In the midst of college football and the teams being stunned or winning lopsided scores, basketball has begun once again. All eyes will be on Duke, who won their latest game to start the season against Michigan State. Leading the way is senior Grayson Allen, who had probably the game of his career as he hopes to do a few things. One is to help draft stock. The other is to improve his image and the bad taste he left in a lot of people's mouths last season.
It's very early in the season, so there is no idea what can possibly during the time. Duke is on that list of most hated basketball programs. Really, North Carolina basketball throughout the state. The amount of success they have had under Mike Krzyzewski. Many championships and a very rowdy fanbase/crowd make it easy to see why there is so much negativity. Even if Allen didn't do the tripping a few times last season, he would still easily make the list of hated players ever. Due to the fact of the tripping, he probably got a lot more hate than Christian Laettner, who had a lot more success and got Duke their first National Championships.
Allen has been open to the stuff that happened. He wrote an article for The Players Tribune about what it meant to go to and play for Duke. There seems to be something very humble about him wanting to return for his senior year to not only graduate but also to be a guy that can lead his team. College sports is not an easy evaluation. Some live and die on where they could possibly land in the professional level. What they do on and off the playing field also is detrimental. Look at Dak Prescott. He was a 4th round pick in last year's NFL draft because of a DUI arrest. Basketball is a question on who is going to leave, who is finished up, and who could wind up coming from Europe to play in the NBA.
Either way, change could ultimately help. If Allen can stay committed to playing fundamental basketball and not do anything stupid, he could be looked at as someone you hate because he played at Duke. Some can mature quickly, and for now, he seems to be on the right path. A wait and see situation.
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