Filipowski: Duke Or The NBA?

It isn’t always an easy decision.

Everyone - well, at least everyone who is concerned with Duke Basketball, pro or con - is waiting to see what Kyle Filipowski decides to do.

Brett Friedlander says he is genuinely unsure about what he's going to do. First, he still has work to do. His three point shooting, which is now more or less a requirement as an NBA player unless you offer something else of immense value, needs work. And second, as Brett points out, Tennessee gave him a bit of a preview of the dog-eat-dog world of the NBA, where you are going to get beaten up quite a bit no matter what you do.

For that matter, it’s not just the NBA. If you go to Europe, Australia or China, there are guys who are 30 to 40 years old who can hang on to a career a few more years by just basically beating the young kids up. Imagine a whole league of somewhat less surly Bill Laimbeers and you get the idea.

The money is obviously amazing but a lot of people focus on that and not the preparation so much. Filipowski would definitely be a first-round pick, but if he comes back, he has a chance to vastly improve before he departs. Not an easy decision, least of all given NIL gravy.