Monday, December 10, 2007

The All Decade Team - The 2000's

PG - Bryant McAllister - #22 - 6'3 - 190 pounds



McAllister played more SG than PG with the Dukes but he gets the nod at the point because I wanted to get Jimmy Tricco on the squad. McAllister played significant minutes all 4 seasons with Dukes, sadly they were all under the forgettable tutelage of Danny Nee. McAllister's athleticism set him apart from most players. McAllister would have been a great addition to a competitive team, however he was stuck on some woeful Dukes teams.

McAllister is current playing in Germany for Munchen Basket in Munich. McAllister is one of the stars of the German league he plays in, and is in the top 10 in ppg this season.

SG - Jimmy Tricco - #44 - 6'8 - 205 pounds


Ok let the debate begin, I made a controversial choice here putting Jimmy "Threecco" on the all decade team. Tricco started his college basektball career at vaunted Gonzaga before transferring to Duquesne after his sophomore season. Tricco was a fantastic three point shooter for the Dukes and was also a great student earning several awards for his high GPA. Tricco is not currently playing professional basketball.

SF - Elijah Palmer - #4 - 6'7 - 220 pounds


Palmer was the prototypical swingman while playing for Duquesne. Palmer was originally a JC Transfer and one of the talented players that Danny Nee was able to bring into the program when he came to Duquesne. Palmer could play inside and out and was very athletic.

Palmer has played for several seasons in Europe and is currently playing for Wels in Austria. Palmer had arthroscopic surgery to clean his knee on May 11, 2007.

PF - Kieron Achara - #2 - 6'10 - 240 pounds


Achara has been a wonderful addition to the Duquesne Dukes basketball program. Achara has 1000+ career points for Duquesne and has received several awards while playing for the Dukes. Achara received the comeback player of the year award and All Defensive team honors from the Atlantic 10 Conference. Achara has also been recognized several times for his outstanding academic standing.

C - Shawn James - #21 - 6'10 - 225 pounds

James is in his first season with Duquesne but is still the obvious choice for the center on the all decade team. James leads the Dukes in points per game 14.4, rebounds per game 7.7, blocks 43, and field goal percentage 58%. James originally played for Ron Everhart at Northeastern and transferred to Duquesne when Everhart took the job as head coach.

Head Coach - Ron Everhart

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Guards off the bench:

Martin Osimani - (pictured right in orange box) currently playing pro basketball in Uruguay
Kojo Mensa - current member of the Dukes
Aaron Jackson - current member of the Dukes

Forwards off the bench:

Devone Stephenson - currently playing pro basketball in the CBA for the Atlanta Krunk
DeVario Hudson - currently playing for Valdosta State where he transferred after Danny Nee was fired. I along with many Dukes fans hoped he would stay in the program when Everhart took over.
Ron Dokes - currently playing pro basketball in the Dominican Republic

Some analysis:

I decided to leave Kojo Mensah off the starting team because it is his first season with Duquesne, and because he was benched in the last game by Coach Everhart. There is no doubt in my mind that Kojo will be one of the best players for the Dukes this decade but he is only 9 games into his Duquesne career and he hasn't show me enough in those 9 games to take Jimmy Tricco's place. Shawn James makes the team because he has been dominate at center, and frankly there haven't been any other good centers for Duquesne this decade.

Feel free to debate my choices in the comments section.

6 comments:

DoctorYunzer said...

Tom Pipkins didn't make the team? Bullshit!

The Duke from Dukes Court said...

Pipkins played in the 90s.

Anonymous said...

I love McAllister but I still can't believe he missed the foul shots that would have upset Top 10 ranked Xavier at the Palumbo...he was great kid and I ran into him at the roundball that spring and literally had to bite my lip not to bring it up...does anybody know what Bryant is up to these days?

Anonymous said...

I guess I should have read the blog first...glad to hear that Bryant McAllister is playing in the Motherland..we should go grab a few lagers and head to one of his games...

Anonymous said...

What about Kevin Forney and Wayne Smith? Even Robert Mitchell? I don't know how you make an all decade team and exclude them. I'd take any current forward over DeVario Hudson.

The Duke from Dukes Court said...

you make a good point with Wayne Smith. Robert Mitchell basically got run out of the program so i dumped him. As for Forney, I'd prefer to stick with my choices at guard