OPINION

By Mike DeCourcy

updated 7:22 p.m. ET July 15, 2009

Mike DeCourcy

Each week, Sporting News college basketball writer Mike DeCourcy takes on five burning questions.

1. The LeBron James Skills Academy is considered a camp for high school prospects, but coaches there work with college players, too. Any stand out?

DeCourcy: Oklahoma guard Willie Warren played like he wanted to succeed his former teammate, Blake Griffin, as Sporting News Player of the Year.

As a freshman, Warren averaged 14.6 points and shot 47.3 percent from the floor. His scoring almost certainly will increase without Griffin as OU's primary offensive option. Warren shot the ball so smoothly and confidently at the LeBron camp it would be no surprise to see him shoot above 40 percent on 3-pointers his second year.

There were other pro prospects on the floor: Wake Forest's Al-Farouq Aminu, Kansas' Cole Aldrich, California's Patrick Christopher. As terrific as those players were—and can be—there were times it seemed Warren was a level above everyone else.

He is fast, powerful and dynamic with the basketball. He's obviously not big for a shooting guard, but the value placed upon such players as Ben Gordon and Stephen Curry indicates there is a welcome place for Warren in the NBA.

2. Q: Does Mike Krzyzewski's decision to re-up with USA Basketball doom Duke to another three years of missing the Final Four?

DeCourcy: It's not an unreasonable question, and it's a little unfortunate that some technical matters that must be resolved before Krzyzewski is announced as senior national team coach are delaying his answer.

In the three seasons following the summers he spent with the U.S. team, Duke departed the NCAA Tournament in Round 1, Round 2 and Round 3. Following that pattern, the Devils should win it all just before the U.S. grabs another gold medal at the London Games. But that's not really how this works.

Krzyzewski might have done some of his best coaching in the past three regular seasons. His Blue Devils won another ACC Tournament, pushed Carolina twice in the conference race and won 78.6 percent of their games (including conference tournaments). But talent wins in the NCAAs, especially with the make-a-play style Krzyzewski employs.

The Devils need better material, especially in the post and at the point. They've already got the core of an elite 2010 class with 6-2 Tyler Thornton, 6-8 Josh Hairston and 6-4 Andre Dawkins, a top 25 prospect. They still could use some size.

3. Why is Kentucky leeching $100,000 off the state government to fight the lawsuit brought by former coach Billy Gillispie?

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DeCourcy: A better question is why UK would fight the suit in the first place. Kentucky owes Gillispie. They hired him to coach and fired him ahead of schedule. That guy gets paid at any school.

Gillispie made a tactical error in not signing a contract during the time he held the UK job. (What's happening to him should teach others not to be so arrogant in that department). But the university is trying to force him to pay for its own mistakes.

During his time with the Wildcats, Gillispie was exactly the coach he'd been at previous stops. UK's powers decided, in less time than is customary, that was not the right coach for them. Trying to escape its subsequent obligations is beneath the University of Kentucky.

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