Duke basketball is viewed as a Blue Blood. It’s easy to see why. Chartered flights, world-class training facilities, prime-time TV spots. And that seemingly never-ending parade of Adam Stern shaking hands with Duke players, while the cameras flash.
Aristocracy.
But there’s another side of Duke basketball, one grittier, more blue collar.
Can Marques Bolden tap into that?
Since 2005 nine former Duke players have played in at least one regular-season NBA game without being drafted.
Some of them didn’t last all that long. DeMarcus Nelson played 13 games for Golden State in 2008-’09 before beginning a lucrative career overseas.