Seems a bit early for this but let’s go!
You may have seen the Kon Knueppel video this week where he hit 28-29 on threes. That's pretty damn good - or at least you'd think so.
Turns out not everyone was impressed.
A lot of people went on social media and critiqued the video. As you’ll see here, there are some pretty specific criticisms of his shooting, from his form to his footwork.
At least one criticism is correct, although it’s not of Knueppel specifically: “Anyone’s a shooter without defense.”
Well, who can argue with that? It’s easier to hit shots when you’re not being guarded. Of course.
We can’t know for sure until we see him in action - same as any freshman. But the video we’ve seen looks good. He shoots well, despite any alleged flaws in his shot. More than that though, he’s also a rugged player. We talked a bit about how thin Duke’s freshmen generally are. Even the celebrated Cooper Flagg is relatively thin.
Knueppel is not and he’s added an inch and is a bit heavier as well. His physicality is going to help and if he can shoot as well in college as he did in high school, that could be a bit of lagniappe.
The main thing though is that he looks to us like a guy who knows how to play this game and if that’s correct, he’ll find ways to contribute.
