Glenn: Nothing Explains Duke's Dips Better Than This

In the aftermath of Duke's 73-67 loss to West Virginia in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, there was no shortage of explanations for the Blue Devils' early exit.

They were tired, some said. They were sick, others claimed, or maybe their heavy reliance on 3-point shooting finally caught up with them. Alternative rationales were more biting: They didn't get the same calls at the NCAA level that they get so often in the ACC. And so the theories went.

Many fans also are questioning the very un-Duke-like stretch of the past two seasons, in which the Blue Devils stopped doing so many of the things that made Mike Krzyzewski famous over the previous quarter-century. No Final Fours, no ACC titles, no Sweet 16 appearances, etc.

Not long ago, remember, Duke won seven ACC championships in eight years (1999-2006) and went to nine consecutive Sweet 16s (1998-2006). That same stretch included three Final Fours and the 2001 national championship.

What happened? Has Coach K lost his touch? Has he been distracted in recent years by his double duty with both the Devils and USA Basketball? Is his staff, which consists of three former Duke guards (Johnny Dawkins, Chris Collins, Steve Wojciechowski), to blame for the program's failure to sign and develop the kinds of quality post players the team has lacked over the last two seasons?

Whatever the answers to the claims and questions above, there is a much more obvious and undeniable starting point for the Blue Devils' less stellar results over the past two seasons. It doesn't explain everything, but it explains a lot of things. It's not so much about psychology or work ethic or coaching or scheduling or practice habits or game strategies.

It's mostly about players.

"This is one of my most unique teams," Krzyzewski said earlier this season, when discussing his team's lack of a traditional post presence in the starting lineup. "We don't have an All-American, at least not yet."

That sentiment — no All-Americans — won't generate much sympathy from other college basketball coaches, who deal with that reality far more often than not. At Duke, though, under Coach K, a team without an All-American has been more the exception than the rule.

Duke's best player this season was senior swingman DeMarcus Nelson. He was a first-team All-ACC selection. He was a very good college basketball player. He was not one of the very best in the country. Twenty of 90 conference media voters left him off the All-ACC first team, and it certainly wasn't difficult to fill out a 15-man All-American squad without him.

Duke second-best player this season was freshman forward Kyle Singler. He was a third-team All-ACC selection. He's already a very good college basketball player, and he'll probably be an All-American some day, maybe soon. This year, though, he was not one of the very best in the country.

Through Krzyzewski's first 28 seasons at Duke, many themes have emerged, most of them positive. One is this: Like most in his profession, Coach K tends to do good things when he has good players, and he tends to do very good things when he has very good players. To do exceptional things, however, he — like just about everyone else — needs some truly exceptional players on his side.

Consider this: Eight times in Krzyzewski's 28 seasons at Duke, he has led teams without a (college) All-American on the roster. First, there was a three-year stretch (1982-84) near the beginning of his tenure, before he got the recruiting ball rolling. Second, there was a three-year stretch (1995-97) that surrounded the season in which he left the team because of a back injury and exhaustion. Finally, there have been the last two seasons (2007-08).

Duke's production during those eight seasons without a college All-American on hand? 0 ACC titles, 0 Sweet 16s, 0 Final Fours, 0 NCAA titles.

Duke's production during those other 20 seasons under Coach K? 10 ACC titles, 17 Sweet 16s, 10 Final Fours, 3 NCAA titles.

If that doesn't deserve a "wow," what does?

Does the All-American factor explain everything, every year? Certainly not. Obviously, though, it should be a key piece of evidence in any intelligent debate about the Blue Devils' peaks and valleys over the last three decades.

When Duke won NCAA titles (1991, 1992, 2001) under Coach K, its best players were All-Americans such as Christian Laettner, Bobby Hurley, Grant Hill, Shane Battier and Jason Williams. All five made the ACC's 50-man 50th anniversary team, selected in 2002.

When the Blue Devils went to Final Fours under Coach K, their best players were All-Americans such as Dawkins, Mark Alarie, Danny Ferry, Laettner, Hill, Trajan Langdon, Elton Brand, Chris Duhon, J.J. Redick and Shelden Williams.

And when the Blue Devils have had good seasons — even very good seasons — but have fallen short of ACC titles and these other exceptional accomplishments?

In all likelihood, there weren't any truly exceptional players leading the way.