Ray Glier

The hosannas were flowing for Mike Krzyzewski in mid-February. Canonization was right around the corner.

Duke, already thin with the NBA raid on its roster, was depleted with injuries. A walk-on was getting significant minutes at guard. Still, Duke won and won and won. Coach K alongside Coach Wooden for best ever.

And then you watched Shelden Williams play one terrific game after another and wondered what was all this fuss about Krzyzewski’s coaching. I could win a few games with this kid.

If Williams had the same help Sean May had at North Carolina, another big man on the opposite block, Williams would have been a monster in March, too.

As it was, he was exceptional and he made Coach K look exceptional.

It wasn’t just the scoring (15.5) and rebounding (11.7). It was the blocked shots. Only 7-footers get a number like this: nearly four a game. This guy has timing and discipline.

Sure, Adam Morrison of Gonzaga will be one of the best returning players in college basketball, along with Taj Gray of Oklahoma and Dee Brown of Illinois. Ike Diogu of Arizona State is on the fence. If he stays, he could be just as productive as Duke’s Williams.

You will also hear a lot next preseason about Curtis Stinson of Iowa State, UConn guard Marcus Williams, Michigan State’s Paul Davis, and Duke’s J.J. Redick, a first-team All-American.

But none of the returning players in the game next fall will have anything on Williams.

If he surprises us in the next few weeks and decides to leave early, it will be too bad because in another year he will be a certain Top 10 pick, not the third post man picked in the draft behind Andrew Bogut and May.

Williams is a 6-foot-9 center who had to handle the post alone for the Devils because Shav Randolph had a tough season with foul trouble.

The Landlord saved Duke this season. Redick was a terrific scorer, but Williams was a beast in the paint and owned a lot of good players. Also, when you grab 11 boards a game in a rebounding league like the ACC that is really nice work.

Who are the other top returning players?

You know about Redick, the fiery guard for Duke. He came to school with a reputation as a shooter, but he is much more than that. He played without the ball and distracted defenses so much other players were made better. He is a tall guard with quick release and can get 30 points against good teams, as well as average teams.

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