Can Jabari Parker lead Duke to a national championship?

Leadership. A term that is tantamount to an athlete who can valiantly and boldly takes his team to new heights while conveying a demeanor of humility and confidence.  Although this attribute is typically found within the ranks of battle-hardened juniors or seniors who have been through immense adversity, Duke Blue Devil freshman Jabari Parker has proven that he can obtain this type of mental fortitude in the span of one season.  Although Parker has always been a multi-faceted athlete in terms of his athletic abilities, he has continued to mature into a valuable team asset who can just as easily rebound the ball as he can shooting it.

As one of the handful of notable freshman coming into this year, Parker came to Duke as a quietly tenacious forward who was ready to contribute his talents to a prestigious Duke program that was looking to rebuild after losing several upper classman to the NBA.  Although Parker wasn’t the only intriguing acquisition that the Blue Devils discovered, he was by far the one young candidate who had the potential to mature into one of the best all-round forwards in college basketball.  Right out of the gate, Parker proved he was worth all of the hype and then some when he averaged 23.5 PPG in his first seven games as a college athlete. While Parker’s sensational offensive capabilities plateaued as Duke’s non-conference schedule wore on, Parker still put up scoring performances that were in the double digits and could even garner a few defensive rebounds from time to time.

However, Parker’s intimidating scoring prowess began to lose some of it’s luster during the start of conference play when the Blue Devils succumbed to heart breaking defeats at the hands of Clemson and Notre Dame.  During that 1-2 conference start, Parker shot only 17.6% from the field, and averaged a measly 11.3 PPG, a underwhelming performance from the Blue Devils leading scorer.  Yet, despite Parkers seemingly inexplicable meltdowns, the young freshman found a way to rejuvenate his confidence as an athlete who could do more than simply shoot the basketball.  Thanks to the leadership of beloved Duke head coach Mike Krzyzewski, Parker was able to develop another coveted set of skills that would quickly sky rocket his recognition to being one of the most versatile freshman in college basketball.

Although Parker’s new found identity didn’t fully come to fruition immediately, it was apparent that the young college superstar was patiently biding his time until he could show the nation at large how much he had learned in such a short time span.  In Duke’s first road game since their previous loss to Clemson, Parker’s dual threat capabilities were finally on display and they proved to be more awe-inspiring than anyone thought was possible.  In the Blue Devils road rout of the Miami Hurricanes, Jabari Parker put up a then career high of 15 rebounds while scoring 17 points.  Although Parker’s lights out scoring wasn’t what it was at the beginning of the season, his ability to be both a defensive and offensive powerhouse was much more intriguing than his individual scoring capabilities.  Since then, Parker has continued to be Duke’s breakout defensive star while uplifting his scoring capabilities to where they were at the beginning of the season.  In his last ten games, Parker has averaged 11.6 RPG while averaging 19.2 PPG, making him arguably one of the most well-balanced and proficient college athletes in the game as of now.

However, with all of that being said, it is still uncertain how far Duke can go in the NCAA Tournament come March 18^th.  While Parker’s hard fought improvements and on the court vivacity suggest that the Blue Devils can rally around this young man’s unwavering commitment to excellence, they’ll have to utilize more than Parker’s solo abilities to make it the Final Four.  Although Duke has made a name for itself as a perimeter shooting squad, this essential strategy is also a double-edged sword.  Like with all teams that can shoot the three ball, it becomes a detriment to the teams unity and perseverance when the outside shots just won’t fall.  Although this is not Duke’s only way of grinding out competitive victories, it is strategy that has made the difference between the Blue Devils dominating the opposition or giving up a big lead to a team than can drive to the basket while playing consistent defense.  While Parker has paved the way for Duke’s potential to be a small but swift defensive threat, the rest of team still has to catch up if they want to make their one man defensive show into a prevalent team strategy.

In the end, Jabari Parker has quickly made strides to develop into a reliable and multifaceted talent that can play fearless defense while stepping up as a essential shooter who can drain shot after shot when it matters most.  While the rest of the Blue Devils still have to work on their own defensive identities, center Marshall Plumlee has been this team unsung hero as he as contributed valuable minutes as a critical rebounder and tenacious shot blocker.  Although Duke still has to work out some kinks defensively if they hope to make it to the big dance, if Jabari Parker’s inspirational ambitions are any indication of what this team is capable of, the Blue Devils could hit their stride at just the right time come tournament play.