Losing a key player in the midst of a season is a daunting, yet common challenge most teams will face each year. Regardless of the sport or the level it’s played at, to go through an entire schedule with the same starting lineup is nearly unheard of.
Losing three key players for the entire season in one week is far less common and an even more daunting problem to deal with. The Duquesne men’s basketball team can tell you first hand how rare but challenging a situation like that is.
Less than a week after Sincere Carry and Lamar Norman Jr. entered the transfer portal and Maceo Austin opted out for the season due to personal issues, the Dukes were forced to begin battle in the heart of their conference play without three of their five starters.
While the trio of Carry, Norman Jr. and Austin helped Duquesne in a multitude of ways, the area where they seem to be missed the most is on the offensive side of the floor.
There are many things a team must do to win a basketball game. However, at the end of the day, scoring comes before everything else and the Dukes simply aren’t doing that well enough.
Duquesne has scored over 30 points in just one of the previous six halves of basketball it's played. In each of their last three contests, the Dukes have had just one player score in double figures.
As expected, the main source of offense has been Marcus Weathers. The two-time All-Atlantic 10 forward averages a team best 14 ppg.
Weathers has eclipsed double-digits in points in all but one game this season. In Wednesday’s 72-63 road loss to Dayton, he matched his season high total of 19.
When Weathers was on, the Dukes looked great. The senior forward scored the first 10 points of the game for Duquesne, resulting in a lead that was held until the early moments of the second half.
When Weathers was off, the team’s offense as a whole had little to offer.
“It’s clear we have some issues right now that we have to get through,” Keith Dambrot said after Wednesday’s loss. “We’ve got scoring issues, we just don’t have enough pop. We held Dayton to forty-three percent, which should keep us right in the game but we can’t make free-throws either.”
In previous years, Dambrot said the Dukes were able to find open looks at the basket through two ways: The first would be when Carry drove the lane to attract more defenders; The second came from post players like Weathers and Michael Hughes kicking the ball outside when they had it down low on the block.
The first way is no longer an option and the second is currently not working.
This means Dambrot’s team might have to resort to another option that is far less strategic but one they should be capable of: Asking someone to primarily focus on shooting the basketball.
Duquesne needs a secondary scoring threat to assist Weathers. While they have a few players who are capable of doing so, each of them are currently facing a unique set of challenges holding them back.
When looking over the Dukes’ roster for a secondary scoring threat, the obvious choice would be Tavian Dunn-Martin. The senior guard has never seen a shot that he doesn’t like and aside from Weathers, is the only player on the team to average double digits in scoring, contributing 11.4 ppg.
His confidence shooting from the outside has made him one of Dambrot’s most trusted players in late-game situations. However, last week’s departures of Carry, Norman Jr. and Austin forced Dunn-Martin into a different role.
The natural shooting guard has now been handed the keys to the offense. In each of the past two games Dunn-Martin has been asked to step outside his comfort zone, having to focus on getting others more involved and to play more minutes than anyone else.
Originally, Dambrot thought this was the best move for the team. After weighing the pros and cons, it looks like he is changing his mind.
“I don’t think we have any choice,” Dambrot said when asked if he plans on moving Dunn-Martin back into his shooting guard role. “They’re just going to try to wear him down and then between guarding, playing 35 minutes and having to be on the ball the whole time, it’s a tough deal for him.”
Even if Dunn-Martin will be playing off the ball more in the next few games, his high amount of minutes and defensive responsibilities will likely not change very much.
With that being said, Dunn-Martin isn’t the only senior who Dambrot is hoping will step up and increase his scoring total.
Although he’s been productive on defense and has posted better rebounding and assist numbers so far this season, Hughes, arguably more than anyone else, needs to score more for Duquesne to be competitive this season.
Hughes entered this season with one of the highest career field goal percentages (57.3%) in program history. This season, he is shooting just 41.3% from the floor.
The Dukes are 2-0 in games where Hughes scores 10 or more points this season. If he can match his average of 10.3 ppg from a year ago, his team would likely have less to worry about when Weathers needs a break or finds himself in foul trouble.
Unfortunately for the Dukes, down time and foul trouble have been the two main things that have hindered Hughes’ production this season.
“I think the COVID affected him,” Dambrot said when I asked him about Hughes’ scoring output. “I think not having the spring and the summer and getting shut down has affected him. That’s not making an excuse for him but it has really taken a toll.”
Hughes plays an average of 23.9 minutes a game, good for the third most out of any player on the current roster. It’s safe to assume that number would be even higher if he were able to stay out of foul trouble.
The senior center has already fouled out of two games this season and has been forced to take a seat on the bench early in the first half of a few other contests. To his credit, Hughes has shown improvement, only committing one foul in each of Duquesne’s last three games.
Remaining on the floor is the key for Hughes. It’s how he will get his stamina back and it’s how he will eventually start to get more shots to fall.
But what about someone aside from the veteran players?
Dambrot has gone on record numerous times this season saying that due to the pandemic he is taking the ‘long term’ approach.
The fourth year head coach has lived up to his word. The Dukes have played at least 11 players in every contest this season, which has included numerous freshmen getting extended time on the floor.
So far, the top freshman performer has been Toby Okani. On Wednesday, Okani played 32 minutes and had an all-around solid game, scoring five points, while hauling in eight rebounds and dishing out five assists.
Okani has shown the ability to score when needed. He matched Weathers’ game high of 14 points in Duquesne’s win over George Washington earlier this season.
The freshman shot 6-for-6 from the field that game. He hasn’t taken more than five shots from the field since. Dambrot explained to me after the game why that is.
“I think he’s got to be like Scottie Pippen,” Dambrot said. “He’s got to be able to guard the best players, he’s got to be able to rebound and get assists, he’s got to get blocked shots and charges and not worry about scoring.”
While Pippen was best known for being a well-rounded player, his career scoring average was 16.1 ppg. That’s nothing close to Michael Jordan’s 30.1 ppg, but maybe a few more shots in addition to his strong defense, passing and rebounding could be beneficial.
Other freshmen such as Chad Baker and Andre Harris could also be asked to take on more of a scoring role in the coming weeks. Baker has started the past two games while Harris continues to receive more time off the bench.
At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter who steps up for the Dukes. It just matters that someone does. The team is being forced to develop a new identity. The ball is in their court. Now, they must find someone who can put it in the hoop.