Raul and Dustin are joined by John Watson of 247Sports as they welcome newly hired Assistant Coach Jai Lucas to the pod. They discuss his deep ties to Durham and basketball, the factors that led to him joining the Duke staff, this year's Duke team, the impact of NIL and the portal, recruiting and roster philosophies, and his initial impressions of Coach Jon Scheyer. 
 
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Episode 144 - Assistant Coach Jai Lucas

Listen to The Devil's Den Podcast for all the latest news and notes surrounding Duke Basketball and Football.

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Football

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Josh and Raul are joined by Isaac Popper, ESPN+ Broadcast Statistician and President of Tulane Analytics. Isaac shares his insights into Duke's latest transfer portal commitment, Tulane guard Sion James. Isaac has known James since they were both freshmen and has watched him grow as a person and basketball player. He shares his thoughts on Sion's academic excellence, his off-court philanthropy, his on-court leadership, and the evolution of his game. He talks about Sion's improving efficiency and outside shooting, as well as the defensive versatility that allows him to guard positions 1-5. They also discuss how Sion will augment Duke's roster and what makes him such a great fit culturally.
You can follow Isaac Popper on Twitter at @ipopStats. To support the Sion James Foundation, an organization providing for impoverished youth and adults, please visit https://my.foundation/sionjames .
 
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Episode 243 - Sion James Deep Dive (with Isaac Popper)

Josh and Raul are back with John Watson of thedevilsden.com to get his thoughts on Duke's wild offseason. Topics discussed include: 

The loss of seven player to the transfer portal 

The causes behind the mass exodus 

The additions of Mason Gillis and Maliq Brown

A possible commitment from Sion James of Tulane 

What Duke is hoping to change about its culture 

Recruiting strategies and roster construction in the portal era 

The relative silence around the 2025 recruiting class 

Duke's position in the NIL landscape 

How Duke maintains its brand if it shifts away from being an NBA pipeline 


 
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Episode 242 - More Offseason Talk (with John Watson)

Josh, Dustin, and Raul react to offseason which saw seven players from Duke's 2023-24 roster enter the transfer portal. They talk about the fits of Jeremy Roach and Mark Mitchell on Baylor and Missouri respectively, as well as what it means to lose promising players like TJ Power and Sean Stewart. They discuss the difficulties of maintaining fan engagement in an era of ludicrously high turnover. They debate what Duke's roster-building strategy should look like in this new climate.

Next they turn their eye to Duke's transfer portal commitments, Maliq Brown of Syracuse and Mason Gillis of Purdue. How will these players fit on the roster and how can they help next year's team? Where should they play positionally? Who should start?

Lastly, they talk about whether Duke will add anyone else in the portal. What is the area of biggest need?

 
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Episode 241 - Transfer Portal News and Reactions

Josh and Raul are joined by Brendan Marks of The Athletic. First they discuss the 2023-24 season for Duke and for the ACC as a whole. How did Duke's season stack up against the lofty expectations? What led to UNC's turnaround from missing the tournament to a 1-seed? What do NC State and Clemson's tournament runs say about the health of the conference? 
Then they turn their attention to the 2024-25 season. What do Tyrese Proctor's and Caleb Foster's returns mean for Duke? What kind of player(s) should Duke add in the portal? What will Duke's starting lineup next year be and what will the product look like on the court? 
 
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Episode 240 - Offseason Talk with Brendan Marks

Josh, Dustin, and Raul go through the over/under picks they made for various team and player stats at the beginning of the season. They react to their guesses and discuss why a player or the team fell short or exceed their predictions. A winner is announced and gets nothing but bragging rights. 
Note: this episode was recorded before Mark Mitchell entered the transfer portal and before Tyrese Proctor announced he'll return back to school for his junior season. Another podcast will be released next week discussion this and any other developments in the coming days. 
 
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Episode 144 - Assistant Coach Jai Lucas

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