DURHAM, N.C. — It’s been more than a decade since he played competitively, but “competitively” is all relative to Jon Scheyer. He’ll tell you he’s still involved in high-stakes on-court competition on a weekly basis. The guy still needs to hoop. Not wants to — needs to.
Inside Duke’s practice facility, just about everyone is a target for Scheyer’s playful but zealous ire. He’ll push it in five-on-five with managers, walk-ons, anyone. Scheyer loves full-court pickup runs that go well over an hour, first to 120 points wins. If bodies are scarce, he’ll sometimes play full-court two-on-two, which sounds like a psychopathic game.
“I have a psychopathic job,” Scheyer’s quick to quip back.
Some assistants, players and support staff are mandated to play when Scheyer wants to lace up. Others — like assistants Jai Lucas and Emanuel Dildy — have been permanently benched.
“They know that I’ll get pissed at them if they play and they don’t play defense, and I’m not gonna go for that,” Scheyer said with a laugh. “To be honest with you, they’re soft.”
There is no digital documentation, no whiteboard in the facility keeping tally of Scheyer’s conquests, but now that it’s brought up, he kind of likes the idea of having something visible to remind everyone of who’s who and what’s what. Scheyer says he’s only lost one competition of any kind with any player, manager, walk-on or coach since the fall period began. Sophomore Caleb Foster — who is 17 years Scheyer’s junior — managed to beat his coach in a game of one-on-one.
Could it be that the fix is in? Are Scheyer’s underlings merely throwing the games to keep the boss happy?
“What you’re going to hear is that I load the teams up, that I make bad calls. You’re going to hear some BS,” Scheyer said. “That’s not true, OK, but the truth is that I still compete, still know how to play.”
The games are both good-natured but always legitimately…
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