On Oct. 15, 1989, Bobby Hurley stood with his teammates at his first Duke University basketball practice. The Blue Devils were about six months removed from the Final Four. They returned leading scorer Phil Henderson and a rising star in Christian Laettner.
And yet, coach Mike Krzyzewski handed the ball to Hurley, a freshman from Jersey City, and told him in front of everyone: “This is your team.” On a veteran squad, this did not go over well.
Twenty eight years later, Hurley – approaching his third season as coach at Arizona State – thought about his freshman season.