What Deron Rippey Showed in Duke Basketball's Win Over Tennessee

Sheesh, the Duke Blue Devils look good.

Jon Scheyer's club has hit the 100-point mark in each of its first two preseason games, taking down No. 8 Tennessee 103-64 in its first exhibition game on Tuesday night. The Blue Devils defeated Belmont 102-62 in a scrimmage on Oct. 8.

Granted, the Volunteers and Blue Devils were dealing with some injuries. Caleb Foster and Drew Scharnowski were both out for Duke. Tyler Lundblade was absent for Rick Barnes' club, and Terrence Hill Jr. suffered an ankle injury fairly early.

Still, Duke was clearly the better team for all 40 minutes, defeating an AP preseason Top 10 team by nearly 40 points. The headliner on Tuesday night was 5-star freshman point guard Deron Rippey Jr.

Deron Rippey Jr. Leads Charge for Blue Devils

With Foster out throughout the preseason, Rippey has gotten some extended time on the floor, and he's been extremely impressive. We spent most of the offseason discussing his elite defensive intensity and physicality, and how that will be where he makes the biggest impact this season. But he put his two-way talent on display against the Vols.

Don't get me wrong, Rippey was an instant defensive burst for the Blue Devils as soon as he stepped on the floor. However, he also showed his capable outside shooting, passing skill, and ability to operate as a high-level floor general already.

The 5-star freshman led all scorers with 21 points on 9-of-12 shooting from the field and 3-of-6 shooting from three-point range, along with three assists and three steals in 21 minutes.

Like several players on this year's Duke roster, Rippey is a very interesting guy to follow. It's not super often that the No. 1 point guard in his high school recruiting class is fourth in the pecking order on his own team. Rippey will have a role in the rotation this season, but with Foster, Cayden Boozer, and John Blackwell ahead of him, he probably won't be playing much more than 20 minutes a night.

Rippey's Performance Highlights Duke's A-List Backcourt Depth

All four of Duke's guards would start on most high-major teams from day one, yet Rippey, a 5-star point guard ranked No. 1 in his high school class by 247Sports, is the fourth guard on his own team. It's a pretty unique situation for an elite freshman, but one I think will be monumentally beneficial for his long-term game.

What Rippey showed on Tuesday night was how deep and talented Duke's backcourt is. Against a preseason AP Top 10 team, albeit one that wasn't fully healthy, Rippey was arguably the best player on the floor. His defensive contributions were felt right away, and he played with a fluidity and confidence on the offensive end that's extremely impressive for a freshman so early in his collegiate career.

The Blair Academy (NJ) product has a chance to learn from three high-level veteran college guards as a freshman while already possessing elite two-way potential. In his postgame press conference, Scheyer was asked about his assessment of Rippey.

"I love his competitive spirit. I love just the fact that a lot of guys would shy away from competition in his place, in his position in the first place. And, you know, he's been a student of the game," Scheyer said. "Like, he really is tough on himself in terms of being able to quarterback and being able to make the right reads, and I've loved seeing his development in a short period of time."

Rippey will be a key piece in this rotation, but he will also be behind three experienced, big-time guards. It's a different situation than many top high school point guard recruits find themselves in, but his decision to buy into his role and grow with this Duke team displays his high level of maturity and trust in his development.

Again, Rippey will see time on the floor, and he might be one of the best "spark plugs" off the bench in the sport. The Blue Devils' backcourt is incredibly deep, and having a guy like Rippey, who can already make an impact as big as his against Tennessee, as the fourth guard in the room shows how elite Duke's backcourt is this season.

"Depth" has been the word used to describe this Duke team more than maybe any other this offseason, and the backcourt embodies that as much as any part of the team for Scheyer and Co.