Former Michigan star Jalen Rose said in ESPN’s “The Fab Five” documentary that he didn’t like Duke because they didn’t recruit inner-city black kids.
Duke basketball skin#
Many of Duke’s most hated players have been white, and the color of their skin seems to play a definite role in the hatred many fans have for the school. Redick has admitted to being arrogant on the court, head-bobbing when he would make a shot, later calling his persona “annoying.” Laettner was perceived as being cocky, while J.J. Duke is often criticized for flopping, with Greg Paulus drawing the ire of many fans.īecause Duke is always so good, some of their players have carried an air of arrogance that fans of other teams haven’t appreciated. Notorious moments like Laettner stomping on Aminu Timberlake’s chest in the 1992 Elite Eight or Gerald Henderson hitting Tyler Hansbrough in the face and giving him a bloody nose have not helped their reputation. Not only does Duke always have good players, but many of them are often easy to dislike.įans have often had problems with the way some Duke players have played the game.
Duke basketball professional#
LeBron James made the Miami Heat the NBA’s most-despised team by leading them to four straight NBA Finals, and the New York Yankees’ 27 championships might make them more hated than any other team in professional sports.īut saying that people don’t like Duke only because they are winners wouldn’t be correct. Second on the list is the New England Patriots, who have been more successful than any NFL team in the last 15 years. Five Super Bowl appearances in the 1970s made the Dallas Cowboys “America’s Team,” but a recent poll calls them the most-hated team in the NFL. Success breeds fans, but it brings about even more detractors. Only Connecticut has won as many titles during that span, but they’ve missed the NCAA Tournament seven times in the last 25 years. In the past 30 years, the Blue Devils have won four national championships, reaching the Final Four 12 times. 500 when head coach Mike Krzyzewski missed most of the 1994-1995 season because of back surgery. Since 1984, Duke has missed the NCAA Tournament only once, going five games under. The Blue Devils’ trip to this year’s Final Four is no surprise, as they are national title contenders every year. There are a number of reasons why fans root against Duke, but the biggest is its consistent success. There have been songs written about fans’ hatred for Duke, and a recent ESPN documentary entitled “I Hate Christian Laettner” went into depth about the vitriol that many have for the school and one of its best all-time players. In 2010, a USA Today poll found that 49 percent of responders rooted against the private North Carolina university. While the Blue Devils will have their share of supporters in Indianapolis on the last weekend of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament, plenty of “Duke Haters” will be rooting against them.ĭuke is arguably the most-disliked team in college basketball, and one of the most-hated teams in all of sports. Having reached the Final Four with a victory over Gonzaga, Duke is just two wins away from the 2015 national championship.
Caption:DURHAM, NC - JANUARY 19: Fans pull for head coach Mike Krzyzewski of the Duke Blue Devils prior to their game against the Pittsburgh Panthers at Cameron Indoor Stadium on Januin Durham, North Carolina.
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