps the game in perspective. I guess that's strange?

 

[HeelFan58]

No way the Sixers pick Giles as their #1 pick with their history of #1 picks with injuries. They will probably have a lottery year again this year. Their last 4 picks (all in the top 3) have either had "major" injuries when drafted, before they played their first NBA game or during their first season. No way they pick Giles as their first pick, and this is probably a gross understatement.

I didn't say they would pick Giles , just that they will be near the top of the draft. I think many teams will be very wary of Giles.

 

[Calabrias Inferno]

Not only that, but he left a healthy Amile Jefferson on the bench for the last few weeks in lieu of playing him down the stretch convincing him to redshirt for this season. The LOM is the most selfish coach in NCAA history. The LOM knew he had no chance of winning the title last year so he kept Jefferson out for the last few weeks.

So Giles needs to sit out the season, even if he comes back to 100%, because it would be too risky for his pro career? Honestly I would be shocked if he hasn't already taken advantage of the NCAA's Exceptional Student-Athlete Disability Insurance program. A good financial advisor would probably recommend that. Leonard Fournette has already taken out two $10 million policies. I would imagine Giles could get comparable coverage if he hasn't already done so.

Amile wasn't able to push off on his right foot in the early weeks of March, and yet he still should have played and finished off his career? Healthy Dook players coming off of multiple injuries need to sit out the entirety of a season -- while rusty Dook players that haven't gained full strength should join the team in the last few weeks of the season? Yes, that seems sensible.

 

[DSouthr]

Was mainly speaking to the class being shown on this board. I love the rivalry as much as any Duke/UNC fan, but many people take it way too far at times. I just thought it was cool to see the rival fanbase expressing their well wishes to a Duke player? Keeps the game in perspective. I guess that's strange?

As I said, was not aimed at you specifically, I see fans of all programs do it, it is like a team gets a good win and fans take the bow for it, fans didn't play in the game? It is as if we are talking about a family member rather than a kid that just is a player for a program we love. Just one of those things that strike me as coming off in a strange way. But as I said, fans of all programs do it so I am not singling you out.

 

[DSouthr]

I didn't say they would pick Giles , just that they will be near the top of the draft. I think many teams will be very wary of Giles.

Well I think, if Giles did elect to shut it down for this season and rehab & then condition once he was rehabbed, NBA teams would evaluate him at their combine to see how sound he plays as well as look extensively in to his medical records. Some may even want him looked at by their teams doctors, I suspect that same procedure would occur no matter if he plays this coming season or not.

This much I know, if he comes back and plays this coming season he risks a ton of his future. If he has another knee injury there will be no avoiding the duke brought him back to soon and the label cronic knee injuries is likely to be applied, it may be already but it will absolutely be applied if he has another major knee injury this coming season playing.

If the kid really wants to play for duke then there is always the next season and if that is not that big a deal then rehab and strengthen and enter the draft. Point being there is no reason to rush back and risk a career just to play in a handful of college games in the next few months. There will be college games played a year from now and I am pretty sure duke will play some of them.

 

[Sk1310]

So Giles needs to sit out the season, even if he comes back to 100%, because it would be too risky for his pro career? Honestly I would be shocked if he hasn't already taken advantage of the NCAA's Exceptional Student-Athlete Disability Insurance program. A good financial advisor would probably recommend that. Leonard Fournette has already taken out two $10 million policies. I would imagine Giles could get comparable coverage if he hasn't already done so.

Amile wasn't able to push off on his right foot in the early weeks of March, and yet he still should have played and finished off his career? Healthy Dook players coming off of multiple injuries need to sit out the entirety of a season -- while rusty Dook players that haven't gained full strength should join the team in the last few weeks of the season? Yes, that seems sensible.

This is where you lost me. He was practicing. There were rumors he would be back for the last UNC game.They are playing 6-7 players, Plum was pretty much the only big. Jefferson as a re-bounder and defensive presence would have been a huge lift to the team. Rusty doing what exactly? His game is pretty much the dirty work.

 

[Calabrias Inferno]

This is where you lost me. He was practicing. There were rumors he would be back for the last UNC game.They are playing 6-7 players, Plum was pretty much the only big. Jefferson as a re-bounder and defensive presence would have been a huge lift to the team. Rusty doing what exactly? His game is pretty much the dirty work.

Yes, he was practicing. But was he ever 100%? If there's still uncertainty in early March and you tell Jefferson that he has one of two realistic choices: You can either play 5-7 games at 60-70%, or you can play 35-40 games at 100%. Which one do you think he would choose? I suppose you could claim that K lied and intentionally held him back. But if Jefferson was so against it, he easily could have transferred. Here's a timeline of quotes from early February to early March.

Feb 1: "He's doing a little bit on the court, but we would put him in harm's way, I think, in putting him to where he's really playing," Krzyzewski said. "There's progression. Whenever you have some progression, you have to see what that little bit does to his recovery. Does it knock him back? We're in that process now. It's been a long seven weeks"

Feb 10: "It's healing well," Krzyzewski said Monday night. "He hasn't gotten past the pain. There's still pain there. If you compensate for that, something else goes."

March 2: "He cannot run fluidly," Krzyzewski said of Jefferson. "It’s just something he's got. You can't push off that thing. Laterally, he goes pretty good. And that's just not in a game, so you're worried about that."

 

[DSouthr]

Yes, he was practicing. But was he ever 100%? If there's still uncertainty in early March and you tell Jefferson that he has one of two realistic choices: You can either play 5-7 games at 60-70%, or you can play 35-40 games at 100%. Which one do you think he would choose? I suppose you could claim that K lied and intentionally held him back. But if Jefferson was so against it, he easily could have transferred. Here's a timeline of quotes from early February to early March.

Feb 1: "He's doing a little bit on the court, but we would put him in harm's way, I think, in putting him to where he's really playing," Krzyzewski said. "There's progression. Whenever you have some progression, you have to see what that little bit does to his recovery. Does it knock him back? We're in that process now. It's been a long seven weeks"

Feb 10: "It's healing well," Krzyzewski said Monday night. "He hasn't gotten past the pain. There's still pain there. If you compensate for that, something else goes."

March 2: "He cannot run fluidly," Krzyzewski said of Jefferson. "It’s just something he's got. You can't push off that thing. Laterally, he goes pretty good. And that's just not in a game, so you're worried about that."

So he was healthy enough to practice but not healthy enough to play? REALLY? Come on, if you are not recovred and cleared by team doctors you do not practice or play. Giles just re-injured doing 5 on 0 drills, recovered enough to practice?

 

[Calabrias Inferno]

So he was healthy enough to practice but not healthy enough to play? REALLY? Come on, if you are not recovred and cleared by team doctors you do not practice or play. Giles just re-injured doing 5 on 0 drills, recovered enough to practice?

Allen posted a picture on instagram on February 22nd of he and Jefferson celebrating, which seemed to indicate that Jefferson was coming back. http://thespun.com/acc/duke/duke-fa...n-allen-posted-a-picture-with-amile-jefferson

So yes, he was probably cleared to practice in all drills/scrimmages around that time - and most expected him to play in the Carolina game. But less than 10 days later we're informed that, "For the first time this year, Mike Krzyzewski did not sound optimistic about Amile Jefferson’s potential return this season." Between February 22nd and March 2nd, something happened. And if he wasn't able to get good lift, it's blatantly obvious why you would shut down the season for someone. You don't need to waste a season on a couple of games when you're only playing up to 50%, 60%, or 70% of your capability. And certainly you need to practice a bit before drawing conclusions on one's ability to perform in a live game. Is that a hard concept to grasp? You don't just put someone into a game that has been rehabbing for two months. Glad you aren't coaching the Heels.

 

[HeelFan58]

So Giles needs to sit out the season, even if he comes back to 100%, because it would be too risky for his pro career? Honestly I would be shocked if he hasn't already taken advantage of the NCAA's Exceptional Student-Athlete Disability Insurance program. A good financial advisor would probably recommend that. Leonard Fournette has already taken out two $10 million policies. I would imagine Giles could get comparable coverage if he hasn't already done so.

Amile wasn't able to push off on his right foot in the early weeks of March, and yet he still should have played and finished off his career? Healthy Dook players coming off of multiple injuries need to sit out the entirety of a season -- while rusty Dook players that haven't gained full strength should join the team in the last few weeks of the season? Yes, that seems sensible.

There's usually a thing with insurances called a preexisting condition. You normally have to be 2 years clear of an issue with no treatments. Insurance companies have to make a profit to stay in business.

 

[Sk1310]

Allen posted a picture on instagram on February 22nd of he and Jefferson celebrating, which seemed to indicate that Jefferson was coming back. http://thespun.com/acc/duke/duke-fa...n-allen-posted-a-picture-with-amile-jefferson

So yes, he was probably cleared to practice in all drills/scrimmages around that time - and most expected him to play in the Carolina game. But less than 10 days later we're informed that, "For the first time this year, Mike Krzyzewski did not sound optimistic about Amile Jefferson’s potential return this season." Between February 22nd and March 2nd, something happened. And if he wasn't able to get good lift, it's blatantly obvious why you would shut down the season for someone. You don't need to waste a season on a couple of games when you're only playing up to 50%, 60%, or 70% of your capability. And certainly you need to practice a bit before drawing conclusions on one's ability to perform in a live game. Is that a hard concept to grasp? You don't just put someone into a game that has been rehabbing for two months. Glad you aren't coaching the Heels.

He was practicing. He wouldn't have been "just put into the game". How else is he supposed to get into the games? Whether its 2 months of rehab and practice, or a year of rehab and practice, he will be "rusty" until he gets into an actual game. Luke Kennard said he was going pretty hard in practice around the end of February, and making good progress. Plum said he was making a lot of strides. two month injury, turned into shut down for the year.

 

[tw3301]

So he was healthy enough to practice but not healthy enough to play? REALLY? Come on, if you are not recovred and cleared by team doctors you do not practice or play. Giles just re-injured doing 5 on 0 drills, recovered enough to practice?

Giles wasn't re-injured or even injured. It was a scope to clean out scar tissue from his first knee surgery. Also Jefferson wasn't fully practicing to my knowledge.

 

[DSouthr]

Allen posted a picture on instagram on February 22nd of he and Jefferson celebrating, which seemed to indicate that Jefferson was coming back. http://thespun.com/acc/duke/duke-fa...n-allen-posted-a-picture-with-amile-jefferson

So yes, he was probably cleared to practice in all drills/scrimmages around that time - and most expected him to play in the Carolina game. But less than 10 days later we're informed that, "For the first time this year, Mike Krzyzewski did not sound optimistic about Amile Jefferson’s potential return this season." Between February 22nd and March 2nd, something happened. And if he wasn't able to get good lift, it's blatantly obvious why you would shut down the season for someone. You don't need to waste a season on a couple of games when you're only playing up to 50%, 60%, or 70% of your capability. And certainly you need to practice a bit before drawing conclusions on one's ability to perform in a live game. Is that a hard concept to grasp? You don't just put someone into a game that has been rehabbing for two months. Glad you aren't coaching the Heels.

Glad you are not coaching the heels if you are advocating that it is OK to practice a kid that is not healthy enough to play. So tell us, what % was Jefferson recovered at the end of last season, was he 50, 60, 70, was it more or less? K shut him down saying he was not healthy enough to play, not that it would have been a waste to play so few games. Yet you argue that it was a waste to play so few games and yet want to as well say he was not physically able to play?

You do realize that kids are required to go hard in practice and you do realize that kids do get hurt in practice all the time right? It is actually simple, either the duke doctors cleared him for practice or they didn't, I do not think he would have been practicing if he was not medically cleared.

 

[BOOGIEMAN1914]

practicing has many varying levels of degrees....he could have been @ practice just working on fts or going through the motions...we dont know....it didnt make sense imo not fully recovered and play @ minimum 2 more games after missing as much time as he did......he gets fully 100% recovered, a degree, start on a masters, and a real shot at title #2........amile is winning

 

[DSouthr]

Giles wasn't re-injured or even injured. It was a scope to clean out scar tissue from his first knee surgery. Also Jefferson wasn't fully practicing to my knowledge.

http://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/nca...-place-to-hide-on-way-to-nba-draft/ar-BBwXiQB

^ Then someone should tell Sporting News because they are reporting that this did occur while he participated in a drill during duke's first official practice...

As for jefferson not fully participating, well according to his team mates he was, maybe someone should have told them what they saw wasn't really what they saw...

 

[TPFKAPFS]

I can't believe Jefferson gets this much play! I couldn't care less if puke's journeyman screen setter plays or doesn't.

Giles is interesting though because he is a game changer and is potentially risking millions if he steps on the court!

 

[Steat]

So Giles needs to sit out the season, even if he comes back to 100%, because it would be too risky for his pro career? Honestly I would be shocked if he hasn't already taken advantage of the NCAA's Exceptional Student-Athlete Disability Insurance program. A good financial advisor would probably recommend that. Leonard Fournette has already taken out two $10 million policies. I would imagine Giles could get comparable coverage if he hasn't already done so.

Amile wasn't able to push off on his right foot in the early weeks of March, and yet he still should have played and finished off his career? Healthy Dook players coming off of multiple injuries need to sit out the entirety of a season -- while rusty Dook players that haven't gained full strength should join the team in the last few weeks of the season? Yes, that seems sensible.

Bottomline, you obviously can't see the forest for the trees. Listen, and listen closely. Fournette has NOT had 3 knee surgeries. The key here is Giles history of knee injuries. No credible insurance company would underwrite Giles for a $20M insurance policy with 3 knee surgeries unless Giles is willing to pay $2M in policy premiums. Where is Giles going to get $2M to pay premiums? That's like having no property insurance on 80-story high rise building on Miami Beach and you are just now trying to get insurance with Hurricane Matthew headed for the Florida east coast. Another example is trying to get collision coverage on your car when your car has already been in an accident. What you are missing is the long term outlook for Giles. Regardless of the school Giles would have chosen, given Giles' injury history, he should never suit up to play a college game. Giles should look at the best opportunity to collect that massive payday with his first NBA contract. Nothing is guaranteed after that, especially given his injury history at such a young age.

Now, what are the majority of Duke fans thinking?... "Oh, he will be out for only 6 weeks. He will be back a few days before the first game." This is ridiculous thinking on the part of Duke fans. It's even more selfish that K is even thinking about putting Giles back on the court this season. When someone has continuing knee issues it is usually for a reason. If he tries to come back to soon, and six weeks is way too soon, he is just asking for more knee problems. I hate it for the kid. If he is set on playing 1-year in college, than the smart thing would be to take a redshirt year and get healthy. K knows that redshirting Giles would mess up his recruiting for 2017. With Giles coming back, would Carter commit with Bolden and Giles on the roster? I doubt it. K, the Leader of Men, is a selfish Rat and only thinks about himself.